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Nineteen year old Annabelle Worthington seems to have it all - rich parents, a warm and loving family, a member of New York's society. It has the basic outline for being a good book but it felt like I was reading the first draft of a novel rather than the final print. A disastrous marriage further changes her life and she embarks upon a life she never dreamed could be possible. But while she is building a new life, Annabelle is haunted not only by the past but the violence of World War One and a personal trauma that yet again changes the direction of her life.
and at other times contradicts herself (at one point Steele says Annabelle decides on her own to use her maiden name after the divorce, at another point Annabelle and Josiah decide together she should use it). Annabelle should have been a character that readers care about, but she left me cold. The same with a violent attack on Annabelle that changes her life forever - the writing was so bland it's hard to feel emotionally involved in the brutal event. An encounter with someone from her past that was a traumatic meeting for Annabelle didn't move me at all because the person was not in the book until that moment. Steele constantly repeats herself (how many times do we need to be told that Annabelle is rich). But that changes in an instant when the Titanic sinks, killing her father and brother and Annabelle's life is forever changed.
Her marriage to Josiah Millbank is a perfect example of the flaws in this book - there was no foreshadowing at all of his big revelation to Annabelle and it ends up feeling like a cheat. Ultimately, Steele writes Annabelle as a one dimensional character who has been wronged by many but has no flaws of her own."A Good Woman" could have been a good book but was disappointing. She begins life anew in Paris and studies to become a doctor, something she thought would never become possible. Through it all Annabelle keeps reminding herself that no matter what, she is indeed A Good Woman.I found "A Good Woman" by Danielle Steele to be very disappointing.
I love the storyline. This was one of the best Audiobooks I have listened to of Danielle Steel's.
I didn't enjoy the story much at all. And I was compelled to come online after finishing the book to see what other have thought.
Either people hated it or loved it. And, I guess like many things, there's people on both sides.
I have read many many of Danielle Steel's books, many of which I truly cherish. I don't write reviews often at all.
Not so much in between. This one was not a book I enjoyed reading.
I thought it started out well, but just was not happy with the many different directions it chose to take and I was quite dissatisfied with the abrupt ending.
I personally think it is the best book she has EVER written. But boy, what a surprise this book was. This one stays in my permanent library. I read this book based on the author. I tend to like her stuff.
But her life is again taken a turn for the worse after she marries. I imagine most readers are on the ball enough that they don't need to be reminded ad nauseaum regarding certain details. Needing to make sense of the tragic way her life has turned, she throws herself into volunteer work by nursing the poor.
Unfortunately, the execution left a great deal to be desired. If you are looking for a strong DS title might I suggest her earlier work such as THE RING, there is much more passion found in her older stories. The repetitiveness of the writing seriously detracted from the storyline.
Annabelle Worthington has lived a life of privilege but her world is turned upside down when RMS Titanic sinks tragically in the North Atlantic. Here in the midst of a war, she finds herself and with the aid of a friend, begins to heal wounds she has been carrying around for a long time.The story premise held so much promise.
By doing so, she finds her path in medicine and thereby turns her life around. Her husband has secrets and the whispers that follow her chase her to war-torn France.
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