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Hundar, Hus Och Hjärtats Längtan (2010)

by Lucy Dillon(Favorite Author)

3.93 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

9174292862 (ISBN13: 9789174292862)

languge

English

genre

Romance

publisher

Bonnier Pocket

review 1: Dillon creates such real characters that I feel as though I know them. She includes dogs in her stories and even the dogs have special character traits that make me smile. Two sisters are estranged because of something each of them said over drinks one night. It takes a long time for the conversation to be revealed, but the estranged part of their relationship isn't the key plot.Louise is struggling with her identity. She left her job to be with her son while her husband continued working long, hard hours. She was once a high powered attorney and now she is lost in the world of motherhood. It doesn't help that her husband plays video games all day in the work that he does with computers and that when he comes home, he heads straight for the baby. And, now, her husba... morend wants to start trying for another baby!Juliet is mourning her husband. Having known him for 15 years and having been married to him for 6 means that she, too, has lost her identity at the young age of 31. She sits in her fixer-upper home that the two of them bought and nothing has been fixed up. In fact, she likes it that way. She also likes staying at home and only venturing out to the grocery store well after dark in order to avoid anyone she knows. She has defined herself as a widow and that's all she will ever be.Juliet's mother is not going to allow her daughter to wallow in grief and she enlists help from Louise who, if not thrilled to help her sister, does miss her and wants to see her happy once again. With some contrived moves, Juliet mother manages to get Juliet out of the house little by little. And, not in on the secret plan to jump-start Juliet, help also comes from Juliet's quirky next door neighbors. (I loved the characters of Emer and Lorcan and their humor keeps this book from being downright maudlin.) And the dogs! Oh, the funny dogs. Yes, they too played a part in helping to heal Juliet's heart.The story devotes chapters to each of the sisters so that the reader gets a good background of both women. The ending is rather predictable, but what the reader sees is not seen by Juliet and hat makes the ending more satisfying.I am hooked on Lucy Dillon books if they are all like this one.
review 2: Juliet's hiding from her feelings about the recent loss of Ben, the love of her life. If Juliet didn’t have to walk Ben's loyal dog, Minton, she'd never leave their half-finished house. Then her mother asks Juliet to take the elderly lab, Coco, along for the walk. One dog leads to another, and soon Juliet's the unofficial town pet-sitter. When she takes on a lonely spaniel, and gets to know its attractive owner, she realizes that her emotions aren't as easy to handle as her canine charges. Walking Back to Happiness is a story of love, life, loss, family, friendship and new beginnings. Walking Back to Happiness is a true testament of how life is a roller coaster and we cannot always have total bliss. We need to have a few bad times in order to grow and live. I liked the way the author has Juliet work through her grief and loss with her family, and her new friends gently urging her along, even though she did not see it at first. The dogs Minton, Coco and the rest truly capture your heart as well. The emotional component of this novel was very realistic and heartfelt. It was not a simple, "watch her get over loss of her husband and move on to someone new" kind of book. It was very honest and often heart wrenching but ultimately hopeful and life affirming. Anyone who has had their life flipped upside down can relate and be inspired by this wonderful story of hope and survival amidst life's worst situations. I recommend this story and I love that she uses dogs as characters which always find a way to lead people together & making their lives brighter. less

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