A contemporary women’s novel that explores and proves the healing power of family.

Her Sister’s Shoes by Ashley Farley

About this book: (from the publisher) Set in the South Carolina Lowcountry and packed with Southern charm and memorable characters, Her Sister’s Shoes is the story of three sisters—Samantha, Jackie, and Faith—who struggle to balance the demands of career and family while remaining true to themselves.

Samantha Sweeney has always been the glue that holds her family together, their go-to girl for love and support. When an ATV accident leaves her teenage son in a wheelchair, she loses her carefully constructed self-control. In the after-gloom of her dreaded fiftieth birthday and the discovery of her husband’s infidelity, Jackie realizes she must reconnect with her former self to find the happiness she needs to move forward. Faith lacks the courage to stand up to her abusive husband. She turns to her sisters for help, placing all their lives at risk.

In the midst of their individual challenges, the Sweeney sisters must cope with their mother’s mental decline. Is Lovie in the early stages of Alzheimer’s, or is her odd behavior normal for a woman her age? No one, including Lovie, understands her obsession with a rusty key she wears around her neck.

About the author: (from Amazon) Ashley Farley is a wife and mother of two college-aged children. She grew up in the salty marshes of South Carolina, but now lives in Richmond, Virginia, a city she loves for its history and traditions. After her brother died in 1999 of an accidental overdose, she turned to writing as a way of releasing her pent-up emotions. She wrote SAVING BEN in honor of Neal, the boy she worshipped, the man she could not save. SAVING BEN is not a memoir, but a story about the special bond between siblings. When she’s not working on her next novel, she can be found book blogging at www.chroniclesofavidreaders.com.

Genre: Fiction/Contemporary/Women’s Fiction

Why I read this book: As an iRead reviewer

If this book were a movie, I would rate it: PG-13 for some language and mature content.

Reminds me of…novels of Patti Callahan Henry and Marybeth Whalen

Will especially appeal to… fans of Dorothea Benton Frank

This story matters because…it celebrates the healing power of family

My take: I tend to gravitate toward novels like this one with an ensemble cast, in which each character carries an equal part of the story. I like to see how an author will weave these individual strands into one whole tapestry, each character’s strengths and weaknesses compelling her to join forces with the others until they all, ultimately, find healing and happiness. Her Sister’s Shoes certainly has all of this, and its evocative Lowcountry setting contributes to its summer-reading appeal.

While technically a well-put-together story with the gravitas I enjoy, it lacked the nuance of character and plot development I prefer. This was most often revealed in dialogue. Of course, this reflects my own taste and may not strike others the same way. Because of its setting and subject matter, many would consider Her Sister’s Shoes an appealing, relatively clean beach read.

To see what other reviewers are saying, click here.

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Thanks to iRead Book Tours and the author for providing me a free copy to review. All opinions are mine.

After words:

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