An Ocean Apart / Starting Over

by Robin Pilcher

For six dreadful months, David Corstorphine has tried to come to terms with his young wife's death, while caring for his three motherless children. Try as he may, David is unable to return to work, and his only form of solace comes from working in the garden of his parents' estate in the Scottish countryside.

Dispatched unexpectedly to New York, David's family hopes that the impromptu business trip will help him get back on his feet. But the journey proves both disastrous and heartening. David finds himself settling in comfortably among the strangers of a seaside Long Island town, and takes a job as a gardener. But it is the people he meets, the pain he confronts, and the joy he is able to once again experience that prove to be magically transformative-- and as David learns to accept his enormous loss, he is able to open his heart to love once again.

Genres: Fiction

880 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Robin Pilcher was born on 10 August 1950, the eldest son of author Rosamunde Pilcher, née Scott (aka Jane Fraser) and Graham Hope Pilcher.
He has been a cameraman, a songwriter, and a farmer, co-managed a mail order business, and has had numerous other jobs.
He lives with his wife and children near Dundee, Scotland, and in the Sierra de Aracena mountain area of Andalusia, Spain, where he plans to establish a writing institute supported by the Pilcher Foundation of Creative Writing.

Reviews

[Marie Phillip]

I don't usually read contemporary novels, especially those involving business. I read this story because it was already in my library, probably because it partly takes place in Scotland, of which I'm fond.
Having said all that, I was surprisingly immersed in An Ocean Apart. Its two main characters experienced trauma that we all have dealt with first or second hand and found to be unpleasant. It's how they overcame the trauma that the author did a good job with.

[Melissa Rowse]

This book is written prior to cell phones - where faxes rule the world.

It was definitely predictable in spots. I do love the character development and descriptions.

I was intrigued and wanted to keep listening to it.

The beginning is tough as a number of people are introduced. Overall a solid 3.75.

[Sandy]

not as good a writer as his mother but entertaining enough...... Having finally finished this book by skittering through it, hopping and skipping over paragraphs and whole sections, I can say for certain that this man does not have the gift of story telling that his mother did..... Sorry Robin.... just ain't there. I could not wait to get through all the miscellaneous stupid stuff and find quality portions, but.... alas.... oh well, it was worth trying.... just won't pick up his other books.

[Margaret]

I liked the first story, An Ocean Apart, a lot more than the second story, Starting Over. I think with Starting Over, most of the plot was too obvious to me and I guessed the ending which made it anti-climatic. In both stories, the characters take trips from their native Scotland and discover a truth about themselves. I liked the Scottish roots but think I would have preferred to less similar stories within one book.

[Carlasu Spencer]

If you like Rosemund Pilcher..this is her son..good book..his 2nd book is out Starburst really good also!

[Dahomes4u]

Found his Mother's writing (Mauve Benchy) to be more of my style. It was interesting.