The blurb:Once, Jane Moore and Alexandra Walsh were inseparable, sharing secrets and stolen candy, plotting their futures together. But when Jane became pregnant at seventeen, they drifted slowly apart. Jane has spent the years since raising her son, now seventeen himself, on her own, running a gallery, managing her sister's art career, and looking after their volatile mother -- all the while trying not to resent the limited choices life has given her.
Then a quirk of fate and a faulty elevator bring Jane into contact with Tom, Alexandra's husband, who has some shocking news. Alexandra disappeared from a south Dublin suburb months ago, and Tom has been searching fruitlessly for her. Jane offers to help, as do the elevators other passengers -- Jane's brilliant but self-absorbed sister, Elle, and Leslie Sheehan, a reclusive web designer who's ready to step back into the world again. And as Jane quickly realizes, Tom isn't the only one among them who's looking for something. . .or traveling towards unexpected revelations about love, life, and what it means to let go, in every sense.
Review:
I loved Alexandra, Gone. Reading the blurb, I had expected the book to be dark and with a greater focus on forensics because of Alexandra's disappearance. Instead, I entered this world of Jane, her sister Elle, their friend Leslie, their new friend Tom, and the rest of Jane's off-kilter family. Getting to know these people, what and who they love, their vulnerabilities and hopes, and their stories and strengths was full of laughs and surprises.
In Jane, Elle, and Leslie of Alexandra, Gone, Anna McPartlin created such warm, witty, and fleshed out characters that the book reminded me of close friends that I miss. Despite the tragedies that occur, the book celebrates life and friendship. I highly recommend Alexandra, Gone to someone looking for a witty, unusual, and upbeat read. I loved it so much that I'm hand delivering my copy to my mother this weekend - I'm sure that she'll love it!
ISBN-10: 1439123330 - Paperback $15.00
Publisher: Downtown Press; Original edition (April 13, 2010), 368 pages.
Review copy provided by the publisher.
About the Author, courtesy of the publisher: Anna McPartlin is the author of the internationally bestselling novels Pack Up the Moon, Apart from the Crowd, and As Sure as the Sun. She lives in Dublin with her husband, Donal.
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Thank you so much to Sarah and PocketBooks for this review opportunity!
I liked this one too - it really picked up in the last third!
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