Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah

I read this book because Christina would not leave me alone, and made me read it. Don't get me wrong, I want to read everything ever written by Kristin Hannah, but I didn't feel like I would really enjoy this book.

Well, I was kind of right. I was half way through the book, and I couldn't wait to get it over with. I still wasn't hooked. And just when I was about to chuck it out the window, it started to reel me in.

This is by no means a love story. It's about two sisters who had a mother who never showed any emotion towards them. The only time she would talk to them without being cold, was when she would tell them a fairy tale, one she never finished. But in his death bed, their dad made them promise to make their mom tell them the story.

From the very beginning I knew that this wasn't an ordinary fairy tale, and I caught on pretty quick. I just couldn't forgive what this lady's coldness had done to her daughters. I must say that I really liked the end. The fairy tale turned out to be very sad, and the ending just perfect. It really had a crazy twist that I had no idea was coming.

Overall, I do not regret reading this book at all. I'd give it a 7.5 out of 10.

Have you read it before? What do you think? Let us know.

-Mimi

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Winter Garden was yet another Kristin Hannah great. I am such a fan of stories within stories, especially stores talking about a certain period in history, and that is exactly what Winter Garden is.

First, I need to tell you NOT to give up on the book. I was scared Mimi was going to stop reading it because she hated the beginning so much, so I promise you that it will pick up and you will not be able to put it down.

This is a story of loss, and most importantly love. Nina and Meredith are two sisters who grow up with a bitch of a mother and a pretty awesome dad, but they loose their father and have to figure out how to live with only their mother around. Anya, their mom, is a horrible excuse of a mother. She never talks to them or shows them affection, all she does is sit outside in her winter garden. As the story goes on, we learn why Anya is the way she is and Nina and Meredith learned about a time they never new existed.

Once you are done reading the book, you will feel bad for Anya and her past, but you probably won't forgive her for being such a bitch. If you are like Mimi, you probably won't like Nina and Meredith throughout the book because they do a bad job keeping their own relationships intact. I didn't so much hate them, I just wanted to smack some sense into them at some points in the book.

All in all, this is a GREAT book that any woman will LOVE! Remember, the beginning is kind of slow and you will get mad at Anya, but I promise it will get better.

Have you read Winter Garden? What did you think?

PS: This would be A GREAT movie because it not only has a love story, but some action as well!

-Christina