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Megan's Way

A book by Melissa Foster

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Soon to be a movie, family drama filled with character

  • May 20, 2011
Rating:
+3

Melissa Foster’s Megan’s Way (a finalist in the 2010 Next Generation Indie Book Awards) deals with death, secrets, and loving relationships, all viewed from an intriguingly different, non-judgmental point of view. Mom Megan is close friends with Holly and her husband, but even closer to daughter Olivia. But Olivia’s teen years are shaping up to be trouble. Mom’s not communicating enough, doesn’t listen, doesn’t tell, and Olivia turns worry for her mother into worrying behavior, sending their relationship spiraling.
At times I wanted to take the author’s characters aside and beg them just to tell the truth—a tribute perhaps to how real they seem. But the author cleverly avoids that temptation, instead delving into the complex realities of truths kept hidden for the benefit of others. The story behind the relationships drips slowly through inner thoughts of the characters; new motivations reveal themselves and ever more complex secrets come to light. Some things I guessed. Others I had to wait to find out. But the mystery’s not the real point of the story, and neither are the curious rituals and prayers that Megan leads, nor the seeming magic of her relationship with Olivia. With influences from many different spiritual paths, the characters learn and remind each other that opportunities abound in life and death, and that giving up is never the right response.
For different reasons, each character is tempted to give up on the love they share in the course of this tale. Their story’s not an easy one, but their hope and perseverance is inspiring, and the complex honesty of keeping secrets becomes neither good nor bad—just a way to move on. Megan’s Way is a hard novel to classify; it follows a path through several different genres, not quite family drama, nor paranormal mystery, nor coming-of-age, nor spiritual; the story, like the characters, is complex and passes through clear and distinct stages. For myself, I enjoyed the later parts best as Olivia’s character evolved, but another reader would choose a different favorite. Not a novel for readers seeking straight-forward story-telling, or triumphant traditional values, this is a tale that will make readers think and leave them content to know the whole truth’s still more than we’ve heard, and the whole love more than we can tell.
 
Disclosure: I received an ecopy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review

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About the reviewer
Sheila Deeth ()
Ranked #64
Sheila Deeth is the author of Refracted--how a man lost in time tries to remember what he's looking for--and Black Widow--Boudicca's sister, the might of Rome, and the Holy Grail--both published … more
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"Megan's Way by Melissa Foster is an emotionally moving book...I cried at nearly every turn of the page. Melissa does a great job in bringing you into the life of her characters and keeps the story rolling smoothly...What made this book really catch my attention were all the secrets each character holds..." --Jeanette Stingley, Women's Literary Editor, Bella Online

"Megan's Way, by Melissa Foster (Outskirts Press). A wonderful, warm, and thought-provoking story with a touch of the paranormal. And it's set practically in my own backyard: Cape Cod. Who could ask for more? On the surface, it's a tale about a mother (Megan) whose cancer has tragically returned with a vengeance, and the interactions of her teenage daughter (Olivia), best friend (Holly), and several male friends (Jack, Holly's husband, and Peter, whom they've known since childhood). Many areas are touched upon: the emotional pull between mother and daughter, how one deals with death and separation, our mortality, what we give up for those we love, and the secrets and lies that are part and parcel of so many of our relationships. More than that, the author hopes that it will inspire all of us to reevaluate our lives and how we live them, to set our priorities on what's really important, and to reserve judgment of others' actions, as we can never know what they were thinking and what events influenced their decisions. This is a deep and moving book that speaks to men as well as women, and I urge you all to...
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Author: Melissa Foster
Genre: Kindle eBooks
Publisher: Outskirts Press, Inc.

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