The Four Seasons

by Mary Alice Monroe

A time for change...and second chances

They are the Season sisters, bound by blood, driven apart by a tragedy. Now they are about to embark on a bittersweet journey into the unknown; an odyssey of promise and forgiveness, of loss and rediscovery.

Jillian, Beatrice and Rose have gathered for the funeral of their younger sister, Meredith. Her death, and the legacy she leaves them, will trigger a cross-country journey in search of a stranger - a stranger with the power to mend their shattered lives. As the emotions of the past reverberate into the present, Jilly, Birdie and Rose search for the girls they once were - in hopes of finding what they had really lost: they women they were meant to be.

Genres: Fiction, Chick Lit, Romance, Contemporary, Family, Womens Fiction, Book Club

408 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 25, 2001

About the author

Mary Alice Monroe is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of 30 books, including her new novel, Where the Rivers Merge, the first book in a duology and her historical debut. The second book is titled The Rivers End. Release date has not been set yet.

Monroe has also published children’s books, which complement the environmental themes she is known for in her adult novels. Monroe’s middle grade series, written with Angela May, The Islanders, debuted #2 on the New York Times Best Sellers List in 2021. The second book in the series, Search for Treasure, debuted #3 on the New York Times Best Sellers List. And the third book in the series, Shipwrecked, is available everywhere books are sold.

Nearly eight million copies of her books have been published worldwide.

Mary Alice has earned numerous accolades and awards including induction into the South Carolina Academy of Authors’ Hall of Fame; South Carolina Center for the Book Award for Writing; the South Carolina Award for Literary Excellence; the SW Florida Author of Distinction Award; the RT Lifetime Achievement Award; the International Book Award for Green Fiction; the Henry Bergh Award for Children’s Fiction; and her novel A Lowcountry Christmas won the prestigious Southern Prize for Fiction.

Mary Alice is also the co-founder of the popular weekly web show and podcast Friends & Fiction.

The Beach House is a Hallmark Hall of Fame movie, starring Andie McDowell. Several of her novels are optioned for film.

Mary Alice has championed the fragility of the earth’s wild habitat. The coastal southern landscape in particular is a strong and important focus of many of her novels. For her writing, Monroe immerses herself in academic research, works with wildlife experts, and does hands-on volunteering with animals. She then uses the knowledge and experiences to craft captivating stories that identify important parallels between nature and human nature. Sea turtles, bottlenose dolphins, monarch butterflies, shorebirds are among the species she has worked with and woven into her novels.

Mary Alice is also an active conservationist and serves on several boards including the South Carolina Aquarium board emeritus, the Pat Conroy Literary Center Honorary Board, and the Leatherback Trust, which she received the Leatherback Trust Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022. She is especially proud to be a state-certified volunteer with the Island Turtle Team for more than twenty years.

Mary Alice splits her time between her home on the South Carolina coast and her home in the North Carolina mountains. When she’s not writing a novel, she is with her family or busy working with wildlife somewhere in the world.

Reviews

[Dale Harcombe · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is this cover I have but it is not a Kindle edition, but a paperback by Mira.However it doesn't seem to be on the site so rather than fuss around,I have just gone with this so you see the cover.
Different moods and times call for different books. Sometimes you just want a book that is not a literary masterpiece, is not heavy or thought provoking but will just let you escape into it for a few hours and get lost in the lives of the characters. I found that with this story of the Season sisters, Jillian, Beatrice, Rose and Meredith, or Jilly, Birdie, Rose and Merry as they are more commonly known. Jilly, Birdie and Rose have gathered at the family home for the funeral of their youngest sister Meredith. It is Merry’s final request that initially sparks anger, but in the end will be the catalyst for a search that will uncover secrets, resentments, guilt and feelings long covered over which have simmered under the surface for a number of years.
Over the course of the journey the sisters learn more about themselves and their family. I was happy to go along on this journey with them, even though at times I did find things a little predictable or that they worked out a bit too neatly. I liked the way how, as the story went on, more of the characters and their pasts were revealed and I liked the way the relationships developed over the story. It’s not only the relationships between the sisters but also between Birdie and her husband and daughter that need change. There is a romance element or two in the book but the scene with the massage and rose petals could have been left out. It was superfluous. But all in all I enjoyed the story and laughed and shed a tear or two along the way. Someone had written on the back of my library copy, 'brilliant.' While I wouldn't quite go that far, it was a good escapist read and sometimes that’s all you want.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my second book from Mary Alice Monroe that I have read and it was a pretty good read. It was about three sisters who reunited with each other after their youngest sister died and gives them a quest to go on: to find Jilly's daughter Spring and give her the time capsule they all made. They all go on the trip to rediscover their childhood and to face their fears of the unknown. Definitely check it out.

[Sandy Ahn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can't believe all the reviews that were 4 and 5 stars. I found this book to be not very well written and terribly predictable.

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

I normally love her books, but I found these characters sickening and annoying. This took me forever to get through....but I just couldn't abandon it...I am no quitter. But, really, don't bother.

[Marie Christensen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book!

[Harriett Thornton · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an older book written by Mary Alice Monroe, set in 1999, but I really enjoyed it. The characters were interesting, and their feelings and emotions were believable. I'm glad I read it, and will be going back to make sure I haven't missed any of her previous books.

[Julie Barrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Four Seasons by Mary Alice Monroe
The funeral will bring the sisters together: Jillian, Beatrice (Birdy), Rose. Mary the 4th is now dead.
Model in Paris, pediatric doctor and word processor working from the family home, were their professions. In Mary's last wish video they learn she wants them to find Spring and give her the share of her money from the estate.
The book goes back in time to when she told her parents she was pregnant and we learn all the details.
Alternating chapters from the present to the past...She's sent away to a convent for unwed mothers and they will give the baby to a family.
The woman and daughter gather together to trace the one baby given away. Feel the emotions as they go through them, different for each of them as they go onward.
The secret I wonder, will it come out as to who the father could really be or remain a secret forever.
I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).

[Laurie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This novel tells the story of the four Season sisters . When they gather for youngest sister Merry's funeral they are presented with the chance to confront a family secret that has festered for nearly thirty years. As they gather for the funeral each of the Season sisters is awash in her own problems. Investigating an old family secret gives them the opportunity to face their own demons, as well as to fulfill Merry's dying wish. If the plot sounds a bit hackneyed, that's because it is. The plot is entirely predictable. At no point was I surprised, and I saw the end coming from a mile away. The writing is also clunky. The prose is littered with excess detail, which serves no real purpose. Ultimately this book was far too predictable and sentimental to be enjoyable.

[Diane Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book!! I felt such a part of these sisters. I don't have a sister and as I've gotten older, I miss having one even more. The author developed interesting characters and as the story unfolds, we discover how they got to be who they are today. I love the complexity of each person and the hopefulness for their future. The depth of the plot keep me turning the pages and the outcome did not disappoint. (I hate sad or cliff-hanging endings). This would be a great summer read! Or curl up in the winter and read. I'm headed to the library to check out another of Monroe's books.

[Brenda · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is by far my least liked book by this author. I found the characters to be whiny and hard to connect to. I finished it, but nearly DNF it about halfway through. I'll stick to her southern works.

[Melissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not a favorite of mine. Completely predictable and while the jacket led me to believe there would be depth to this story, sadly it was lacking.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mary Alice Monroe has a gift for telling entertaining tales about families and relationships. I find myself engrossed in the story and spending my evenings enjoying her novels.

[Judi Asdell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very heartwarming read of sisters and their lives . We become what we are meant to be sometimes in spite of our childhood. ..AWESOME book

[Judy Churchill · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story was sweet but pretty simplistic.

[Lisa Shower · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful story!

This author has a skill with words like few others. Such an uplifting very of family, love and life lessons.

[Susannah Carleton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good story of a family of four sisters and how one or two events from their past changes their perceptions of their lives and each other. After their youngest sister’s death, the three surviving sisters and the married sister’s teenage daughter begin a quest to fulfill their late sister’s final request. In the process, each one comes to know herself and her sisters better, and they rediscover the close bonds they shared as children.

The journey is not an easy one, and along the way, each sister must confront and overcome her greatest fear. Will each sister discover what she is searching for along the way?

Another wonderful book about sisters and family by Ms. Monroe.

[Jann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought the book was wonderful. Three sisters, Rose, Beatrice/Birdie and Jillian/Jilly reunite for the funeral following the death of their youngest sister, Meredith/Merry. Rose has never left their childhood home and, since the death of their parents, has been the carer for Merry who has been mentally handicapped since early childhood following an accident in the family swimming pool. This accident has affected the whole family in various ways and as the three of them reunite after having been virtually estranged for twenty-six years they gradually get to know each other again and feel the love which had made them such wonderful companions to each other in their childhood.

Even though this was written in 2001 the personalities are still fresh and appealing. The life experiences of the three are completely plausible and the emotions ring true. The reader feels the pain of each of them and, if they are like me, they will empathise and be really hoping that the three manage to overcome the hurt and be reconciled.

[R · Rating 4 out of 5]

*** MINOR SPOILERS ***
This book is a standalone and it is the first book I have read by the author.
The book tells the story of four middle aged sisters who get together when one of them dies. The three surviving sisters are asked posthumously via a letter to fulfill a request by the deceased sister, Meredith. During the book, each sister makes a life change for the better.
Jillian is the oldest and when she was a teenager, she was forced to give up a baby for adoption. She did it because she knew she could not provide a good home for her child, but she feels like it breaks something inside of her. Her parents pushed her to do the adoption and she ended up in the difficult atmosphere of a home for unwed mothers. After the baby was born, Jillian rarely returns home. Jillian has been married three times and has had a glamorous life in Paris as a model. She now is broke and divorced. Meredith’s request is for Jillian to go find her daughter. Jillian has many feelings about doing so: fear, shame, longing. Her journey involves going through those feelings and undertaking this journey. She is able to move forward with her life after doing so. During the search, she meets Rajiv. He does not reveal much about his past and I thought that it put them on an uneven footing.
Birdie (Beatrice) is a successful doctor, married, and has a teenaged daughter, Hannah. On the surface, she feels like her life looks perfect, but she feels alienated from her husband and child. She looks older than she is and has gained weight. She likes to be in control and, when her sister dies, she tries to take charge but her sisters do not let her and some decisions have to be made together. When the quest comes up to find Jillian’s daughter, she wants to be part of it as a way of connecting with her sisters because Meredith’s death makes her realize how important they are to her as well as that she needs to have a break from her life. During the search, she comes to terms with why she has a very strong need to be in control and is able to put some of those feelings to rest. She begins to try to reconcile with her husband and child. She also has to come to terms with two difficult shocks. I thought that the author minimized these shocks for her and for her husband. I thought her husband came across as very caring despite the distance between them.
Rose has taken care of Meredith for years. They lived in the family home which crumbled around their ears. She supported herself by working from home through her computer and has not left the house very often. With Meredith’s death, she is unmoored. She also has an email relationship with a trucker named DannyBoy. You are not sure if he is a good person or a con man, but his kind letters have led Rose to believe they are friends. Rose is the biggest proponent of fulfilling Meredith’s request. As the story moves on, Rose feels more free and, when she sees Jillian reaching out to try to find her child, she decides to be brave and to move on with the dreams that were set aside when she began taking care of Meredith. Also, when Birdie faces one of her challenges, I loved how Rose handled it.
Meredith is the youngest sister and has died. You find out early in the story that she has some kind of disability. Later in the story, you find it that she got brain damage from an accident in the swimming pool. It has a profound impact on the family as they all feel incredible guilt for what happened which they have never gotten over and it has affected their behavior and life attitude ever since. Their mother starts drinking which led them all to feel less loved. Meredith has always been concerned about Jillian’s baby who was given up and writes the letter to ask her sisters to find her. During their search, they each come to terms with Meredith’s death.
Birdie’s daughter, Hannah, goes on the journey with them and is made a part of the “four seasons”, becoming Meredith’s successor. Hannah’s role in the book is minimized but she and Birdie, her mother, learn to interact in a new and better way. Hannah is very supportive of her aunts. There is a scene towards the end of the book where I am surprised that she is not there (it is not explained).
Most of the story is about the sisters and their individual and joint journeys. They learn how much the mean to each other again. They also face what happened around Meredith’s injury and Jillian’s pregnancy, both of which had a huge impact on everyone in the family.
There are side stories about their relationship with men. Jillian meets Rajiv. Birdie and her husband, Dennis, have to decide how to move forward, together or apart. Rose has to make a decision about DannyBoy. Each of them are brought up in the context of each of the women learning something from the relationship, not about the relationships themselves. I thought each of these stories were wrapped up a bit quickly and that more could have been added. This is true, but it was not the point of the book. The book was about the sisters. Birdie’s husband had a previous relationship with Jillian that I did not think needed to be included in the book.
The title refers to the family’s last name, Season, and I thought it was an artificial name. It could have been tied a bit to the winter of Meredith’s death, the spring of the search, and the summer of the fulfillment which comes from it. There is a seasonal reference at the end of the book describing how every life does have a winter but then you move forward again. This concept could have been better done if it had been included. Or it could have just been eliminated and their family name could have been Smith.
I read this story more than 20 years after it was written. There are references to technology that are old and true to the time, but more importantly, it reflects a different society. When Jillian gives up her child, the way society looked at unwed mothers was very different. I thought the author captured that well.
Finally, another reviewer criticized this book because she did not like reading about the point of view of a birth mother. She had adopted a child and felt like Jillian and her sisters did not give enough consideration to whether or not the child wanted to be found. I think it conveyed an insecurity that I am sure adoptive parents have and a desire to protect their adopted child. I do think it is an important point. According to the Search Institute, 72% of adolescents want to know about their birth parents and 94% want to know which parent they look like. In this book, the child is an adult. People may want to know for medical reasons, curiosity, and other motivations. It all comes down to whether each wants to do so and, in most circumstances, my humble opinion is that it would be ok either side to know that the other was interested in them. They can then determine if they want to proceed. This is an issue for someone to consider before reading the book.
When I bought this book, I bought another by the same author and I do plan to read it. I liked the story of the sisters taking the time together and helping each other to a new beginning.

[Julie Barrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

the four seasons by mary alice monroe, sisters travel home to bury their youngest sister. different thoughts, different lifestyles all mingle
to come together again in the family house. good and bad memories are brought up and each deals with them differently.
reading of the will brings forth a last request, deliver the
time capsule to the child that one of the sisters had as a teen.
the book takes you through the journey to search and find the child. i love how the
realizations bring them all closer as a near drowning occurs.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another good one by this author- The characters are so well developed- as the book progresses, so do the characters; adding more depth and interest. Again, the South Carolina low country setting which brings another element to the story. Love how the plot is always interesting in all of Mary Alice Monroe's books but even so it takes second fiddle to character development . Love all of her books. Know each book will be a good read and have enjoyed each and every one of them!

[Catherine Craig (Angelic Light) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this children's book, which is about a little girl called Talia who, along with her pets, explore the different seasons and find out why they occur on the earth.

The illustrations in the book are amazing and colourful and the characters are cute.

I highly recommend this book, especially for children aged 3-6, although I think all children would love it!

Many thanks to the author, publisher and Edelweiss for a copy of this book.

[Sue Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding book! Each sisters was so perfectly developed and incorporated into the story line that I felt like I was one with the family as they went on this incredible journey of discovery.
Can't wait to read more books by this author.

[Mari Carroll · Rating 4 out of 5]

I do love Mary Alice Monroe as an author...not too deep but not too fluffy. This was no exception - a tale of siblings who just lost their youngest sister. As they come together in grief, they learn a lot about each other - and about themselves.

[Jeanne (love2cook) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a story about the friendship between sisters. They have known tragedy that has driven them apart. Now they embark on a journey into the unknown. Along the way they'll find forgiveness, loss, promise and rediscovery. A good read!

[Susan A Horton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Author Mary Alice Monroe did an excellent job unlayering a family who came home for a funeral. All families are disfunctional and few hold forth the truth in events or so we think. The Season sisters have endured a high range of drama, tensions and emotions to emerge agreeable.

[Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Four Seasons are four sisters with the last name Season. A page-turner for me. Couldn't wait to get back to it to see what happened. Somewhat predictable, and yet not. Loved it.

[Brooke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Strong characters. Great, heartfelt story.

[M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read MAM for realistic Lowcountry life. She's the best of all.

[Chloe (Always Booked) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. This book is a women's fiction story about the 4 Seasons sisters. They all come back together when the youngest, Merry, dies. We hear each of their stories. Jilly, the oldest, is a model in Paris. Birdie is thick, solid, athletic and married with a teenage daughter named Hannah. Rose is the 3rd daughter and she's very plain. She's the only one their father didn't give a nickname. Merry is the youngest and she is the one who has died. We know that something happened to her when she was young so she was both physically and mentally handicapped, but we don't know the full story until the very end. I loved getting to see the women bond and come back together on this trip. Each has their own secrets and insecurities and together with Hannah (the daughter) they bond and rediscover the unconditional love of sisterhood. I thought Jilly's story overtook the whole book. I wish Rose would've had a more developed story, especially because her insecurity was that she was too plain. She was dull and forgettable. I really thought that Jilly's present day love story was also really unnecessary. Overall I would recommend this book if you're into women's fiction about sisters.

SPOILERS AHEAD:
Jilly-- she dated Birdie's husband when they were 16 and we find out in the end that he is the father of the baby she gave up for adoption. A lot of the story is the women going on a journey to try to find the baby because Merry's last wish is that they would find the baby. In the end, they do find her and she's got her own daughter and is expecting another. Jilly has a place in her life, but she also has a great mother. Jilly starts a relationship with the manager of the hotel that they all stay in and I was SO uninterested in that love story and I didn't feel any connection there. I wish it would've been left out.
Birdie-- she is a doctor and has been married to the same guy forever. They have a teenage daughter named Hannah. Hannah goes with the women on the journey to find Jilly's baby. Birdie and her husband are having issues and they split up for awhile, but it all ends up happy in the end. I liked seeing how they worked through their marriage issues.
Rose-- nothing really happens with Rose except that she has an online relationship with a guy with the screen name Danny Boy. In the very end, they meet and live happily ever after.

[Theediscerning · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hmmm… A book trying too hard, it doesn't really get the basics right. A girl talks to us, and her pets, about the delights of all the four seasons, and then jumps right on a science tip to close with all the space science needed to explain the seasons. Before then we have issues – the text, with the girl just sounding like a stuck-up, conceited know-it-all, is not in keeping with the "can you spot the bleeding obvious?" mini-game for each page; and much store is had by the pages having cut-outs so details are involved on two images, but this doesn't go nearly far enough. It ought to be more clever than "ooh, look, where the sun was in the spring, there's a sun now it's summer!" kind of thing we get. That started out well, with a cat moving from indoors to outside while staying in the same spot, but the craft in that just wasn't there. For all the variety of the seasons, this felt static and failed to show the dynamic variance across the year. I've certainly seen the subject presented in better ways.