- Paperback: 352 pages
- Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; 1 edition (May 16 2006)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0312323646
- ISBN-13: 978-0312323646
- Product Dimensions: 23.3 x 16.4 x 2.4 cm
- Shipping Weight: 408 g
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #980,402 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
Eden, U.S.A., is the sort of agreeable, homey fictional landscape where reliable, bighearted men live alongside earthy, loyal women—if in sometimes unconventional domestic arrangements. When banker Ed Harris discovers his wife, Anne, in bed with his best friend, town prosecutor Hayden Elkins, Ed, in his typical stoic but droll style, sends Anne home with Hayden to become his "second wife." ("You and your damned peter!" hollers his first, to whom Hayden's still married.) The setup is the center of a rambling, generous excavation of numerous plot lines by the pseudonymous Adams. The likable, eccentric ensemble includes the town's first female preacher, who has a preternatural ability to help people emerge from their troubles; the boyish, strapping manager of the town junkyard whose terror over getting married is driving his longtime girlfriend to distraction; the rookie police trooper bewildered to find himself assigned to this "rusticated nowhere"; and the gentle town drunk who strives to better himself when he catches a glimpse of romantic possibility with his widowed neighbor. The book's pleasing benignity is not marred by its occasional predictability, and Adams's understated humor and generous spirit make this a comforting story of lessons being learned, demons getting laid to rest and good guys winning. Agent, Robert Gottlieb. (May)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
"The Garden of Eden is a reader's paradise of memorable characters and quirky plots. This is one book you won't forget."
---Sandra Dallas, author of New Mercies and The Persian Pickle Club
"Filled with twists and turns and quirky characters, The Garden of Eden is laugh-out-loud humor with a southern accent."
---Julie Ortolon, U.S.A. Today bestselling author of Don't Tempt Me
"I had fun hanging out in Eden's garden, where the apple's already eaten and now the snake better watch his backside . . . a funny, wise, romantic, and altogether pleasing novel."
---Homer Hickam, bestselling author of The Keeper's Son, The Coalwood Way, and Rocket Boys, on which the movie October Sky was based
---Sandra Dallas, author of New Mercies and The Persian Pickle Club
"Filled with twists and turns and quirky characters, The Garden of Eden is laugh-out-loud humor with a southern accent."
---Julie Ortolon, U.S.A. Today bestselling author of Don't Tempt Me
"I had fun hanging out in Eden's garden, where the apple's already eaten and now the snake better watch his backside . . . a funny, wise, romantic, and altogether pleasing novel."
---Homer Hickam, bestselling author of The Keeper's Son, The Coalwood Way, and Rocket Boys, on which the movie October Sky was based
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Customer Reviews
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.3 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
More Please!, Oct 5 2005
By Missouri Reader - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: The Garden of Eden (Hardcover)
I just plain enjoyed this book! It doesn't fit any genre...not a 'mystery', not a 'thriller', etc. Just tells a story about folks living a not quite ordinary life.The characters were likeable. Kind of like hearing the local 'gossip' from your best friend. Rules were bent at appropriate times. People got what was coming to them. And the main story had a happy ending. My only complaint is there were too many questions left unanswered....too many stories that were not ended. Maybe a little too 'real life' in that respect. For example, did the author find his 'true love'? What happens with the town drunk and the widow next door? What do the 'kids' do after HS graduation.....does college end their relationship? I enjoyed the book....but it left me wanting more!
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
What a great book!, Aug 19 2005
By K. Teivans "K. Teivans" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: The Garden of Eden (Hardcover)
I picked this book up "by the cover" near the end of my summer, and totally enjoyed it. What a cast of likable, interesting personalities in a web of situations that seem realy only because we've all lived in such webs of intervowen coincidences. You will love Eve Adam's novel!
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
A pleasurable read with interesting characters and understated humor, Jun 24 2005
By Bookreporter - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: The Garden of Eden (Hardcover)
Young state policeman Sam Neely has been assigned to the tiny village of Eden (population: 47) where he fears he will go mad with boredom. But he never gets that opportunity, because things start happening immediately.Eden banker Ed Harris arrives home unexpectedly to find his best friend, Hayden Elkins, in bed with Ed's wife, Anne. With a gun pointed at them, Ed orders Anne to pack her belongings. Anne, he announces, will now live with Hayden, who will treat her as a wife. When Hayden reminds Ed that he already has a wife, Ed replies that now he has two. Ed orders Hayden to make Anne happy. And so the couple head home to Hayden's wife, Matilda, who faints when she hears the news.
The town is abuzz with the news of Hayden and his two wives. Some of the more upright women approach Trooper Neely to swear out a complaint of bigamy against Hayden, and a complaint of felony menacing against gun-toting Ed. Neely must investigate. When Neely interviews Anne, she blithely divulges how she and Matilda plan to divide their wifely duties, with Matilda doing the housework, Anne washing the windows, and so on.
That is just the beginning of the happenings in Eden, the young policeman discovers. There's gorgeous Crystal Ice, with whom Neely falls madly in love. There's also a young retarded Peeping Tom, a wealthy author who has escaped from city life, and a deputy sheriff who has quite the photo collection. And then there's the comely woman preacher, who has an amazing secret.
As one might expect from the author's name, the book is written under a pseudonym, which drove me into a frenzy of deciding on the identity of the writer. After some research, I discovered I was way off on my guess of the author ("Eve Adams" is the pseudonym for bestselling thriller writer Stephen Coonts --- who would have guessed??) The book reminds me very much of the Mitford series by Jan Karon, although THE GARDEN OF EDEN is a bit racier. Like the Mitford stories, the characters' lives fit together in a pleasing manner, which is very satisfying and uplifting. Besides the interesting characters, a decidedly Southern backdrop, plenty of understated humor, and a lively pace make this a pleasurable read.
I have one small quibble: all the women of note are extraordinarily gorgeous goddesses. Descriptions of these beauteous lasses wore thin rapidly, and made the characters seem less real. Despite this minor drawback, I thoroughly enjoyed losing myself in THE GARDEN OF EDEN.
[...]
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