Return to Sullivan's Island
by Dorothea Benton Frank
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Book Reviews of Return to Sullivan's Island
Book Review: Once again dreaming of S. Carolina....
Summary: 5 Stars
I really enjoyed Return to Sullivan's Island. There was a little tiny piece of me that wanted the story to be more about Susan and Maggie(because I loved them so much in Sullivan's Island) but this was Beth's story. She did make mistakes....I wanted to shake her and tell her to use her head more than once, but to me it was a coming of age story for her and mistakes are part of growing up.
I love the way her relationship with her mother is portrayed. She loves her mother, but at times her mother makes her insane.(Is that called art imitating life?)
I was also so glad to see so many characters from other books make cameo appearances. It felt like catching up with old friends.
As always, DBF made me long for the beaches of South Carolina and miss my family. I may be transplanted to Texas, but the roots of the South run deep. DBF's writing makes the scenery of the South come alive for me to the point that I feel like I am there.
I always read her books in one sitting because I can't put them down!! I am always so sad when the book is finished, and Return to Sullivan's Island was no exception.
DBF is one of my most favored authors. I buy all of her books in hardback and read them more than once.
I am so glad that I read Return to Sullivans Island and look forward to reading her next book.
Book Review: Return to Sullivans Island
Summary: 4 Stars
A new generation is stepping up on the history drenched Sullivans Island. What happens when the ghosts of the departed (all dearly for the sole reason that they're family) come head to head with modern life? Beth Hayes, the daughter of Susan Rifkin is about to find out. Dorthea Benton Frank takes us into the world of evening cocktails, sandy beaches, and rocking chairs on porches to witness what the Hamilton family is up to now. Most of the family is scattered around the globe, but Beth, fresh out of college, comes home to make sure all stays well with the Island Gamble.
Benton Frank stays true to the spirit of her other books. You will want to laugh and cry and not put the book down until you are finished. As the story unfolded, I kept making guesses as to what would happen with Beth and those around her. I was right only on a few minor points. Benton Frank was able to bring out surprise after surprise and keep me on the line until the very end. Return is as tightly written as her other novels and she continues to bring her other much loved characters in when you least expect it. I highly recommend that you add this to your summer reading list. Just make sure you have access to a library because when you finish, you'll want to scoop up more of her books.
Book Review: warm family drama
Summary: 4 Stars
Having just graduated from college in Boston, wannabe writer Beth Hayes returns to her family home on Sullivan Island, South Carolina while her mother spends time in Paris; mom had asked her daughter to house-sit while she is in France. Beth looks forward to the quiet time at her family home Island Gamble to contemplate her future and hopefully begin her writing career though she lacks confidence in her skills.
She also looks forward to seeing the extended family, the successful twins Sophie and Allison, Susan, and Uncle Henry; she also plans to hug her Miss Manners-reincarnation Aunt Maggie, her Uncle Timmy and her stepfather Simon before the trio travel to California. Beth soon enjoys her trysts with total opposites Max Mitchell and Woody Morrison, but that will darken her RETURN TO SULLIVAN ISLAND.
Dorothea Benton Frank returns to the Lowcountry with a warm family drama that is filled with humor, compassion, and sadness. The extended cast is solid, but this is clearly Beth's tale as she struggles with a lack of confidence when faced several times with difficult choices. Readers who appreciate deep complicated relationships will enjoy the RETURN TO SULLIVAN ISLAND.
Harriet Klausner
Book Review: Not Up to par with past books of Dorthea Benton Franks
Summary: 3 Stars
I have just read RETURN TO SULLIVANS ISLAND. The book in general was good but not
up the usual syle of writing for Ms Frank.
Beth Hayes is suppose to be recent college graduate and with some intelligence. She
meets and older man who she meets and goes out with couple of times. He never calls, stands her up and she supposedly never suspects anything could not be as it
should. On top of that she doctors a check to him from $10,000 to $100.000 and
finally realizes he is a crook. When her family find out what she did, they only
act disappointed. The whole family is naive and in their own world.
The best books of Ms Frank are LAND OF MANO SUNS, BULLS RUN AND SHEMM CREEK.
They are well written and entertaining.
I have heard Dorthea Benton Franks speek and she a very entertaining and a very
lovely outgoing person. I do hope she has more books in the works. I guess
you can't hit a home run all the time.
One thing about the book it does make you want to visit Sullivans Island, which I
have and it beautiful.
Karen, Bluffton, SC.
Karen, Bluffton, SC.
Book Review: A Ghost of a Book
Summary: 2 Stars
I wholeheatedly agree with most of the reviewers, so I won't waste your time going over the book in detail. I have previously enjoyed all of DBF's books, finding the characters charming, qwirky, passionate, often very humerous and the plots interesting. The settings usually provided a personal vacation to the low country, filled with the details and delights of the south.
This book had none of these things, the characters were shallow and mostly uninteresting, the plot "twists" could be seen from the beginning, and there was little of the humor we've come to expect in Ms Frank's novels. The ghost theme was barely developed, and could have added a great deal to the plot. Was the author in a rush to get this book to print? Overall, this book was not much better than a first romance novel penned by an empassioned 16 year old.
What I expected was a delightful mental trip to the islands; what I got was a wasted $17.15. If you must read this book, borrow it or wait for the paperback.
Ms Frank - if you read this comment: I love most of your writing and don't want you to stop. Please make a real return to the low country in your next book!