Twenty Wishes (Blossom Street) (Blossom Street Books)
by Debbie Macomber
List Price:
Our Price: $0.50
You Save: $7.49 (94%)
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: Debbie MacomberEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2009-04-01
ISBN: 0778326314
Number of pages: 384
Publisher: Mira Books
Book Reviews of Twenty Wishes (Blossom Street) (Blossom Street Books)
Book Review: Lightweight story set in Seattle in a bookstore
Summary: 3 Stars
Usually I give what is known as 'chick lit' a very wide berth when I am picking out my reading material. Longtime author Debbie Macomber writes novels set in the Pacific Northwest, one of my favourite spots, and tend to write about women who are facing change in their lives, with nearly everything solved by page 300 with a very light touch and containing nothing to offend anyone.
This time, the story is set on a fictional street in Seattle by the name of Blossom Street, each novel centered on a shop, and the entrepreneur who runs it, along with various friends, relations and customers. Anne Marie Roche is dealing with the sudden death of her husband, a man that she had deferred to for most of their life together. Now all she has is just her bookstore and her memories. Among those lingering regrets is that she and Robert never had a child together, and it's something that haunts Anne Marie.
To help combat the loneliness, she has gathered together several friends on that dreaded holiday of Valentines day, and they plan a celebration of widowhood with champagne -- Vueve Cliquot of course -- and as a way of coping, decide that each of them will create a list of Twenty Wishes, of all the things that they've wanted to do or experience or have that they haven't been able to.
Two of the widows, Lillie and Barbie, lost their husbands in a plane crash, and have been able to keep their relationship as mother and daughter-in-law intact over the years. For Lillie, it?s been hard coping with her loss, knowing that her husband was unfaithful to her, and the marriage down to a very tepid simmer. Barbie struggles with the loneliness of being widowed, and at loose ends, as it were. Both women want to be with someone again, and this time around they both find it with men who are very different.
But most of the story centers around Anne Marie. She volunteers at a local elementary school, becoming a Lunch Buddy with a little girl, Ellen, who is withdrawn and very quiet. It's a daunting task for Anne Marie, but when she brings her Yorkshire Terrier, Baxter, to meet Ellen, it's love at first sight for both the dog and the little girl. Being around Ellen manages to soothe Anne Marie's hunger for a child, and the pair develop a deep bond ? especially when Ellen's grandmother ends up in the hospital, and Anne Marie finds that her impulsive gesture to help may lead to much more than she expected?
Macomber takes a look at unusual relationships here, especially with the two men that Lillie and Barbie meet. Lillie finds herself falling for an auto mechanic who is Hispanic to boot, and it's a look at class and money differences. As for Barbie, she meets Mark, a quadriplegic at a movie theatre; and Mark is a man with one huge chip on his shoulder where other people are concerned. I do confess that it was good to show a character with physical disabilities in a novel, an occurrence that doesn't happen very often, and showing that they can have happy, healthy relationships was a real plus with this novel.
On the downside, you know that there is pretty much a simple plot here, no great emotional entanglements, and lots of emotional hand wringing and angst. But by the end, everything is solved and has a happy ending. To say that this feels very contrived is an understatement. There isn't a lot of character depth here, nor are there any suspenseful moments, or any real problems. It seems that everyone of the characters is well off ? enough to where they?re not worrying about money, bills or mortgages.
Namely, I can't stand this sort of fiction, tending to want something more involved and plot driven. The only reason that I started with the Blossom Street novels was that they had started in a knitting shop, with a cancer survivor, and being that I do quite a bit of messing around with fiber arts, I thought to give it a go. In previous novels, the author was kind enough to tuck a knitting pattern into the story at the end, which was the only reason why I kept on reading them. That and the setting of Seattle -- a city where I had grown up near -- were the real draw of the books. Unfortunately, there isn't any sort of knitting pattern in here, only an advertisement in the back of the book for the pattern books and a host of knitting supplies.
If you're into knitting, I would rather suggest the collection of knitting patterns that are derived from this series and released by Leisure Arts books.
I can only give this one three stars, as the writing is so simplistic that it induces yawns. Great for those nights that you have insomnia, but not so good if you want a good read. Only somewhat recommended ? fans of Macomber will enjoy it, but it also leaves a lot to be desired.
Summary of Twenty Wishes (Blossom Street) (Blossom Street Books)
What Anne Marie Roche wants is to find happiness again. At thirty-eight, she's childless, a recent widow, alone. She owns a successful bookstore on Seattle's Blossom Street, but despite her accomplishments, there's a feeling of emptiness.On Valentine's Day, Anne Marie and several other widows get together to celebrateÂ?hope. They each begin a list of twenty wishes, things they always wanted to do but never did.
Anne Marie's list includes learning to knit, falling in love again, doing good for someone else. When she volunteers at a local school, an eight-year-old girl named Ellen enters her life. It's a relationship that becomes far more involvingÂ?and far more importantÂ?than Anne Marie had ever imagined.
As Ellen helps Anne Marie complete her list of twenty wishes, they both learn that wishes can come trueÂ?but not necessarily in the way you expect.
Women's Fiction 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 Women's Fiction Books
101 ways to stop being bored! (Malcolm in the middle)by Malcolm
Scholastic; Published: 2003; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.00
Herman Had Two Daughtersby Zelda Popkin
Lippincott; Published: 1968-06; Textbook Binding; Book
Bumps in the Nightby Harry Allard, James Marshall
Doubleday; Published: 1979-09; Library Binding; Book
Price in other shops:
Bumps in the Nightby Harry Allard, James Marshall
Doubleday; Published: 1979-09; Hardcover; Book
Price in other shops:
Jamby Margaret Mahy
Little Brown & Co (Juv); Published: 1986-03; Hardcover; Book
Price in other shops:
The Hateful Plateful Trick.by Scott Corbett
Little Brown & Co (Juv); Published: 1972-06; Library Binding; Book
Price in other shops:
Professor Wormbog in Search for the Zipperump-a-zooby Mercer Mayer
Goldencraft; Published: 1976-09; Hardcover; Book
Price in other shops:
Letty Fox: Her luck (A & R classics)by Christina Stead
Angus and Robertson; Published: 1974; Unknown Binding; Book
Delta WeddingHarcourt; Published: 1979-03; Hardcover; Book
Mrs Coverlet's Magiciansby Mary Nash
Little Brown & Company; Published: 2000-01; Hardcover; Book
Similar Books and other products
1022 Evergreen Place (Cedar Cove)by Debbie Macomber
Mira; Published: 2010-08-31; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.65
Price in other shops:
1105 Yakima Street (Cedar Cove)by Debbie Macomber
Mira; Published: 2011-08-30; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.69
Price in other shops:
Christmas Lettersby Debbie Macomber
Mira; Published: 2006-10-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $3.32
Price in other shops:
A Turn in the Roadby Debbie Macomber
Mira; Published: 2011-04-26; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $6.44
Price in other shops:
Hannah's List (Blossom Street)by Debbie Macomber
Mira; Published: 2011-04-26; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.49
Price in other shops:
The Shop on Blossom Streetby Debbie Macomber
Mira; Published: 2010-05-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.31
Price in other shops:
Susannah's Gardenby Debbie Macomber
Mira; Published: 2010-05-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.15
Price in other shops:
A Good Yarn (Blossom Street)by Debbie Macomber
Mira; Published: 2010-05-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.40
Price in other shops:
Back on Blossom Streetby Debbie Macomber
Mira; Published: 2010-05-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.99
Price in other shops:
Summer on Blossom Streetby Debbie Macomber
Mira; Published: 2010-04-27; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.90
Price in other shops: