Most helpful customer reviews
|
|
5.0 out of 5 stars
Yes, ma'am...she's THAT good., Jul 31 2008
So I've just read all three of Ms Jackson's novels in a row. (I wish now I'd begun with her début and gone chronologically, as I usually do.)
Wow.
Besides having the skills of a good writer, the deftness of touch, the craft, the love of words, she possess two other vital elements:
1) She's a storyteller, and
2) She has something to say.
You'd think that most writers would own both of these. Few actually do. On the first count, writing a novel is not necessarily the same as being a storyteller. It's the subtle difference between being a comic and a comedian. A vocalist and a singer. A star...and an actor. And, I have to say that, on the second count, many writers really don't have anything to say. That is, what they write is not infused with much of themselves. There is no compulsion, artistic or otherwise, and therefore, the book has no real integrity of its own. Ms Jackson's need to tell a story, and tell it in her inimitable fashion- Let me put it this way: reading one of her novels is like having her come up to you, take you by the arm, lead you away, while saying 'I've got a story to tell you, it's a good one...take a deep breath, now...'
Maybe this is the best thing I can say about Joshilyn Jackson's talent: her Forwards and Acknowledgements have more oomph to them than some writer's novels' contents.
'Between, Georgia' was a joy to read. It transcends 'chick-lit' (which I do NOT consider to be a negative term) and is continued proof that we have lots and lots to look forward to from her.
I can't wait.
|
|
|
5.0 out of 5 stars
4.5 blue ribbon Romance Junkies review, Feb 17 2008
With a population of 90, the town of BETWEEN, GEORGIA, is proving to be too small to contain the feud taking place between the Frett and Crabtree families. It's a feud that started before Nonny's birth, but is quickly coming to a head and Nonny is caught right in the middle of the whole mess.
Nonnie has been raised as a Frett but she was born to fifteen year old Hazel Crabtree who'd hidden her entire pregnancy. She gave birth in Bernese Frett's house and insisted that the birth of her baby be kept silent. Stacia Frett is a deaf artist who is slowly losing her eyesight due to a genetic condition, but seizes this baby as a reason for living. Nonny is raised as a Frett. Her birth to a Crabtree is kept a secret until Hazel reveals the truth in a scathing note to her mother, Ona. Nonnie becomes the focus of the ongoing battle between the two families - one that can do no wrong (because they have money that proves it) and the other family who live life more on the shady side of the law.
Thirty years later, Nonnie has some major decisions to make. She's an interpreter living in Athens. She's still tied to her husband, Jonno, who's cheated on her repeatedly (at least until the divorce hearing on Friday) and her best friend, Henry Crabtree, is sneaking his way into her heart. Her aunt Bernese is raising a little girl, Fischer, in Between who Nonnie is very attached to, but her job keeps her in the city and she's not able to see Fisher as much as she'd like. Her family is doing their level best to make her crazy with the constant drama and expecting her to take care of everything. Now in the latest episode, the Crabtree's dog attacks Stacia and her companion, Genny, putting them both in the hospital which forces Nonnie back to Between before her divorce hearing date. She single-handedly has to try to keep the members of the Crabtree and Frett families from retaliating against wrongs done to them, save Fischer from Bertrice's crazy diet ideas, somehow get back to Athens to finalize her divorce and figure out her true feelings for Henry. The anger that's been simmering in Between has reached a boiling point and the little town will never be the same.
Joshilyn Jackson captured my interest right from the start with her quirky book BETWEEN, GEORGIA. The dialogue between the characters is hysterically funny throughout the storyline. I laughed during many of the family discussions because they're just so much fun and you get to feel like you're really there observing the whole time. The characters are outlandish and brilliantly done so that you can envision them and each new crisis reaches out from the pages and grabs your emotions. I confess that I love this female version of the Hatfields and McCoys. It's the perfect summertime read - full of twists and turns, laugh out loud funny, and has characters you won't soon forget.
Chrissy Dionne (courtesy of Romance Junkies)
|
|
|
|
