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It All Comes Back to You #2
Dark Enough to See the Stars: The Sequel to It All Comes Back to You
The long-awaited sequel to bestseller and book club favorite IT ALL COMES BACK TO YOU has arrived!
Violet Glenn.
Everybody loved her.
In 1946, that included her boyfriend’s best friend, Sam Davidson.
Ronni Johnson wrote a book about Violet. It changed her life. Now she’s back working as a registered nurse at Fairfield Springs, loving her patients and her job. She doesn’t have another book in her.
A mysterious email arrives from Chet Wilson’s son, asking Ronni to tell “the truth” about his dad.
She ignores it.
Sam Davidson’s family becomes inextricably linked with Ronni, though, and through them she learns a story that must be told.
Ronni finds herself back at the keyboard, determined to share the long-held secrets revealed to her.
And once again, Violet is reaching back through the years to touch Ronni’s life.
DARK ENOUGH TO SEE THE STARS is a story of human resilience and fragility; of joy and sorrow; of our ability to find family in one another. Alternating chapters between Sam’s world in the distant past and Ronni’s in the present, readers will witness lives woven together, hearts bound forever in surprising ways.
Duke’s trademark humor and Southern charm make this a must-read for fans of Sue Monk Kidd, Anne Rivers Siddons, Rebecca Wells and Fannie Flagg. DARK ENOUGH TO SEE THE STARS is sure to be a favorite for readers, especially book clubs who want to revisit and discuss the characters of IT ALL COMES BACK TO YOU.
Violet Glenn.
Everybody loved her.
In 1946, that included her boyfriend’s best friend, Sam Davidson.
Ronni Johnson wrote a book about Violet. It changed her life. Now she’s back working as a registered nurse at Fairfield Springs, loving her patients and her job. She doesn’t have another book in her.
A mysterious email arrives from Chet Wilson’s son, asking Ronni to tell “the truth” about his dad.
She ignores it.
Sam Davidson’s family becomes inextricably linked with Ronni, though, and through them she learns a story that must be told.
Ronni finds herself back at the keyboard, determined to share the long-held secrets revealed to her.
And once again, Violet is reaching back through the years to touch Ronni’s life.
DARK ENOUGH TO SEE THE STARS is a story of human resilience and fragility; of joy and sorrow; of our ability to find family in one another. Alternating chapters between Sam’s world in the distant past and Ronni’s in the present, readers will witness lives woven together, hearts bound forever in surprising ways.
Duke’s trademark humor and Southern charm make this a must-read for fans of Sue Monk Kidd, Anne Rivers Siddons, Rebecca Wells and Fannie Flagg. DARK ENOUGH TO SEE THE STARS is sure to be a favorite for readers, especially book clubs who want to revisit and discuss the characters of IT ALL COMES BACK TO YOU.
316 pages, Paperback
Published December 13, 2022
546 people are currently reading
534 people want to read
About the author
Beth Duke
7 books221 followersBeth Duke is an Amazon #1 Best Selling Author and the recipient of numerous honors for her fiction on two continents.
She is eyeing the other five.
Her book TAPESTRY was the Bronze Medal Winner in Southern Fiction in Publishers' Weekly's 2020 Readers Choice Awards, an Award-Winning Finalist in the 2020 International Book Awards, and a Five Star Readers' Favorite Award Winner.
Country music superstar Randy Owen said, "Beth Duke's works are as real as grits and gravy in The South, and her usage of her Southern English has the taste of Mama's biscuits."
Beth lives in the mountains of her native Alabama with her husband, Jay, and an assortment of dogs including a recently-rescued coonhound named Daisy who has stolen her heart. Beth is the adoring and proud mother of Jason and Savannah. She is a constant reader, travel aficionado, and likes to pretend she’s in baking competitions.
She also finds great joy in joining book clubs for discussion (usually via Zoom). If your group would like to schedule a date, please email beth@bethduke.com.
Her books DELANEY'S PEOPLE, DON'T SHOOT YOUR MULE, IT ALL COMES BACK TO YOU, TAPESTRY, and DARK ENOUGH TO SEE THE STARS are all love letters to her home state.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 68 reviews
February 7, 2023
In a Nutshell: Enjoyed this sequel. Emotional and relatable. Can’t be read as a standalone though. You need Book One (It All Comes Back to You) to appreciate the contents of Book Two.
Story Synopsis: (No Spoilers about either book of this duology.)
As this is a sequel to ‘It All Comes Back to You’, it is going to be tough to review this novel fairly without revealing too much of the first book. Moreover, some of the most interesting parts of this story are also major spoilers. So my review will be quite vague – I wish I could tell you more though!
Where the book worked for me:
😍 For a change, I liked the contemporary timeline better than the historical one. (Usually, historical timelines are my bae.) There were quite a few emotional scenes and I could identify with the feelings of heartbreak and loss.
😍 The historical narrative begins a bit earlier this time, starting in 1946. So we see many of the same events, but this time from different characters’ perspectives. The integration between the two books for the historical is quite good. Most of the gaps in the sequence of events narrated in Book One are sorted out in this book.
😍 It was nice seeing the perspectives of some of the secondary characters from the first book. We got only a glimpse of their actions earlier; now we know why they did what they did.
😍 The book goes to establish how important it is to not jump to conclusions on hearing only one side of the story, which is what happened in the first book when Ronni writes an entire novel using only Violet’s narration. A lesson for all of us to remember. There are always two sides to a story.
😍 The writing is very fast-paced and it is easy to complete this within a day or two.
😍 The author’s familiarity with her location and culture is put to good use in both timelines. She uses the story to break many stereotypical assumptions people make about those living in the Southern part of the USA.
😍 There is a running joke in the 2020 timeline about how people keep recommending topics to writers for their next books. It was funny to see how and how often Ronni got this “friendly advice” even from strangers. Of course, this might be more irritating than hilarious to authors in real life, lol.
😍 The author's note at the end is among the sweetest I've read. Loved all the cute hints about how to picture the people mentioned.
Where the book could have worked better for me:
☹ I wish we could have had a little more of Johnny. He is the only character from the past timeline whose story still feels incomplete.
☹ There are more than a few references to good looks, and almost all of the relationships are either based on or initiated by a reference to the character’s physical appeal.
☹ There are too many characters, too many perspectives and too many interconnections. While these come out okay, it is a task to remember who’s who and who is related to whom.
☹ The spoken dialogues of the children are hardly ever accurate of their age. While one is explained away by saying the child is ‘precocious’ (well, she herself declares it), another case of a one-year-old speaking in comprehensible sentences was farfetched.
Can it be read as a standalone?
Well, technically it can be as there is no great dependency between the two books. But I don’t think you will be able to appreciate this novel unless you know the events that transpired before. Violet was a key character in the first book, and without learning of her story, you wont get most of the historical events in this sequel. So I would reading the books in the right order.
Overall, I am glad I read this sequel as it allowed me the closure I needed after reading the first book. Some of the events are a bit traumatic, but if read when you are in the proper headspace, this book will hit you the right way.
3.25 stars.
My thanks to Zooloo’s Book Tours and author Beth Duke for a complimentary copy of “Dark Enough to See the Stars” and allowing me to be a part of the blog tour. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.
———————————————
Connect with me through:
My Blog | The StoryGraph | Facebook | Twitter
Story Synopsis: (No Spoilers about either book of this duology.)
2020. Ronni is back working as a nurse after her successful book about Violet. She knows she has no more books in her, plus her fulfilling personal life leaves her with no motivation to pick up the pen again. However, when she gets an email from Chet Wilson’s son, claiming his dad has been misrepresented in her book and asking that she reveal the truth about Chet, Ronni is unsure of what to do. As circumstances change and the facts of the past come tumbling out right as the facts of the present begin to alter, Ronni is caught is a whirlpool of emotions, leading her to go digging yet again into the story of all those characters whom she thought she had left behind.
The story comes to us in the first person perspective of Ronni, with the historical timeline coming in a limited third person perspective of various characters.
The contemporary timeline is based three years after the events of Book One.
As this is a sequel to ‘It All Comes Back to You’, it is going to be tough to review this novel fairly without revealing too much of the first book. Moreover, some of the most interesting parts of this story are also major spoilers. So my review will be quite vague – I wish I could tell you more though!
Where the book worked for me:
😍 For a change, I liked the contemporary timeline better than the historical one. (Usually, historical timelines are my bae.) There were quite a few emotional scenes and I could identify with the feelings of heartbreak and loss.
😍 The historical narrative begins a bit earlier this time, starting in 1946. So we see many of the same events, but this time from different characters’ perspectives. The integration between the two books for the historical is quite good. Most of the gaps in the sequence of events narrated in Book One are sorted out in this book.
😍 It was nice seeing the perspectives of some of the secondary characters from the first book. We got only a glimpse of their actions earlier; now we know why they did what they did.
😍 The book goes to establish how important it is to not jump to conclusions on hearing only one side of the story, which is what happened in the first book when Ronni writes an entire novel using only Violet’s narration. A lesson for all of us to remember. There are always two sides to a story.
😍 The writing is very fast-paced and it is easy to complete this within a day or two.
😍 The author’s familiarity with her location and culture is put to good use in both timelines. She uses the story to break many stereotypical assumptions people make about those living in the Southern part of the USA.
😍 There is a running joke in the 2020 timeline about how people keep recommending topics to writers for their next books. It was funny to see how and how often Ronni got this “friendly advice” even from strangers. Of course, this might be more irritating than hilarious to authors in real life, lol.
😍 The author's note at the end is among the sweetest I've read. Loved all the cute hints about how to picture the people mentioned.
Where the book could have worked better for me:
☹ I wish we could have had a little more of Johnny. He is the only character from the past timeline whose story still feels incomplete.
☹ There are more than a few references to good looks, and almost all of the relationships are either based on or initiated by a reference to the character’s physical appeal.
☹ There are too many characters, too many perspectives and too many interconnections. While these come out okay, it is a task to remember who’s who and who is related to whom.
☹ The spoken dialogues of the children are hardly ever accurate of their age. While one is explained away by saying the child is ‘precocious’ (well, she herself declares it), another case of a one-year-old speaking in comprehensible sentences was farfetched.
Can it be read as a standalone?
Well, technically it can be as there is no great dependency between the two books. But I don’t think you will be able to appreciate this novel unless you know the events that transpired before. Violet was a key character in the first book, and without learning of her story, you wont get most of the historical events in this sequel. So I would reading the books in the right order.
Overall, I am glad I read this sequel as it allowed me the closure I needed after reading the first book. Some of the events are a bit traumatic, but if read when you are in the proper headspace, this book will hit you the right way.
3.25 stars.
My thanks to Zooloo’s Book Tours and author Beth Duke for a complimentary copy of “Dark Enough to See the Stars” and allowing me to be a part of the blog tour. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.
———————————————
Connect with me through:
My Blog | The StoryGraph | Facebook | Twitter
May 28, 2023
I received a gifted copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review as part of the book tourhosted by Zooloos Book Tours.
Dark Enough to See the Stars is the second book in the It always comes back to You series by Beth Duke. I do advise you to read these books in order as otherwise you will miss out on much to the story. In this book, we follow Deanee, Ronni, and Rick within a dual timeline of the 1940s to the early 2020s and fills in so much that we hadn't learned in book one. History is explained and pieced together, and yet again, I felt a mix of emotions from anger and sadness to happiness and joy. This is such an emotional series but heartwarming at the same time. The characters were so realistic and brought to life so avidly through both books.
Dark Enough to See the Stars is the second book in the It always comes back to You series by Beth Duke. I do advise you to read these books in order as otherwise you will miss out on much to the story. In this book, we follow Deanee, Ronni, and Rick within a dual timeline of the 1940s to the early 2020s and fills in so much that we hadn't learned in book one. History is explained and pieced together, and yet again, I felt a mix of emotions from anger and sadness to happiness and joy. This is such an emotional series but heartwarming at the same time. The characters were so realistic and brought to life so avidly through both books.
January 16, 2023
I absolutely loved this book ! From the very first page I was hooked . You don't need to have read the first book ( this is the sequel) but you will definitely want to do after reading this one !
The way the author effortlessly goes from different perspectives and times is a true talent, it would be easy to get confused and jumbled up as to what is happening but the book just flows with ease!
The characters that feature in this book are so intriguing, full of mystery , their personalities are very deep so you feel like you know them. The actual storyline is one that has you hooked and wanting to find out more ! A book written by an author who has true and clear talent !
The way the author effortlessly goes from different perspectives and times is a true talent, it would be easy to get confused and jumbled up as to what is happening but the book just flows with ease!
The characters that feature in this book are so intriguing, full of mystery , their personalities are very deep so you feel like you know them. The actual storyline is one that has you hooked and wanting to find out more ! A book written by an author who has true and clear talent !
January 20, 2023
There is just so much to commend about this beautiful book!
From the cover, the characters, the plot and amazing writing even down to the beautiful chapter markers (a tiny thing I know...but it all stood out to me!)
So, this book follows on from "It All Comes Back To You" - which I have a copy of, but sadly didn't have time to read both books in order - but, saying that... I think that I lost out on some of the character development slightly - but otherwise this book deals with some of the same characters, telling the story from a different perspective and filling in some blanks!
This may become a spoiler for book 1 when I get to read it - but in no way did it detract from my enjoyment of this as a standalone.
Beth writes with such poise and beauty - I was totally captivated right from the start!
We swap timelines throughout the book, spending alternating chapters in current day (2020) and back to the 1940's onwards where we discover the family's history.
I absolutely adored all the characters. It's quite rare to love every single character in a book, but somehow Beth manages to endear us to even the lesser significant ones. I really felt that every attention to detail was spent on every single person making each of them special.
I loved following the different timelines as not only could we see the present day effects and developments on the family, but also how events of the past, decisions made by grandparents and great-grandparents also affected the families as they were today.
I think I went through my whole repertoire of emotions with this book, I laughed and cried and everything inbetween.
Such emotive writing about topics that have, over the years, affected everyone and I am sure that this will touch everyone that reads it.
I really don't want to give much plot away as the blurb is available and there is just so much in this that I couldn't do it's storyline justice here - but suffice to say that I absolutely loved this one and cannot wait to back fill the story and read book 1 - I'm missing these characters already!
From the cover, the characters, the plot and amazing writing even down to the beautiful chapter markers (a tiny thing I know...but it all stood out to me!)
So, this book follows on from "It All Comes Back To You" - which I have a copy of, but sadly didn't have time to read both books in order - but, saying that... I think that I lost out on some of the character development slightly - but otherwise this book deals with some of the same characters, telling the story from a different perspective and filling in some blanks!
This may become a spoiler for book 1 when I get to read it - but in no way did it detract from my enjoyment of this as a standalone.
Beth writes with such poise and beauty - I was totally captivated right from the start!
We swap timelines throughout the book, spending alternating chapters in current day (2020) and back to the 1940's onwards where we discover the family's history.
I absolutely adored all the characters. It's quite rare to love every single character in a book, but somehow Beth manages to endear us to even the lesser significant ones. I really felt that every attention to detail was spent on every single person making each of them special.
I loved following the different timelines as not only could we see the present day effects and developments on the family, but also how events of the past, decisions made by grandparents and great-grandparents also affected the families as they were today.
I think I went through my whole repertoire of emotions with this book, I laughed and cried and everything inbetween.
Such emotive writing about topics that have, over the years, affected everyone and I am sure that this will touch everyone that reads it.
I really don't want to give much plot away as the blurb is available and there is just so much in this that I couldn't do it's storyline justice here - but suffice to say that I absolutely loved this one and cannot wait to back fill the story and read book 1 - I'm missing these characters already!
July 4, 2023
Dark enough to see the stars is the long awaited sequel to it all comes back to you by Beth Duke.
This book leaves you feeling soo many different emotions, just like the first one. The way that the author writes from different points of view and times is a true talent. The writing just flows off the page.
The story is beautiful and the characters are brilliant, each with a different personality, which makes you feel like you know them.
The author is very talented and I cannot recommend this book enough.
This book leaves you feeling soo many different emotions, just like the first one. The way that the author writes from different points of view and times is a true talent. The writing just flows off the page.
The story is beautiful and the characters are brilliant, each with a different personality, which makes you feel like you know them.
The author is very talented and I cannot recommend this book enough.
February 3, 2023
My heart is so heavy after reading this and the thing is I can’t even tell you why. I feel like I have been through the wringer with my emotions. So many emotions.
I loved being back with Ronni, Rick and Deanne. Things are so different from the last book and it is hard. So god damn hard!
I loved the past storyline. It was a different POV from what we knew and I adored that character in the previous book. So much we didn’t know! And so much we did. Each time we came across a scene I remembered it was like an aha moment. So many moments both in the past and present-day just broke my heart, brought a smile to my face and at some points anger! It was just so upsetting about some of the situations and I wanted other outcomes for them all.
Gosh, I did love this. I was wrapped up in the story, the characters and the true magical writing. This will have you feeling all the emotions! Every single one of them for sure.
I won’t say anything about the storyline just make sure you have a box of tissues with you, you are going to need them! It will also leave you wanting a hell of a lot more too!
I loved being back with Ronni, Rick and Deanne. Things are so different from the last book and it is hard. So god damn hard!
I loved the past storyline. It was a different POV from what we knew and I adored that character in the previous book. So much we didn’t know! And so much we did. Each time we came across a scene I remembered it was like an aha moment. So many moments both in the past and present-day just broke my heart, brought a smile to my face and at some points anger! It was just so upsetting about some of the situations and I wanted other outcomes for them all.
Gosh, I did love this. I was wrapped up in the story, the characters and the true magical writing. This will have you feeling all the emotions! Every single one of them for sure.
I won’t say anything about the storyline just make sure you have a box of tissues with you, you are going to need them! It will also leave you wanting a hell of a lot more too!
January 19, 2023
I have never read a book with so much feeling. The author has a real talent for making you feel emotions along with the characters and also a talent of going from past to present with different characters and making it flow so easily that you don't become confused. I laughed and I cried with this beautiful story, that has found a place in my heart. Getting to know Sam's story was a joy and once again I felt like I knew the characters. A lovely book that broke my heart.
July 4, 2023
As much as I usually dislike the pandemic being put into fiction, this was done really well and blended nicely with the story (edit: check out pinned comment for authors input on pandemic inclusion!) & a big appreciation of nursing practitioners who worked throughout.
Once again the inclusion of different time periods keeps the story interesting & I loved finding out another side to the enthralling story of the characters' past.
I will definitely be looking out for more by Beth
Duke as I've thoroughly enjoyed the writing in both of these & wouldn't hesitate to pick up more! Gonna miss Ronni!
Thank you so much to Zoo Loo Book Tours over on instagram for having me on this tour. (@nicoles_reading_corner on insta)
Once again the inclusion of different time periods keeps the story interesting & I loved finding out another side to the enthralling story of the characters' past.
I will definitely be looking out for more by Beth
Duke as I've thoroughly enjoyed the writing in both of these & wouldn't hesitate to pick up more! Gonna miss Ronni!
Thank you so much to Zoo Loo Book Tours over on instagram for having me on this tour. (@nicoles_reading_corner on insta)
February 14, 2023
The first book was just okay, but I enjoyed it enough I wanted to give the sequel a try. I wish I would have just let the story end with the first one.
Where to start? For one, I really wish it hadn’t been centered around COVID-19. We all lived it, I didn’t need this much reminder of how March 2020 went down. But, since it is such a central part of the story, it could have been far better developed. Imagine if you described the worst parts of the pandemic to someone who didn’t experience it, and then they wrote about it based on how you described it. That’s what it’s like reading this book.
Ronnie makes the jump from barely tolerable in the first book to flat out insufferable in the second one. We don’t hear much about her weight in this book, though, which is a reprieve. The only thing that makes me feel better about her chapters is the belief that she’s an unreliable narrator and the details are as she remembers them, not how they actually happened (that’s what I’m choosing to think, anyway). Rick’s literal last words before dying were that SHE made his life? No mention at all of his children? And why didn’t we see his sons visiting the hospital to say goodbye to him at the window like she did? Also, it really bothered me that there’s no reference to Baby Violet having any kind of relationship with her half-brothers. And where is Deanna’s family… does she really spent ALL her time with Ronnie and only Ronnie and completely forget about her actual daughter and grandkids?
Lots of other little things made this a barely-able-to-finish for me. Cringy dialogue, one-dimensional characters, teased “plot-twists” that don’t actually go anywhere. The best thing I can say about this story is that I finished it, and I don’t ever have to read this author again *shrugs*
Where to start? For one, I really wish it hadn’t been centered around COVID-19. We all lived it, I didn’t need this much reminder of how March 2020 went down. But, since it is such a central part of the story, it could have been far better developed. Imagine if you described the worst parts of the pandemic to someone who didn’t experience it, and then they wrote about it based on how you described it. That’s what it’s like reading this book.
Ronnie makes the jump from barely tolerable in the first book to flat out insufferable in the second one. We don’t hear much about her weight in this book, though, which is a reprieve. The only thing that makes me feel better about her chapters is the belief that she’s an unreliable narrator and the details are as she remembers them, not how they actually happened (that’s what I’m choosing to think, anyway). Rick’s literal last words before dying were that SHE made his life? No mention at all of his children? And why didn’t we see his sons visiting the hospital to say goodbye to him at the window like she did? Also, it really bothered me that there’s no reference to Baby Violet having any kind of relationship with her half-brothers. And where is Deanna’s family… does she really spent ALL her time with Ronnie and only Ronnie and completely forget about her actual daughter and grandkids?
Lots of other little things made this a barely-able-to-finish for me. Cringy dialogue, one-dimensional characters, teased “plot-twists” that don’t actually go anywhere. The best thing I can say about this story is that I finished it, and I don’t ever have to read this author again *shrugs*
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 18, 2023
Enjoyed exploring other perspectives from the first storyline. Didn’t think baby violet’s jargon was believable. It was kind of annoying to expect Ronnie to move on two years after her husbands death. It felt like it was too much of a push to connect Ronnie to Chet’s family line.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 27, 2023
Thank you @ZooloosBT and @bethidee for letting me be part of this tour and reviewing this book. I was so happy that I was chosen to read Dark Enough to See the Stars this is a sequel to it all coming back to you. I was so happy to be back with the characters Ronnie, Rick and Deanne. I adore these two books they are part of the family. Again I read this book in half a day and absolutely loved it to the point I could not put it down. It was nice to find out what happened to Ronnie after book 1 and sometimes felt like I was on an emotional rollercoaster during certain events that happened in the book. Again this story is written in two timelines: the past with Sam and Chet and the present with Ronnie. The story is beautifully written and made me feel very emotional at times but I loved the ending it was not what I expected. I really enjoy Beth Duke's writing style and it is very easy to get transfixed to her stories. Beth Dukes will be on my favourite author list and i will be reading more. I strongly recommed you read this book and I love the front cover to 5 stars.
January 26, 2024
So disappointed
I almost never leave reviews and I appreciate the craft, so a book I don’t like I see more as not my style than a bad author, but this book is a huge disappointment. I loved the first book and had no doubt the second is a must. But! This is not literature. Half of the book repeats most of the info in the first book, the second paints kind of a dear diary during corona. The more you read the more you get the feeling that the author was struggling to write and simply filled pages with random crap.
I almost never leave reviews and I appreciate the craft, so a book I don’t like I see more as not my style than a bad author, but this book is a huge disappointment. I loved the first book and had no doubt the second is a must. But! This is not literature. Half of the book repeats most of the info in the first book, the second paints kind of a dear diary during corona. The more you read the more you get the feeling that the author was struggling to write and simply filled pages with random crap.
January 22, 2023
First of all I must comment on how much I love the cover – it’s absolutely beautiful.
I knew I wouldn’t get to the end of a Beth Duke novel without crying at least once and I did. Admittedly right near the end. It’s so beautiful and evokes such emotion. I love Ronni as much as I did in the first book, but this time I warmed to her husband Rick – I didn’t the first time round.
She is surrounded by some beautiful characters (I prefer the ‘now’ parts to the flashbacks to Sam’s story), like Deanna, Samuel, Maddie and little Violet.
I swore a few months ago that I would never read a book that included references to Covid, but in this case, firstly I didn’t see it coming and secondly it was totally relevant to the story. Wherever a book starts, if it comes up to date, you can’t ignore the pandemic. It happened, and became part of everyone’s lives.
“‘..Only when it is dark enough can you see the stars’ – Martin Luther King, Jr. This quote has a lot of truth and meaning to it because humans have to go through the darkness in order to see the beauty in life, like the stars in the night sky.”
However, the original quote: ‘When it is dark enough, you can see the stars,’ is actually attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson.
Ronni’s book about the original Violet Glenn was a huge success. Everyone wants her to write another one, but she doesn’t feel inspired. Of course they all have suggestions. You should write about this…or that …or the other. When she is ready, the story will come.
However, when a mysterious email arrives from Chet Wilson’s son, asking Ronni to tell ‘the truth’ about his dad, she ignores it. Rick tells her to ignore it. But through Sam Davidson’s family, she learns that not everything in her book was correct, and this might be the time to revisit Violet’s life and the lives of the people around her. And through the darkness she finds that family isn’t always about blood, it can also be ‘in our ability to find family in one another’. A truly beautiful book.
Incidentally Tapestry was one of my four favourite books of 2022 and It All Comes Back To You is my fourth most popular review of all time.
Many thanks to @zooloo2008 for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.
I knew I wouldn’t get to the end of a Beth Duke novel without crying at least once and I did. Admittedly right near the end. It’s so beautiful and evokes such emotion. I love Ronni as much as I did in the first book, but this time I warmed to her husband Rick – I didn’t the first time round.
She is surrounded by some beautiful characters (I prefer the ‘now’ parts to the flashbacks to Sam’s story), like Deanna, Samuel, Maddie and little Violet.
I swore a few months ago that I would never read a book that included references to Covid, but in this case, firstly I didn’t see it coming and secondly it was totally relevant to the story. Wherever a book starts, if it comes up to date, you can’t ignore the pandemic. It happened, and became part of everyone’s lives.
“‘..Only when it is dark enough can you see the stars’ – Martin Luther King, Jr. This quote has a lot of truth and meaning to it because humans have to go through the darkness in order to see the beauty in life, like the stars in the night sky.”
However, the original quote: ‘When it is dark enough, you can see the stars,’ is actually attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson.
Ronni’s book about the original Violet Glenn was a huge success. Everyone wants her to write another one, but she doesn’t feel inspired. Of course they all have suggestions. You should write about this…or that …or the other. When she is ready, the story will come.
However, when a mysterious email arrives from Chet Wilson’s son, asking Ronni to tell ‘the truth’ about his dad, she ignores it. Rick tells her to ignore it. But through Sam Davidson’s family, she learns that not everything in her book was correct, and this might be the time to revisit Violet’s life and the lives of the people around her. And through the darkness she finds that family isn’t always about blood, it can also be ‘in our ability to find family in one another’. A truly beautiful book.
Incidentally Tapestry was one of my four favourite books of 2022 and It All Comes Back To You is my fourth most popular review of all time.
Many thanks to @zooloo2008 for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.
June 6, 2023
Where the book works for me:
+ The cover is gorgeous.
+ Succeeds in eliciting passionate emotions out of me.
(i.e. Lots and lots of frustration for:
Trying to identify the relationships between 53 characters that swing between 1946 and 2020;
not understanding the underdeveloped characters’ motivation for their actions;
quick, convenient "explanations" for long subplots).
Where the book could work better for me:
Way too many characters (53 and I probably missed counting some!).
Difficult to have a clear picture of their relationship to one another. Most are not developed. Very hard to identify with any of them; so, I cannot care for them. To top it off, many of the characters are mentioned in 2020 and in 1946. Very confusing.
Since most characters are not well developed, it is difficult to understand their motivation for doing things.
(For example, the “explanation” on p. 142:
1) Katie Sobel “had to do something”. Why?
2) Why did Chet accept Katie’s take “that it wasn’t necessary” for him to check with his dad about calling Sam’s parents?).
Goes on and on, pages, about a given subplot. Then, all of a sudden, in just a couple of warped speed paragraphs, comes up with a so convenient explanation for these; explanations that are so unbelievable, far-fetched to me. (For example, page 142 about how it wasn’t Chet’s intention to tell Sam’s parents about Sam and Violet’s plan to elope).
+ The cover is gorgeous.
+ Succeeds in eliciting passionate emotions out of me.
(i.e. Lots and lots of frustration for:
Trying to identify the relationships between 53 characters that swing between 1946 and 2020;
not understanding the underdeveloped characters’ motivation for their actions;
quick, convenient "explanations" for long subplots).
Where the book could work better for me:
Way too many characters (53 and I probably missed counting some!).
Difficult to have a clear picture of their relationship to one another. Most are not developed. Very hard to identify with any of them; so, I cannot care for them. To top it off, many of the characters are mentioned in 2020 and in 1946. Very confusing.
Since most characters are not well developed, it is difficult to understand their motivation for doing things.
(For example, the “explanation” on p. 142:
1) Katie Sobel “had to do something”. Why?
2) Why did Chet accept Katie’s take “that it wasn’t necessary” for him to check with his dad about calling Sam’s parents?).
Goes on and on, pages, about a given subplot. Then, all of a sudden, in just a couple of warped speed paragraphs, comes up with a so convenient explanation for these; explanations that are so unbelievable, far-fetched to me. (For example, page 142 about how it wasn’t Chet’s intention to tell Sam’s parents about Sam and Violet’s plan to elope).
February 25, 2023
Although this sequel to It All Comes Back to You is well written, I admit that I was a bit disappointed by it. Maybe it just wasn't the right time for me to read it. But I found the story too similar to the first book. Almost all the characters were the same. The story from the first book is rehashed from a somewhat different angle by Ronni, the character that wrote the first book. Part of the book is about the book Ronni is writing, which is a continuation of the story of her friends and patients from the senior home she is a nurse at. And the other part of the story is about Ronni herself, losing her husband to Covid and her pregnancy with their first child.
This isn't the kind of story that usually lights me up, because it is what I call a "slice of life" story, rather than an adventure. But the mystery was just compelling enough for me to finish it.
This isn't the kind of story that usually lights me up, because it is what I call a "slice of life" story, rather than an adventure. But the mystery was just compelling enough for me to finish it.
February 11, 2023
I was so excited about this book but it was a bit of a let down.
1. Even having read the first book I found this hard to follow. A synopsis would have helped. I read the first book a year and a half ago and have read a good many books since then. I found myself trying to figure out details, and small bits for about 3/4 of this book.
2. Most of the present day story was unnecessary. It just felt like page filler to me.
3. The past story seemed to end very abruptly.
4. Part of the past story was just copied and pasted from the first book.
5. I felt the past about WWI was another story line that just did not fit.
Was this a bad book? No. But it could have been so much better. I cannot see anyone understanding this book without reading the first book.
1. Even having read the first book I found this hard to follow. A synopsis would have helped. I read the first book a year and a half ago and have read a good many books since then. I found myself trying to figure out details, and small bits for about 3/4 of this book.
2. Most of the present day story was unnecessary. It just felt like page filler to me.
3. The past story seemed to end very abruptly.
4. Part of the past story was just copied and pasted from the first book.
5. I felt the past about WWI was another story line that just did not fit.
Was this a bad book? No. But it could have been so much better. I cannot see anyone understanding this book without reading the first book.
January 8, 2023
Interesting enough to hold my attention. I liked the characters and the continuation of the story started in It All Comes Down to You. It was somewhat predictable but I anticipated that. I especially like the way the story unfolded over time and changed as more information became available.
What I REALLY didn't care for was the way the child (Violet) talked. It drove me crazy with the bad grammar and pseudo baby talk. I care for two very young children full-time and neither of them speak anywhere close to that way ... it came across as very fake and was terribly distracting! They both speak in full sentences and have good grammar. It halfway ruined the end of the story for me.
What I REALLY didn't care for was the way the child (Violet) talked. It drove me crazy with the bad grammar and pseudo baby talk. I care for two very young children full-time and neither of them speak anywhere close to that way ... it came across as very fake and was terribly distracting! They both speak in full sentences and have good grammar. It halfway ruined the end of the story for me.
May 23, 2023
I thoroughly enjoyed the first book and couldn’t wait for the second, so I started it the next day! I am so glad I did because the author uses the same vibrant and exciting writing style, with their brilliant blend of past and present to tie together the main character and her muse.
I really enjoyed the opportunity to see another side of the story, and hear a version of the life she lived from someone who didn’t have the same ending as we saw in the last book. It truly gave you the feel for the ‘two sides to every story’ line.
The author did very well to link the two books, while keeping them both unique. It was detailed and fun as well as full of personality. I really enjoyed it!
I really enjoyed the opportunity to see another side of the story, and hear a version of the life she lived from someone who didn’t have the same ending as we saw in the last book. It truly gave you the feel for the ‘two sides to every story’ line.
The author did very well to link the two books, while keeping them both unique. It was detailed and fun as well as full of personality. I really enjoyed it!
December 28, 2023
Now coming from Brooklyn, one might question my authority to make such a statement, but Beth Duke is an authentic Southern voice in the spirit of Faulkner. This sequel did not disappoint because we fell so deeply in love with Violet and Ronnie and the other characters in the first book. The parallel narratives, past and present, once again guide the reader into a deeper understanding of the stories. Beth Duke takes us through the sorrow of the pandemic, which amplified loss and isolation to historic levels but she offers her readers with the deep love that carries Ronnie through all the loss and suffering to come through triumphantly at the end.
June 12, 2024
I’m not one for romance much anymore and stories that involve love stories can still be too painful to read. Dark Enough to See the Stars kinda eased into a love story within love stories. I didn’t expect to like this book as much as I have. It’s so refreshing not to have a bunch of steamy sex filled passages and to just focus on the tenderness of love. The pain is there, so deeply, and so tangled up within generations of the families in the story. Personally, it was healing to a degree, and maybe that’s why I couldn’t seem to put it down for very long. Whatever the reason, I felt I was there, in both timelines.
August 9, 2023
Sad, yet also a happy ending book
This was a sad book for me (as I identified with Ronni's loss personally) and I almost put it down because I didn't think I was ready to read this kind of book yet . I'm still not sure I'm in the place Ronnie finds herself in but it ended up making me feel hopeful. If you've ever lost someone who you deeply loved, you'll find some comfort in its message. I think this book was better than book one but you need to read the first book to really follow this storyline.
This was a sad book for me (as I identified with Ronni's loss personally) and I almost put it down because I didn't think I was ready to read this kind of book yet . I'm still not sure I'm in the place Ronnie finds herself in but it ended up making me feel hopeful. If you've ever lost someone who you deeply loved, you'll find some comfort in its message. I think this book was better than book one but you need to read the first book to really follow this storyline.
March 15, 2023
Incredible!
Words cannot describe the beauty of this book. I adored the first one and devoured this one. This book is written so well, so many places I laughed out loud, and things that genuinely surprised me. Beth Duke created such incredible characters. I missed them when I had to put the book down. These characters will stay with me forever. Thank you for such a well-written story.
Words cannot describe the beauty of this book. I adored the first one and devoured this one. This book is written so well, so many places I laughed out loud, and things that genuinely surprised me. Beth Duke created such incredible characters. I missed them when I had to put the book down. These characters will stay with me forever. Thank you for such a well-written story.
December 28, 2022
I hate this book. In the most tear-streaming, unwanted-emotion having, read til 3am, love-hate way. Such an emotional read. And I'm already prone to hyper-emotional fits.
So yeah, I recommend reading it. After the first book, of course. Didn't even know there was to be a sequel to "It All Comes Back To You" until this showed up in my recommendations.
So yeah, I recommend reading it. After the first book, of course. Didn't even know there was to be a sequel to "It All Comes Back To You" until this showed up in my recommendations.
March 31, 2023
In really enjoyed the first book. This book in my opinion dragged on and I found myself saying when is this book going to end. You have to read the first book in the series books or you will be completely lost. Again I loved the first book. If I had to read them both again I would read them back-to-back
April 16, 2023
Enjoyed this, but you need to have read the first book fairly recently. It doesn’t really give you a lot of reminders of what happened in the first book—took me a while to get into it bc I had forgotten so much from the first one. Overall, though, I enjoyed the story. The characters are endearing & writing style is engaging.
May 23, 2023
After enjoying the first installment of this series so much, this was an extreme letdown. Perhaps it was because I’ve read a few books since reading the first, but I had difficulty keeping characters straight in this one.
Also, all of the C-19 stuff was beyond annoying. I felt like the book went from being about the characters to just that.
Also, all of the C-19 stuff was beyond annoying. I felt like the book went from being about the characters to just that.
July 9, 2023
Dark enough to see the stard
Wow! What an incredible book. It will make you believe that a wrong can be made right. It will make you believe in people and the power of love, hopes and dreams. Read the first book," it all comes back to you", before reading this one to understand the entire story. Both books are outstanding.
Wow! What an incredible book. It will make you believe that a wrong can be made right. It will make you believe in people and the power of love, hopes and dreams. Read the first book," it all comes back to you", before reading this one to understand the entire story. Both books are outstanding.
March 17, 2024
I wanted to love this book so much more than I do. What turned me off about it was the mentioning of COVID. I know our world will never be the same or as it was before the pandemic swept in, but I just did not want to read about it 🙄. It All Comes Back to You cannot be topped. I’m not sure if I’ll be reading this one as often as It All Comes Back to You.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 1, 2024
In all fairness I to this book, I didn't read the first book so maybe I would have liked it better if I had some context. There were too many characters and plotlines to keep track of and the writing was subpar. It was too all over the place for me and I found myself skimming through the
character details because the characters were shallow.
character details because the characters were shallow.
October 7, 2025
I don't often love sequels, and this was no exception. There were lots of characters and storylines that needed to be recalled from the first book for this to make sense. I read that book so long ago that this book ended up being somewhat confusing. I also didn't love the addition of covid related traumas/commentary.
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