The Children
"Charlotte Maynard rarely leaves her mother's home, the sprawling Connecticut lake house that belonged to her late stepfather, Whit Whitman, and the generations of Whitmans before him. While Charlotte and her sister, Sally, grew up at "Lakeside", their stepbrothers, Spin and Perry, were welcomed as weekend guests. Now the grown boys own the estate, which Joan occupies by their grace--and a provision in the family trust. When Spin, the youngest and favorite of all the children, brings his fiancé home for the summer, the entire family is intrigued. The beautiful and accomplished Laurel Atwood breathes new life into this often comically rarefied world. But as the wedding draws near, and flaws surface in the family's polite veneer, an array of simmering resentments and unfortunate truths are exposed." --
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First time I've read Ann Leary but I'll search out her previous books. Excellent contemporary novel about a blended family of middle-age children whose patriarch died, leaving a void in the family. Whit Whitman left behind his widow (60ish), 2 adult sons and 2 adult step-daughters and a once-grand estate bequeathed to his sons but still being lived in by his widow and her daughter. Life has rolled along for all of them with everyone “accepting” the status quo, quirks, and foibles of each other. Enter Laurel, brought into the fold by son, Spin, who comes homes engaged to her after a trip. She is not who she portrays herself to be and her ingratiation into each family member is the thrust of the story. Evil Laurel forces the family members to confront their own shortcomings and idiosyncrasies, fears and their individual pasts. It's a moving story with wonderful characters that I really cared for. At first I was sad about the way it ended bu,t upon reflection, I think it was perfect as they all bravely embraced the changes that were coming in their lives.
