Dovetail is the newest book by Karen McQuestion. Pearl
Arneson has lived a life of many regrets. She is the only one left who knows
the truth about her sister, Alice’s death. The story opens in 1983 when 84-year-old
Pearl Arneson seeks out her grandson, 22-year-old Joe, who was placed in a
psychiatric treatment center for disturbing dreams with no clear cause or
psychiatric break. She has a job for him. The family home in Pullman, Wisconsin
needs to be cleaned and the items inventoried in order to sell the house. Joe
takes the job, hoping the work can help him figure out these strange dreams. Rewind
to 1916, when 17-year-old Pearl, the second of seven daughters, dreams of
leaving their tiny town and traveling the world. Her older sister, Alice, is 19
years old and takes care of the family after the tragic death of their mother.
That summer a handsome and eligible bachelor comes to the family’s farm to work
at the local mill. John Lawrence is immediately infatuated with Alice, much to
the horror of Pearl and Frank, the local man who fancies himself Alice’s beau.
As the summer progresses and love blossoms between John and Alice, Pearl tries
her best to keep them apart, but will her schemes go too far? In 1983, Joe
works on the family home and develops a friendship with a local businesswoman,
Kathleen, who is hiding a painful past herself. Joe notices a change in his
dreams. He finds pieces of his family’s history that he knew nothing about. Will
Joe find peace from his dreams? Will Pearl find the forgiveness she is seeking?
Dovetail is a beautiful, tragic story filled
jealousy, guilt, redemption and finding peace within yourself. It is a story of
how one tragedy can cause a cascade of poor decisions and life-altering
mistakes. In the opening chapter, Pearl admits Alice died because of her
foolish pride and with that note, the reader is taken on a journey between 1916
and 1983 as the mystery unfolds. How did Alice die? How is Pearl responsible?
How is Pearl’s grandson, Joe, connected to it all? While I had a hard time
sympathizing with teenage Pearl, as an older woman, I enjoyed Pearl as she realizes
her time is short and wants to make amends or atonement for her actions. I
laughed at her no-nonsense attitude. I related more to and enjoyed Alice and
watching her fall in love was bittersweet. Even though, I knew from the
beginning that she dies, her death was painful, emotional and shocking. I
enjoyed Joe’s story and his battle with what he has been told is a mental
illness, but he realizes it just doesn’t fit. I also enjoyed the relationship
development between Joe and Kathleen. It felt very realistic as a woman who was
running from a past bad relationship to be cautious going forward. Joe and
Kathleen have a connection they couldn’t explain but they let their
relationship flow naturally. The romances in the story are done beautifully. Dovetail
is my first Karen McQuestion book and it won’t be my last. I look forward to
reading her past titles and eagerly await her new books. I highly recommend Dovetail!
Dovetail
is available in
paperback, eBook, and audiobook
Jennifer, thanks so much for reading and reviewing DOVETAIL! I'm thrilled that you enjoyed my novel.
ReplyDeleteThank you for taking the time to comment on my review. You just made my day!!!!
Delete