RATING: VERY GOOD
SPOILERS!!!
Oh I absolutely loved the book!!! It was tender, emotional, and fun at the same time.
I love how the romance between Vinnie and Ellen was developed. It was so fresh and honest, and I think this was the piece that both of them were missing. I love when she teaches him to cook lasagna or when she agrees to go to a football match with him even though she has no idea about football. In the stadium it is when he kisses her for the first time, and later they share a cigarette before her building, and Ellen talks about seducing him. Nothing happens that day, but the following week when she teaches how to cook lasagna. I think Ellen is the voice as Vinnie has problems expression what he feels.
A turning point in the novel is Finn’s First Communion. Vinnie invites Ellen, and she is reluctant at first, but then she agrees to drop by for an hour or so. Vinnie is having a celebration after the ceremony at his place, and invites all his friends and acquaintances. Ellen arrives, and despite his fears, she and Vinnie’s mother hit it off, and she seems to enjoy herself. Then two arrivals cause havoc, first Kenny with her girlfriend, Carol. I was right and she was the receptionist she mentioned in her letters, and when Carol sees Ellen, the former hugs her and tells her how sorry she feels about Neil. It is then that Vinnie learns that Ellen’s husband died in the car accident that she was involved in and when she also lost the baby girl she was expecting. Ellen tells Vinnie she didn’t tell him because he had assumed Neil had left her and in a way it was easier to deal with.
The visitor that causes a major ruckus is Paula, who appears unannounced. Vinnie is gobsmacked to say the least, and poor Ellen is there, and Paula, who is not stupid, knows who she is. Ellen leaves, and Paula tells Vinnie that she is staying with her friend Trish. Finn is elated that his mother has returned, and Kerry is wary. Paula tells Vinnie later that she is better and intends to stay for good. Vinnie doesn’t know what to think about it, but he knows that he has to try his best for the children’s sake. For a few days Paula is good, but then she starts drinking again. A few days after the First Communion Vinnie’s mum dies, which I think is one of the saddest moments in the novel. I loved her; she is one of the start characters, and it is so sad she died. One good thing is that her passing helps Kerry melt and welcome her mother’s presence in her life. I also love that when Vinnie got the call about his mother dying, he had to the hospital and refused to have Paula with him, but there at the hospital he phoned Ellen as if she was the person to turn to in the most terrible moment of his life.
Joey, Vinnie’s brother, comes from Australia for the funeral. During the wake and the funeral Paula starts acting up and drinking. Ellen attends the funeral, trying to be inconspicuous, but Vinnie sees and talks to her. Unfortunately, Paula also notices her and she makes a scene there in the cemetery, shouting at Ellen, who leave as discreetly as possible.
The whole funeral party go to the parish hall since Vinnie’s mother had instructed that people had a party and a bingo after her funeral. So everyone gathers there while Vinnie gets busy bringing refreshments and some sandwiches. At some point he can’t see Paula and the children, and when he checks outside, his car is gone. He raises the alarm and Vinnie and Janine go with him. His calls to Kerry’s and Paula’s phones go to voicemail, and after checking all the usual places they are nowhere to be seen. Vinnie is out of his mind with worry as he knows that Paula had been drinking. Desperate he calls Ellen, and she tells him to think about a place where she could have taken the children for a chat, and at once it comes to him. It is where he proposed to her and where her sister walked into the sea and committed suicide.
Vinnie, Kenny, and Janine drive to the strand and find the car, and then eventually they see Paula. She tell them that the children are back in the hall after she had a talk to them, and Joey, Vinnie’s brother, confirms that the children are back and well. Paula tells him that it was a mistake to return as she is not good as a mother and intends to return to Spain. They talk about her seeing the children in Dublin and also having them in Spain on the holidays, and Paula even mentions Ellen, sanctioning her presence in Vinnie’s life.
The last letter from Ellen shows that things are good. We understand that she and Vinnie are in a relationship, and she even gets on well with Finn and Kerry. Actually, thanks to Ellen, Kerry got some work experience with a friend of Ellen’s, who is a professional artist, and in her letter Ellen mentions Kerry being in Spain and sending her a photograph of a sunset that she wants to paint next. That shows that there is a good rapport between them. And the last nice bit is that Kenny and Janine become a couple, and Ellen mentions that Vinnie still can’t get his head around it, but she thinks they are perfect for each other.
Lovely book!!! I have had such a great time with all the characters and the stories. And the romance between Ellen and Vinnie is written so delicately and with such sensitivity that it really moved me.
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