The Butterfly House
by Marcia Preston
List Price:
Our Price: $5.11
You Save: $8.84 (63%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.01 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Marcia PrestonBrand: X
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2006-08-01
ISBN: 0778322173
Number of pages: 320
Publisher: Mira
Book Reviews of The Butterfly House
Book Review: Good, but easily forgettable
Summary: 3 Stars
Synopsis: Bobbie Lee does not have a favorable childhood. Most of the time, she feels lost and alone. This forces her to find ways to seek refuge. Eventually, she finds this escape in her best friend, Cincy Jaines.
Cincy and her mother, Lenora, automatically accepts Bobbie as family, in their house in Rockhaven. Over time, these three women has managed to form an unbreakable bond. But in one fatal night, this magical house --"the butterfly house"-- becomes a place of tragedy, that will separate the three of them and change their lives forever.
Ten years later, Bobbie, still troubled by the tragedy, is surprised by an unexpected visitor. This immediately brings back the shadows of her past, haunting her again. She is then forced to face the truth, and to go back to the night she has been running from all these years.
Review: Let me start with some of the good points.
The poetic and engrossing prose is something worthy of a good review. The pace was just right, and the flow of words were effortless. Also, every chapter that was included was important -- not too much information, but enough back story to help the readers learn more. As for the characters, I thought they were well-developed, well-defined, and believable. It was easy to relate to them, and feel for them and their situations. The truth is, I feel as if without these complex and genuine characters, this would just be a pretty 'blah' plot -- one without much substance. This now leads me to the bad points.
Personally, I thought that the actual story itself, even with its twists and 'secrets,' wasn't anything special. The plot, also, has been done many times before, and didn't offer anything new to the table. It didn't "wow" me in any way whatsoever. In fact, instead of "wow-ing" me, I felt let down by it.
As for the ending.... well, let's just say it was what made up my mind and made me say, "This book is not good at all.." The conclusion was rushed and anti-climactic. This of course, left me disappointed.
I know I'm making it sound like it's such a bad book, which probably isn't fair, because it wasn't that bad. Like I said, there are some strong points. For one, it is entertaining. At times, it was even thought-provoking. It does have its moments. Unfortunately, these moments were just not good enough. To be honest, if I haven't picked this book up or read it at all, it wouldn't have made much of a difference. I'd still forget about it in a couple of weeks. But that's just me.
Summary of The Butterfly House
As a child, Bobbie Lee found refuge from her lonely life at her best friend's house. Rockhaven was a place of magic, colored by the butterflies that Cincy Jaines's mother, Lenora, studied. Her friendship with Cincy and Lenora soon became Bobbie's compass. But the tangled intimacies between them began to unravel, and in one night, Rockhaven became a place of unspeakable tragedy.
Now, a decade later, the long shadows of that night continue to haunt Bobbie, despite her attempts to hide from the past. When a stranger with ties to Lenora and Cincy arrives at her doorstep, she is forced to confront the memories she has tried to avoid, and the dark secret at the heart of the tragedy slowly emerges.
United States Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in United States Books
Mirth of a Nation: The Best Contemporary Humorby Michael J. Rosen
Harper Paperbacks; Published: 2000-02-02; Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.01
Price in other shops:
The Gifts of the Bodyby Rebecca Brown
Harper Perennial; Published: 1995-08-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.92
Price in other shops:
Love and Liesby Kimberla Lawson Roby
William Morrow; Published: 2007-01-30; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $4.96
Price in other shops:
Blues Dancing: A Novelby Diane Mckinney-Whetstone
HarperTorch; Published: 2005-03-29; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.98
Red, White & Liberal: How Left Is Right & Right Is Wrongby Alan Colmes
William Morrow Paperbacks; Published: 2004-10-12; Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.01
Price in other shops:
Hunger Point: A Novelby Jillian Medoff
Harpercollins; Published: 1997-02; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $2.00
Price in other shops:
The Price of Bloodby Chuck Logan
Harpercollins; Published: 1997-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $25.99
Blue Hour: Poemsby Carolyn Forche
Harper Perennial; Published: 2004-03; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.93
Price in other shops:
Blue Suburbia: Almost a Memoirby Laurie Albanese
Harper Perennial; Published: 2004-03-16; Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.01
Price in other shops:
The Kindness of Strangers: A Novelby Katrina Kittle
William Morrow; Published: 2006-01-31; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $3.47
Price in other shops:
Similar Books and other products
Crow Lake (Today Show Book Club #7)by Mary Lawson
Dial Press Trade Paperback; Published: 2003-01-13; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.00
Price in other shops:
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweetby Jamie Ford
Ballantine Books; Published: 2009-10-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.99
Price in other shops:
The Kitchen House: A Novelby Kathleen Grissom
Touchstone; Published: 2010-02-02; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.22
Price in other shops:
A Secret Keptby Tatiana de Rosnay
St. Martin's Press; Published: 2010-09-14; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $4.90
Price in other shops:
Those Who Save Usby Jenna Blum
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; Published: 2005-05-02; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.49
Price in other shops:
Sarah's Keyby Tatiana de Rosnay
St. Martin's Griffin; Published: 2008-09-30; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.95
Price in other shops:
The Seamstressby Sara Tuvel Bernstein, Louise Loots Thornton, Marlene bernst Samuels, Edgar M. Bronfman, Marlene Bernstein Samuels
Berkley Trade; Published: 1999-05-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.06
Price in other shops:
The Wind Comes Sweepingby Marcia Preston
Mira; Published: 2009-04-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.37
Price in other shops:
Anya: A Novelby Susan Fromberg Schaeffer
W. W. Norton & Company; Published: 2004-02; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.61
Price in other shops:
The Forgotten Garden: A Novelby Kate Morton
Washington Square Press; Published: 2010-02-16; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.69
Price in other shops: