Charmed Circle

by Susan Ertz

Genres: Fiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1956

About the author

British fiction writer and novelist known for her "sentimental tales of genteel life in the country." She was born in England to American parents and moved back and forth between both countries during her childhood. At 18, she chose to live in the UK. In 1932 she married British Army officer Major John Ronald McCrindle, British barrister.

One of her most highly praised books was The Porcelain, the story of a London woman who marries a Mormon missionary and moves with him to Utah.
One of her later works, "In the Cool of the Day" was made into a movie in 1963 starring Jane Fonda, Peter Finch, and Angela Lansbury.

Reviews

[Kissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fans of Austen and Downton Abbey-esque stories will enjoy this charming (no pun intended) book. Although it starts off slow and doesn't pick up a captivating pace until later, the characters are fascinating to read and their family dynamics are easy to identify with. While the story does primarily take place within the family's home(s), the author does a good job of tieing in the outside "world" events (i.e. Great Depression) and showing how it affects the family. If half star ratings were allowed, I probably would bump my rating up to 3.5 stars. I believe it was truly just the pacing of the story that brought down the "score" for me; otherwise, it's a very well written book.

[R.K. Cowles · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 1/4 stars

[Melissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

I could have gone without this one. All the characters are absolutely spoiled.