Friday, November 29, 2013

REVIEW: DISENCHANTED BY CALLIE HUNTER

Blurb:
After a messy divorce, Sara, Evan, Eli and Mason Shea go their separate ways and lose contact. But twelve years later, Evan Shea commits suicide, which brings his family back together.
During an uncomfortable ‘getting to know each other again’ meeting, they uncover any secrets and finally get answers to the questions they’ve been dying to ask for twelve years.


AVAILABLE ON AMAZON NOW: US & UK.

Links:

Blog:  http://calliehunter.wordpress.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CallieHunterAuthorPage
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Callie_Author
GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7303824.Callie_Hunter

Review:

Nothing brings family together like a funeral. People who can't stand each other just can't resist attempting to pretend they get along. You know what I mean. Every family has a black sheep who turns up, if for no other reason than to make everyone else uncomfortable. Disenchanted is no different. The difference is the blackest sheep of them all has died.

We start off with a happy, normal moment in Sara's life. Her husband is in the shower, and the baby is nursing. The phone rings. One of her estranged brothers has called to tell her their brother, Evan, has committed suicide. Sara agrees to attend the funeral, and that's when the fireworks start. In an effort to observe the usual rituals, twelve years of family dirty laundry gets aired, making Sara reevaluate everything she thought she knew about her past.

I liked this novelette very much. There was all the usual family drama and a few twists. It wasn't so much about surprises as it was the very familiar drama surrounding a funeral. The disenchantment come when she gets all the gory details of the past. Evan was a class A jerk, and Sara's greatest tormenter as a child. Her father abandoned her and her mother twelve years earlier, taking her brothers with him. None of them bothered to stay in touch. It took me a bit to understand why she even bothered to turn up at all. However, don't we all ask, "Why?" She needed answers.

I can safely recommend this as a work read. If you need a short story while waiting for the kids in the carpool or at a sports practice, this would make an excellent way to pass the time. The easy flow and relatable situations make this a quick, easy read. I could see this appealing to young adults and older teenagers. Whether pool side or snuggled down for a bedtime story, Disenchanted is one to pick up.

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