Rating: 4 pierogies (I feel like I've been giving out a lot of 4's lately, I guess I've been reading a lot of good books)
Review: Some books must make your heart ache. I finished The Light Between Oceans last night and couldn't help but wander into Baby Beez's room, listen to her tiny snores, and give her a snuggle. I felt so very fortunate to have her at all, and so grateful that she is sweet, charming, beautiful, and best of all, mine. Tom and Isabella Sherman tend the lighthouse on Janus rock, an isolated island off Australia's Western Coast.
They are eager to start a family, but Isabella suffers three traumatizing miscarriages. Unexpectedly, a rowboat washes ashore. Inside is a dead man, and a tiny, wailing baby. This small baby is an answer to Isabella's desperate prayers. But every decision has a consequence, and the consequence to Isabella's decision is heartwrenching.
This novel is so realistic, in exploring how not every turn of life can have an easy resolution. Fearing to divulge a spoiler, I'll tell you that things eventually resolve about as well as they can, but the journey to that point is a rocky one. Stedman is a talented storyteller, and I look forward to seeing her future works.
