Viola Shipman is actually the pen name for male author
Wade Rouse, who writes under his grandmother’s name as a way to honor not just
her, but also all of the elders in his family. In addition to the pen
name, all his novels are inspired by both of his grandmothers’ heirlooms as
well as the lessons they taught him and the lives they led. At its core, his books are all “feel-good”
stories that pay homage to family. In
his latest novel The Summer Cottage, Shipman finds inspiration in his
grandparents’ log cabin in Missouri where he spent countless summers, a place
where there was “nothing but an outhouse,
fishing poles, inner tubes, books and each other.” Despite the cabin’s simplicity, it was a “magical”
place where the only rule his grandparents had was “to be happy.” Though the log cabin was eventually sold after
his grandparents’ deaths, Shipman later came across a cottage in Michigan that
reminded him of that cabin and immediately fell in love with it, which prompted
his decision to quit his job and move to Michigan, eventually settling there
and becoming a writer.
In the book, Shipman expands upon this through the
character of Adie Lou Kruger, a 40-something divorced mother whose affection
for her parents’ summer cottage – dubbed the Creaky Cottage – draws her back to
the happy place of her childhood where she eventually decides to start over and
rebuild her life. Armed with plans to convert
the dilapidated old cottage into a bed-and-breakfast, Adie Lou encounters one
obstacle after another, but through it all, she rediscovers the joy and
strength that the freedom of pursuing her dreams brings.
This is the third of Shipman’s books that I’ve read and
while I found the story heartfelt and charming, I will admit that I didn’t love
this one as much as I did his previous novel The Recipe Box. Perhaps it was because that book had checked
all the right boxes for me, from its endearing characters and heartwarming
story to its engaging narrative revolving around food and the bonds of family,
I had felt a connection to the story almost right off the bat. With this book, I never really connected much
with the characters and to be honest, the story felt like it moved a tad bit
too slowly at times. I also felt there
wasn’t as much emotional depth to the story that his previous novel had and
that I’ve come to expect from his works.
With that said though, I did love the descriptions of the cottage and
its surrounding scenery, which Shipman did a great job of bringing alive for
me, almost as though the cottage itself was a character in the story. This is one of the things I actually enjoy
most about Shipman’s novels – his way of storytelling that is able to bring the
inanimate object at the center of the story to life.
Overall, I would say that I liked this book, but didn’t
love it. Out of Shipman’s 3 books that I’ve
read, The Recipe Box is so far still my favorite. I have yet to read his first novel, The
Charm Bracelet, but hope to do so at some point, preferably before his
next novel comes out. This is an author
I will definitely continue to read, as I appreciate the fact that with his
books, I always know what to expect -- a light-hearted, feel-good story that is
at times a bit too saccharine and maybe even too simplistic, but a comforting
read that celebrates family, love, hope, friendship, and, most important of
all, happy memories! With the world we
live in currently, sometimes we need books like this to escape into and to remind
us (even if only for a brief moment), the important things in life and that it’s
possible to find joy even in the small moments.
Received ARC from
Harlequin / Graydon House Books via NetGalley
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