Saving Grace

The Button Jar #1

by Fiona McCallum

When Emily Oliphant married John Stratten, she thought it was the beginning of an exciting new adventure, imagining herself standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the most eligible farmer in the district, mucking in to build a thriving agricultural business. Three years later, however, Emily sees her marriage for what it is — a loveless tie to a callous man, her advice heeded only when it pertains to her husband’s dinner.

The last straw comes when John threatens to harm her new puppy, and Emily is forced to brave her husband’s wrath, and her mother’s glaring disapproval, and move out. With the encouragement of her new friend Barbara, Emily moves into an abandoned property, taking on the mammoth task of making the unloved house into a home. As she begins to work on the property, she discovers a new side of her father, meets some new friends and finds an inner strength she never knew she had.

Emily’s fragile confidence is soon tested, though, when the owners of the property make her a tempting offer. Will she risk everything and invest in the ramshackle house that has finally given her a sense of purpose? Or will Emily listen to the views of the community, and the voice of her mother, and go back to her sensible, but meaningless, life with John? 

Genres: Romance, Australia, Audiobook, Contemporary, Fiction, Chick Lit, Ebooks

Audio CD

First published April 1, 2013

About the author

** Please be aware Fiona is not active on this site. She can be best found on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/fionamccallu... **

Fiona McCallum spent her childhood years on the family cereal and wool farm outside the small town of Cleve on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula.

Fiona now lives in Adelaide and works full-time as a novelist. She writes "heart-warming journey of self-discovery stories" - often with a rural setting, sometimes with a romantic thread and sometimes without. Her tales tie together her love of animals and fascination with the journey people go on to find what really makes their heart sing and then follow their true passions to find happiness, even if it means taking risks and facing seemingly impossible obstacles. It's a storyline very close to Fiona's heart because it reflects her own life.

Fiona now has nine Australian bestsellers to her name: 'Paycheque', 'Nowhere Else', 'Wattle Creek', 'Saving Grace' (Book one of The Button Jar series), 'Time Will Tell' (Book two of The Button Jar series) and 'Meant To Be' (Book three (and at this stage final) in The Button Jar series), 'Leap of Faith', 'Standing Strong' (a sequel to Wattle Creek), and 'Finding Hannah'. Her tenth book, 'Making Peace' has just been released (late March 2018).

Fiona is proof dreams can come true...

Please note, Fiona isn't active here. She only signed up to try and get books by authors of the same name removed from her listing. (Note, this Fiona McCallum is not the clairvoyant and author of "Dear Fiona". Nor is she the Scottish academic who writes about Christianity in the Middle East.) She's too busy writing to be on multiple social media platforms and only does Facebook. She can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/fionamccallu...

Reviews

[Kat Kennedy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay, at page 156 this crossed over from boring to painful to read.

And it's not that I don't understand what the author is trying to do here. Low self-esteem country girl, bully misogynistic husband, starting a new life and all that. It's probably mostly realistic. I've met enough couples like this - particularly country lads who couldn't wipe their asses without a woman around to help them with it. It's just that nothing happens. It's such a long, drawn out boring tale of lunch meeting after lunch meeting after coffee meet up and then a dinner meeting thrown in to round it off.

And whilst I understood why the main character was so painfully, ridiculously, annoyingly dumb, and even felt that her actions were in line with the character - this simply made that novel horrible to read.

But I'm nothing, if not, all about the edumacation, folks. So I'm going to provide a list of things to do, that this character definitely should have done, in case you ever find yourself in a similar situation.

Things you should do if you're leaving your partner:

1. Make copies of all financial papers. Bank statements, recent sales, deeds, debts, assets, superannuation details, payslips etc. (If you quit work to stay at home for your partner/family - remember to consider the superannuation that you've lost out on when calculating your financial worth.)

2. Seek legal advice. Make sure this lawyer or firm is not representing your partner. If you can't afford a lawyer and don't qualify for legal aid, investigate a mediator.

3. Make note of the date of separation.

4. Close any joint accounts.

5. Get your name off utilities as soon as you leave.

6. Don't sign anything without having it viewed by your lawyer.

7. Fuck everyone else. Seriously, just fuck them. Do what you need to do for yourself.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emily Oliphant was twenty eight when she married John Stratten which was considered quite old according to the townsfolk of Wattle Creek. Emily believed this was going to be the happiest day of her life and was looking forward to spending the rest of her life with John. Emily's happiness turns to sadness only hours after her wedding and she realises that she has made a huge mistake.

Three years later Emily's much loved Gran died and Emily was heartbroken. Her Gran had been battling dementia and was in a nursing home where Emily would visit her all the time. She adored her Gran and loved spending time with her as often as she could. The day before she died she gave Emily a large jar of buttons. Emily was very familiar with the jar and remembers the jar from when she was a young girl. She also remembers her Gran only ever adding to the jar and never taking any buttons out of it.

With the support and encouragement from her friend, Barbara who lives near by, Emily finally finds the strength and courage to leave John. She'd taken all she could from him and the day he shot at her beautiful puppy, Grace was the final straw for her. He might've only wanted to scare Grace, but Emily knew that next time Grace wouldn't be so lucky. He also tore down the old cottage on the property just so Emily couldn't turn it into a B&B which he knew had been a dream of hers for awhile. Emily knew that John was nothing, but a mean evil man who treated her more like a slave and he wasn't going to change. Whist trying to sort out what to do next Emily decides to stay with Barbara and her husband David.

After staying with Barbara and David for a few days, Emily decides to move into an old abandoned farmhouse. The rent is cheap, but it's in desperate need of some repairs. So with the owners approval who are two elderly brothers, Emily starts cleaning the place up. Emily's father Des is a wonderful help and in no time the place is looking totally different. Emily is starting to feel at home and it seems her life may finally be turning around. She likes the house so much that she is hoping the owners will consider selling it to her. Will the owners sell or will another dream of Emily's be shattered?

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I didn't want it to end. This is the first book I've read by Fiona McCallum and it definitely won't be the last. This may have been an easy and light read, but it's one I'm sure many will enjoy just as much as I have.

[Christy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I simply adore feel good books!!! And while this may not be an award winner, it is most certainly a heart warmer. I'm SO glad I read this and am now anxiously awaiting the next book in the series.

I don't get the negative reviews out there, as I found it to be lighthearted and fun read.

Emily has married the IT guy. He's from one of the richest families in town; he's good looking; makes her mother very proud to have her daughter married to the IN family; and he loves her right? Wrong! He's more in love with his booze and his pubs than her, and she's had it!!

After losing her beloved Grandmother, Emily decides she wants a puppy, since her no good husband is never at home. When she meets the puppies seller, Brenda, the two women have an instant connection and become fast friends. It is only after her new found friend points a few things out, that Emily decides it's time to leave her "lush life" and start anew. Mustering up all the courage she has, Emily leaves James and all of the comfort that comes with married life, such as a home and an income.

Bravely, and with Brenda's help and encouragement, Emily begins a new life in her new home. A broken down old farm house that has secret attachments to her father. She literally starts to clean house and begin her new life, with a few fun surprises along the way.

I do agree with other reviewers that the lack of a concrete ending is sometimes frustrating, but in this, it only makes me look forward to the next book in the series.

See my full review at www.knitlitkitchenwitch.blogspot.com

Thank you Net Galley and Harlequin Enterprises Australia for this lovely book!!!

[Loz · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 Stars.

Emily Oliphant married the town's most eligible farmer, John Stratten at age 28. Three years later, she's tired of his bullying and his demanding and demeaning ways.

First half wasn't great for me. Emily has very low self worth, after years of obeying John's wants and wishes, she's not much more than a glorified maid and cook. Emily's character was hard to like. She's got no fire! All these supposed dreams and desires, but she's hardly willing to do anything different to achieve them.

Started to look up in the second half. I liked Barbara and David - we could all use mates like them. Initially I liked cousin Liz, but I'm still confused over her behaviour when she visited...
Loved the introduction of Jake and Nathan, both possible contenders in the romance department, and neither a thing like her douche bag ex.

Finished with a HNF. I'd like to see Emily find herself, grow a damn backbone and succeed so I do hope to read more from this series... plus... look through the damn button jar girl!!

[Dale Harcombe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Two and a half stars. Loved the cover and the title has an interesting double meaning. I was really looking forward to reading this book. It is a pleasant enough book. The setting in rural Australia and the inhabitants of a country town are good features. It tells the story of Emily Oliphant who thought when she married John Stratten that she was destined for a life of love and acceptance, since he was the most eligible guy in the district from a wealthy farming family. It takes her three years to find out differently and to act.
I admit I read this story I love buttons and the stories that can be created from them. Emily has a button jar which Emily inherited from her grandmother. It is her treasured possession and one of the few things she takes with her when she moves out.
I loved the character of Barbara who is the kind of friend anyone would like to have. She is positive and dependable. But I struggled with the main character. There were times she showed strength but they were short lived before she started into self doubt and whining. Her mother Enid was a thoroughly unlikable person and perhaps explains a lot of why Emily is the way she is, but still I found Emily annoying. Her love and rescue of Grace, the Border Collie pup was one of her positives. I struggled with the constant bad relationship between mother and daughter. Not all mother and daughter relationships are as negative as they are portrayed in this book between Emily and Enid and also between Barbara and her mother. Isn’t it time we saw a book where mother and daughter get along and enjoy each other’s company? Just a thought. And I found I really couldn’t relate to Emily. I kept reading and as I said it was pleasant enough but I never really cared that much. I know other people have really loved it so maybe it’s just me. Maybe I just wanted more. There doesn’t seem to be a lot happens.

[Lynxie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Saving Grace is a story about survival. Surviving a bad marriage, surviving small country town gossip and surviving making a new life on your own two feet.

Emily Oliphant was a bit of a Mary Sue, in that she tried to be the 'perfect wife' the 'perfect daughter' and the 'perfect host'. Her naivety was laughable at times, her simple ideals sometimes frustrating and at others cring-worthy.

I liked Barbara, David and Des, hated Enid, wasn't fussed on Nathan or Liz either.

Two winning characters shone through for me. Grace, the Border Collie, and Jake. I really liked both characters and everything they bought to the story.

Considering this book was around 400 pages, not a great deal happened. There is a lot of inner reflection, personal learning and family bickering. I think it is small country towns in a book (yep stereotyping there I know), but it had a warmth and closeness about it, that was tinged with the barely veiled threat of ostracism that occurs in said country towns.

The location was painted well, allowing the Australian outback to shine through, yet portrayed the very real issues farmers face with clarity and a no BS approach.

I did notice a couple of typos in this, which irked me to no end, but as I was given an ARC copy it is likely these could have been rectified before publication.

**Note: Harlequin provided a copy of this book in return for an honest review**

[MaryG2E · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5★s
I'm aware that this book has rated well with other readers, and that Fiona McCallum's books are very successful. However I really struggled with Saving Grace. If I had not committed to reading it for an Aussie Readers challenge, I would gladly have abandoned it unfinished.

Certainly I enjoyed an earlier McCallum offering, Wattle Creek, and approached this novel with eager anticipation. I felt let down from the earliest chapters by the very bland tone of the prose. Undoubtedly the author chose to simplify the language to attract the broadest possible readership, but the dullness of the sentences got me down.

The premise of this story is promising: pleasant, well-meaning, under-confident bride suffers great indignities at the hands of her boorish husband. Eventually she plucks up the courage to leave him, and is faced with the challenge of making not only a new life, but also a new identity for herself. To me this scenario offers opportunities for the author to create some interesting plot lines, while saying something profound about the nature of relationships, and/or what it is like to come out of a spousal abuse situation, etc...

Instead I found that McCallum devoted endless paragraphs to describing how the protagonist Emily was feeling. She was so insecure, so negative in her mindset, so lacking in self-worth...and she never really improved over the nearly 400 pages of this book. Almost to the end she was wracked with self-doubt and considered going back to her horrible life with the nasty John. I was ready to throw the book across the lounge room in frustration! And the reason for this was that I wanted to see Emily get over her ordeal, develop a back bone, do something proactive and begin the process of reinvention. The journey - that's the soul of a story about redemption, in my opinion. Unfortunately I found that she really only made progress when prompted by the help of her father Des, friend Barbara and her potential love interest Jake. Thank goodness for those secondary characters, who injected a welcome dose of positivity to the text. I was disappointed with McCallum's depiction of the women in the book, as most were portrayed as nasty and manipulative. In the end I found Emily to be so unappealing as a character and so relentlessly negative in her self-talk I lost all interest in her story.

Feeling reasonably generous towards Fiona McCallum, I was prepared to rate this a full 3 stars until I reached the final page of the book. The story just stopped. I had no sense of a climax, of a rounding-out of the narrative so far. Undoubtedly the author and publisher expect I will rush to read volumes 2 and 3 of this Button Jar series, but they're sadly mistaken. NFA is my response to this crude, commercial treatment of the ending. I took a half star off, so it was a 2.5 rating from me.

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

The marriage of Emily Oliphant to John Stratten was known as a wonderful match. The Stratten name was synonymous with farming in the area, and John was a very eligible bachelor. Emily was thrilled John had chosen her to be his bride. But within hours of leaving the reception, she realized she had made a terrible mistake!

Three years later, Emily’s beloved Gran died, leaving her grief stricken. The day before she died, she gave Emily a large jar filled with buttons. It was a treasured memento from her Gran’s younger days. When John decided to demolish the nearby cottage on their property just so Emily couldn’t turn it into a B&B, which had been her dream for some time, and then shot at her new companion, puppy Grace, just to scare her, she knew it was time to take a stand. Her ties to a man who was cruel, and showed no love whatsoever, just needing her there to serve him meals, which made her realize she was a glorified maid, were over! She needed the courage to walk away, and her new friend Barbara was her major support. Her bitter and disapproving mother, Enid, was only concerned about her own good name, so Emily had no support from her.

After staying with Barbara and her husband David for a few days, Emily was encouraged to move into an old, abandoned farmhouse. The owners, two elderly brothers, were happy for her to live there, and do it up, so with help from her dad Des, Barbara and David, she began turning the house into her home. Discovering much about her father she didn’t know, realizing he was not the brow-beaten man she had previously thought him to be, was a soothing side effect of all their hard work. Emily’s confidence had taken a beating, and puppy Grace was a loving friend who adored her mistress.

But Emily was feeling the effects of what she had done, and though she had done nothing wrong, those friends she thought she had, turned from her, humiliated her and made her doubt her decisions…..

I really enjoyed this book, the interaction between the characters, the love of the Australian bush, which I could ‘see’ in my mind’s eye, and throughout the story, I could feel Emily getting stronger, finding her independence and courage to keep going. I was stunned when the book finished, as it WASN’T finished!! It was then I remembered reading at the beginning of the book that this one is the first in ‘The Button Jar series’…..I can’t wait to read the next episode!

With thanks to NetGalley for this copy to read and review.

[Janine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Emily was such an annoying, weak character and not much happened in the whole book. I did like Barbara.

[Bree T · Rating 3 out of 5]

Emily Oliphant thought that the rest of her life was going to be so fabulous after she married John Stratten, son of one of the largest wool producers in the district. John had been so charming and Emily saw herself working beside him on the farm, making it a success, sharing their lives together.

But the reality turned out to be much different. Instead Emily found herself little more than a slave, cooking John his meals and cleaning the house and providing him with a willing body each night in his bed. She was locked out of the farming life, deemed “not for women”, yet John would not let her get a job either and contribute to their somewhat dwindling finances. And to top it off, the loving man she knew before the marriage turned into a selfish and abusive one.

Finally gathering the courage to leave three years later, Emily finds a friend in local woman Barbara who encourages her in every dream that she has. For a while she stays with Barbara and her husband Dave, ignoring her overbearing mother’s pleas to reconsider her actions. Emily has dreamed of opening a little country B&B, collecting a scrapbook filled with ideas. She and Barbara find an abandoned farmhouse, something that would’ve once been grand in its heyday and Emily arranges through the local bachelor owners, two brothers, to rent it for a very cheap fee. As she throws herself into painting, cleaning, sanding and fixing up the old place, she dares to allow herself to dream just a little.

But Emily doesn’t have a job and her foolishness in signing her husband’s financial settlement document to swiftly end things between them means that she has been nicely played out of a much bigger settlement. In order for Emily’s dream to come true, she’s going to need income but the financial crisis is still affecting her small rural town and Emily has found herself the victim of local gossip as well. What she doesn’t know is that she’s in possession of what she needs to make her dream come true…she just needs a little bit of luck to find it, that’s all.

This novel is the first in a series and I read an uncorrected proof copy which didn’t state that either in the title, nor did it have a To Be Continued on the last page. The only reference I found to the fact that it was a series book was one line on the About The Author page, which I often don’t read. I hope that the finished copy does state that it’s the first book in a series because reading this as a stand-alone, you’re waiting for things to happen that quite frankly, never do.

There were parts of this novel I really liked: I’m always a big fan of rural fiction novels that depict women learning to stand on their own two feet and I rather like it when renovations are included. I’m a nerd for ‘do it yourself’ stuff and enjoy fix-up housing shows on TV and I like to read about it as well. But that doesn’t change the fact that the main character is ridiculously stupid and I find it hard to tolerate stupid main characters.

Firstly, she leaves a man who is verbally abusive to her and threatens her new puppy with a shotgun. Good enough reasons to get out in my book but her moping at him not coming after her or displaying emotion at her leaving was irritating. She married a man who expected a slave, not a wife and it was clear he didn’t care about Emily so long as she cooked his meals and warmed his bed. Also, she was given strong, repeated and very smart advice not to sign a financial settlement that her husband drew up for them until she’d had someone look it over. Her ex-husband’s not a lawyer. He’s not an accountant. She chose to ignore this advice and then was bothered when she found out she’d been screwed. What did you expect, Emily? When someone offers you a homemade financial settlement and wants it signed ASAP, you can guaran-damn-tee that they are not out to look after YOU. They are out to look after THEM. She was also, at times crushingly negative and it made me applaud Barbara, who dealt with it all so patiently. I understand that Emily was timid and probably beaten down after her difficult marriage and wanted to sever ties with a man that made her unhappy quickly – but then once you have done that, don’t complain about it! Even if you did get screwed, you chose to take that as a way to speed up the process. The other thing was, Emily told us several times that John was fabulous before they married, but the reader never got to see this. All they got was how he was after and it made it extremely difficult to understand how he’d managed to have a relationship with her and get her to marry him in the first place.

I think that hopefully, this book got a lot of that out of Emily’s character and that the second book might be more positive. I’m really interested in the storyline about her gran and the jar of buttons that she left to Emily (it’s referenced a lot in this book and the reader knows something that Emily does not and waiting for her to discover it when I thought this book was stand alone was somewhat painful). So on that hand, I am looking forward to the next one because I do want to see what happens and how Emily discovers what she needs to, what that will mean for her and what she will do with it. I just hope that she’s a bit more positive.

[Sue Gerhardt Griffiths · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 ⭐️s

Easy to read and thoroughly enjoyable. The first book in the Button Jar series. I look forward to reading the next book.



Audiobook via BorrowBox
Published by: Bolinda audio
Read by Jennifer Vuletic
Duration: 10 hrs, 42 min. 1.25x Speed

[Tamara Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. I loved the setting and the characters and just being in the story. It really was a sit back and enjoy sharing in someone elses life and journey kind of book. It dealt with some really serious subjects like a bully of a husband and finding your inner strength and the female relationships that see us through and make us who we are. I thought Emilys journey was so true of someone who has lived through what she has lived through, I've known people like Emily and their reactions to bullys don't always make sense to others but it was just so lovely to be a part of her journey and to cheer her on. I finished the book feeling as though I'd made new friends, put it down and looked around my living room thinking where did everyone go? Even Enid, I loved her vulnerability and the hint at the challenges that have made her who she is. It really was one of those books and I'm so glad it is only the first in the series. I really can't wait to see where Emily's journey takes us, which man she falls in love with and of course what happens with the button jar which is almost a character on its own.

This book really is a wonderful piece of Australian fiction you'll just fall in love with.

[Kayley Cossey · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐️
Started this book soooo long ago, the book itself was good, I just never seemed to be in the right mood for it but I kept coming back to it for some reason. The ending was slightly disappointing - I want to know what Emily ended up doing with her life!

[Renee Booth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I must admit, I have mixed feelings about Saving Grace. Let's start with the good. I don't often read many books that are set in my homeland of Australia so I really enjoyed the familiarity of the language and described landscapes. It was easier for me to create images in my head of buildings and locations because I am so familiar with it. The familiarity of a small country town setting where everyone knows everyone also relateable. I also found it easy to relate to the characters because they are country Australian's which I have grown up around, not to mention reading something with Australian lingo in it. If it weren't for this connection, I think I would have given it a lesser rating.

Onto the storyline itself. It was fairly flat-line. It just seemed like one continuous and somewhat repetitive story. There weren't really any highs or lows or anything overly exciting. There was no intensity within the story, good or bad. It is described that Emily finds an "inner strength she never knew she had", I never discovered that. I found her depressing and quite annoying at times with zero self esteem. Rather frustrating.

All together I found the story lighthearted but not heart felt. This is the type of book you would read if you didn't feel like investing yourself entirely in a book.

[Lisa Herrmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book and became quiet attached to the characters. Cant wait to read the next book.

[Sam Still Reading · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am enjoying Australian rural-based fiction more and more of late, so I jumped at the chance to try South Australian Fiona McCallum’s latest novel, Saving Grace. McCallum has the tick of approval from my mentor in Aussie rural fiction (my mother), who wanted this book from the moment the parcel arrived! I can say now that Mum was right on the money when she said I’d enjoy this gentle story.

Despite the title, the main character of the book is not Grace (that’s the dog), but Emily. Emily is the shame of her mother for not marrying until 28 (gasp!), but redeemed herself somewhat when her marriage was to one of the wealthiest farming families in the district. Three years on, the old Emily has disintegrated, leaving a shell of a woman who is continually bullied and abused by her husband. Emily lacks the courage to do…well, most things, but when John shoots at her puppy, she ups and goes. There, she must restart rebuilding her life from scratch and her confidence too. Can she become the independent woman she was, or is it all just too hard?

The character of Emily is one of the things I liked about Saving Grace. To have a heroine who isn’t as bold as brass in need of TLC was refreshing – this story is delightful when Emily regains the confidence and independence to do something the rest of us consider simple – like decide to rent a house. It’s a bold move by McCallum, but it worked for me. It made me realise just how damaging continued mental abuse is to someone’s self-esteem, whether it be from a spouse, family or a colleague. How Emily works her way through the difficult periods is realistic and positive.

McCallum is also a realist when it comes to portraying country towns – it’s not all happy living in a small town. She aptly describes the gossiping and shunning of those who are thought to be in the wrong. The snubbing of Emily when she goes to town by her friends is something that happens and unfortunately, there’s generally few avenues to turn to. (Think of it like school – the gossiping and living in each other’s pockets). Emily has a good friend in Barbara, who is her saviour in getting her through this.

I also really liked that there was no romance in this book. Yes, no romance. It was refreshing to realise I only had ten pages left and Emily hadn’t met ‘The One’. While it’s lovely to have a happy ending, it is more realistic that she’s not going to meet someone in her small community within a month! Speaking of the ending, it is left rather open and several plot lines are left dangling. I think (I’m not certain) that there could be a second book for Emily coming. I was a little surprised that the book finished where it did, but the main plot is Emily recovering after her separation and the ending was fitting for that.

This book was a fun and gentle read. McCallum characterises well, plus her descriptions of Emily’s farmhouse (almost) had me wanting a place in the country! I’ll be very pleased to read more about Emily and her friends.

Thank you to Harlequin Australia for the ARC.

http://samstillreading.wordpress.com

[Shelleyrae at Book'd Out · Rating 2 out of 5]

Saving Grace is the fourth book by Fiona Mccallum set in South Australia and the first in a new series named The Button Jar series. In this contemporary rural fiction novel, Emily Oliphant has endured three years of marriage to John Stratten and, when he destroys her hope of developing a B&B (literally) and threatens her only companion, a puppy named Grace, she decides she can't take his cruelty anymore. Despite her mother's vehement disapproval and her own doubts, Emily leaves and must find a way to rebuild her life and her dreams.

After struggling with Mccallum's lead protagonist in Wattle Creek, I was hoping to find Emily a more personable character. Unfortunately I quickly grew frustrated with Emily's passive attitude which swings wildly between self pity and bitterness. There were glimpses of strength but too fleeting, and almost immediately undone by semi hysterical rhetoric. To be fair, I was not completely without sympathy for Emily and thought that her thoughts and behaviours were not unrealistic, especially as she wavers, but I found her pessimism wearing.

I often find when I can't relate to the main character of a book it influences how I feel about the story as a whole, and that is certainly the case here especially as very little else happened plot wise. Saving Grace is a character driven novel and without the connection to Emily I care little about what happens to her. This novel feels as it ends abruptly with very little progress or resolution. There is some growth but generally at the instigation of others and I really wanted for Emily to take a more active role.

I did like Barbara quite a lot though, I appreciated how supportive and practical she proved to be, given the newness of her friendship with Emily. I also liked the way in Emily's father extended his quiet support to Emily, especially in the face of her mother's endless criticism and disapproval.

I really wanted to fall in love with Saving Grace, and I am sorry I didn't. I consider my opinion to be the result of a personality conflict with Emily, and not a reflection on the author but I can only describe it as an okay read (hence the 2 stars).

[katrina · Rating 3 out of 5]

2 1/2 Stars

Saving Grace by Fiona Mccallum is set in South Australia and is the first in a new series written by Fiona - named The Button Jar series. In this story we meet Emily who has been through hell and three years of marriage to John. John ruins Emily’s hope in her B & B and threatens her puppy Grace and she decides that this is the end. She has had enough of this cruelty and Emily leaves John and moves on to rebuild herself and her dreams.



I was unable to relate to Emily’s character I didn’t find she had a lot of personality. Her random bouts of angriness and pity upon herself became frustrating for me as the reader. I personally like to see more of a stronger character in my reads. She obviously has reasons for her bitterness, and in what she has been through a lot and herself pity was at times warranted. She did discover a certain amount of Inner strength she didn’t know she had, I did see this but overall, I just couldn’t like the protagonist. I don’t enjoy a whiny female character in my stories and Emily came across as someone with no self-worth.



I however did enjoy some of the other characters.



Overall, the storyline felt flat for me, no real suspense or left you hanging and wanting more. It had its great moments of course, the storyline being set in Australia. The small country towns, the landscapes and scenery. Some wonderfully vivid scenes but overall, this story was a flat liner for me.



The story is well written and by no means does this reflect the authors work, I think it had more to do with Emily and myself personally not enjoying her character.

[Diana Hockley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Authors as well known as Fiona McCallum can get away with lots of things in novels, but this time I don't believe the ending worked. In fact, there is no ending! If Ms McCallum is writing a followup to Saving Grace, then I doubt she will get the readers back. Not only do people who read prolifically often forget which books they've read - I do from time to time - but having been burned once, they are not likely to give the author a second chance.

Although the premise of the novel is good, though traditional - woman leaving husband and finding herself - I feel Emily is too negative and too stubbornly silly - readers will know what I mean by this comment - and deserved to miss out on - again you will know what! No spoilers! Suffice to say, the dog was the most sensible of the two of them.

All in all, the characters were not really fleshed out, minute detail absent, the plot skimmed the surface with the whole truncated. Not Ms McCallum's finest work, in my opinion.

[? ? · Rating 1 out of 5]

Following my theme of reading really bad books, this one sucked even worse than the last one. The author is just soooooooooooo subtle with not saying what’s in the button jar...like wow...the foreshadowing 👌. Also I understand that it wasn’t meant to be a fast paced book but I’m pretty sure only 3 or so actual events occur in it, and the rest of it is just Emily going on walks and people saying “I knew what you meant.”

[Sallyann Van leeuwen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring. I had this book on my iPad and it took me 6 months to read. Ugh - annoyingly dumb main character and flat storyline. I rolled my eyes at many scenes which were so overdrawn and uninteresting. Give readers some credit, as if anyone would sign divorce/financial papers without having a professional look at them! Really we are supposed to believe that?

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this series of books. The descriptive writing placed you right into the story. The suspense was fantastic ensuring you continued to read the next book.

Highly recommend the three books, easy to read but enjoyable.

My grandmother had a button tin and we would play with them as children, but not quite as special as the ones in the button jar!

[Belinda Toplis · Rating 1 out of 5]

A frustrating read. A lot of meaningless details that prolonged the finale .... A complete let down with absolutely no finality or conclusion. Will not bother reading the second book..

[Alicia Peters · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy to read, a great escape, can't wait to read the rest of the series

[Don · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saving Grace
by
Fiona McCallum
(Goodreads Author)




Set in Wattle Creek, Saving Grace tells the story of Emily who marries John, the wealthy farmer’s son, and is supposed to live happily ever after. It takes Emily three years to discover suitor John and husband John are divides apart. Fortunately, or unfortunately it does not take her that long to realise the she does not want him to be father of her children.

She leaves John after he fires a shot at her only friend on their farm, her newly acquired Collie pup, Grace, who was out doing what Border Collie pups do…looking at some sheep.

Emily’s mother disapproves of her marriage breakdown as much as she approved her daughter ‘catching’ the wealthy farmer’s son. Fortunately a new friend Barbara lends her the support she needs and helps set up a new home.

Narrator Jennifer Vuletic has to be applauded for her narration and her character voices. Jennifer made the characters come to life.

I thoroughly enjoyed Saving Grace and could identify with some of the small town issues which Wattle creek has. Saving Grace is not my first nor will it be my last as Saving Grace is Book one of theButton Jar Trilogy. If you enjoy Australian fiction, you will enjoy Fiona McCallum’s offerings.

I have rate Saving Grace a solid 4 star read.

At the time of writing my review other Goodreads readers had rated Saving Grace an average of 3.81 stars, from 652 ratings and 82 reviews.

[Tien · Rating 3 out of 5]

A rather random choice from my borrowbox account which turned out to be an okay audiobook to listen to. I liked the characters and the setting (small town community) but aside from the main event disclosed on the blurb (main character leaving her abusive husband), there really wasn’t much happening. It was a nice easy relaxing pace for the listener though maybe not for someone who’s just left her husband having to re-learn being on her own; not just the loneliness but also finances & relationships etc. I read some reviews beforehand so was pre-warned not to expect any romance though that doesn’t mean that the main character did not entertain some thoughts of it! I’m not sure if I’ll pick up the rest of the trilogy though… I didn’t feel bored listening to it but looking back, it was rather boring that nothing really happened! Maybe when I feel like a switch in pace, I may consider book 2.

[Chani · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do enjoy Fiona McCallum’s writing and I think of her style as ‘comfort reading’. The characters are good and you genuinely feel like you’re right in the story. This is the first book of the Button Jar series that follows Emily- a woman who begins, in this book, by leaving an emotionally abusive husband. I like stories where the characters grow through their tribulations, and Emily, the heroine, does grow, yet I still find her annoying because she comes across as quite immature in comparison to her friends. But I guess if she’s been in a controlling relationship she hasn’t had much opportunity to thrive the past few years. What’s beautiful is the friendships and how other women support Emily. I am engaged, as I love an emotional survival and new-beginning story, and will read the rest of the series. The audio of this series is well done with great voice interpretations.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought the kindle edition as I have not been able to find this anywhere. I owned the Book 3 in the series and finally got around to reading the first book - in one day!

I loved this story. At times it bogged down with too many reiterations but in general it was a truthful account of a woman who has become worn down by an abusive husband.

THe button Jar her Grandmother gives her is a mystery unto itself, which of course, I shall not reveal here!

The ending was abrupt though, and I felt the book could have gone on for at least another 50 pages, to obtain a little more 'cliffhanger' kind of effect.

All in all a very enjoyable read.

[Margi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't enjoy or finish Finding Hannah by the same author. I had Saving Grace on my TBR list and it sounded good but I was very disappointed with it. It was an easy read but just lacked in character development, depth and personal growth considering Emily ended a very unhappy and controlled marriage. I was expecting more layers to her new life as a single woman, healing and finding happiness. I basically found it ended without a great deal happening at all. I have the sequel Time Will Tell on my shelves but I'm not going to read it.

[Kim Sinclair · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this all Aussie book about farming and country people. I could imagine so much of it and related to much of the farming stuff based on my aunt's farm that I used to visit and enjoy.
Since I have been reading so many English books, it was refreshing to feel so at home with the language, culture, and way of life.
I found the protagonist slightly frustrating sometimes with her attitude to her own self-worth but that may be purely a personal thing. I had to buy book 2 of the Button Jar series once I finished this one.