Book Review: The Wedding Dress by Rachel Hauck ~ Fiction (Rated 2/5)

SUMMARY:
Flashing back and forth from modern-day Charlotte, to historical Emily, we see the romantic tale of a mysterious wedding dress take shape. When Charlotte, a wedding shop owner, finds herself the owner of a unique wedding dress just as her relationship crumbles, she sets out to discover the meaning behind the dress. Emily, the original owner of the dress, has her own romantic turmoil as she struggles with keeping her word to protect the family honor, or being truly happy with her real love.

The two stories converge as Charlotte discovers two other women who hold keys to unlocking the mystery of the gorgeous gown. Along the way, each woman shares her love story, and helps Charlotte determine where her heart lies.

REVIEW:
Unfortunately, as wonderful as the concept is (I love historical fiction!), I was extremely disappointed by this novel. I had hoped it would have more solid historical fiction grounding, but it turned out to be a stereotypical Christian romance.

The characters are mostly static; Charlotte, the main character, has little complexity, and relies on others for emotional support.  I didn't find Tim to be a sympathetic character, although Charlotte can't manage much righteous indignation at him for breaking up with her, dating his ex the next day, yet still wanting her back. Apparently Tim's manly scent, longing gaze, and muscular arm are all it takes to win back Charlotte's heart - but that is not enough for me.

The plot kept my interest because the flashbacks between the two stories held me in suspense. Otherwise the two plot lines lacked depth and offered few intriguing twists. The historical implications of suffrage and the plight of the blacks in the South during 1912 were of interest, but were not pulled into the plot the way they could have been (a la The Help).

I didn't mind the point of view shift from Charlotte to Emily, however about three-quarters of the way through, the point of view suddenly shifts to the ex-fiance and other characters, which I found distracting.

There are several loose ends - such as how the dress passes along to the first three women in very realistic ways, but Charlotte receives the dress mysteriously and inexplicably, even after all her sleuthing. Then there's the mystical nature of the dress fitting FOUR different women over 100 years while needing no alteration (reminiscent of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants). Also, the mysterious men in purple, who appear at just the right moment and seem to know all about Emily / Charlotte though they've never met. These plot points seemed unrealistic and warranted explanation.

Most frustrating to this literature-lover was the gushing "purple prose" scattered frequently and randomly throughout the novel. The constant personification of wind, fragrances, textures, etc. quickly got  wearing. Also some imagery was, frankly, quite jarring ("And her heart crawled out of her chest and perched on her arm." - yikes!) or downright saccharine ("The creamy tenor of his voice sank through Charlotte like sweet caramel."). We are constantly told what brand of clothing characters are wearing, or minute details of Charlotte's grocery bag - these  details were distracting and, did not further the plot or characterization.

Although it's a "clean" novel with no swearing or sex, the characters constantly have "amorous" kissing episodes that leave them on the brink of breaking their convictions. I didn't see the point of including quite so much of this and so little detail about the actual relationships.

Christianity is a thin veneer over the plot - if you took out God and church references, I felt  nothing integral to the story would be missing. Charlotte finds her holy place at her job looking at the purity of wedding dresses, or feeling the beat of worship music, or wandering in a field - her walk with the Lord seems very emotionally based.

The author leaves us little to discover for ourselves; most of the theme and message of the book is constantly TOLD to us through the character's dialogue in a heavy-handed way. At the end, through Thomas's words at the midnight wedding we are told the meaning of the dress. The author does little to explain the concept of "Redeemed" which keeps being mentioned by multiple characters throughout the novel.

I am certain the author herself intended for readers to get more out of this novel. The discussion questions and author note at the end were more revealing than the novel itself. You can tell from these sections the author was hoping to impart a deeper meaning to the dress itself and the soul-searching the characters do. But the theme is not developed at a deep level to promote vigorous discussion.
The author had an intriguing concept for a historical/modern day blend of a novel. And, I do love a touch of romance, so the wedding dress story was appealing, but for me, it just did not deliver. Perhaps as an English teacher, with a degree in English literature, I was hoping for a richer literary experience?

I give it 2 stars because if you LOVE the romance genre and a quick read, you'll probably like The Wedding Dress, and it's good for a light read on a plane or the beach...

If you've read this book, or others by Rachel Hauck, I'd love to hear your thoughts!
(Remember, commenting is open to thoughtful, constructive comments only).

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

The End. #NaBloPoMo

It's the end of THIS National Blog Posting Month. I guess they do this every month over at BlogHer. But not me!

I have enjoyed pushing myself to write every day here at A Writer Within. However, sometimes it was a bit too much for me. And sometimes the posts just didn't seem worthy - like I was posting just because I promised myself I would post! (Yesterday was a case in point). But it was overall a worthwhile exercise in and of itself.

I will not continue to blog every day here, just for the sake of doing so - I think that experiment is done! When the mood strikes and when a topic hits me just right, you'll see another post!

I look forward to challenging my writing more and more in the coming months. Maybe I'll do another NaBloPoMo next year. If I do, I'm going to research writing prompts or a writing project in advance that I want to accomplish and not just go with the flow each day!

For those who left me comments - thank you SO much - it meant a lot!

Did you do NaBloPoMo? How did it go for you?

How did that happen? #nablopomo

Twice in 30 days... I missed my deadline! Oh dear. And just so close to the finish line too! Deadlines are usually quite good for me. Apparently I can't make them all!

:(

A Suspcious Form of Writer's Block #NaBloPoMo

I have long suspected blogging might be a hidden form of writer's block.

When you can't come up with that next line of poetry - write a blog post about something else.

When you have no ideas for "serious" writing - write a blog post about why you're not writing.

When you can't figure out a character or plot line - write a blog post about a grammar pet peeve.

Instead of staring at a blank page... create pages and pages of other writing that you never intended to do.

Well, this theory is possible. But if it's true, then at least I take comfort that I'm actually still writing. It's all about the process. The journey.

Even in Finding Forrester, the student learned to find his inner muse simply by copying words from a published author. It was the very act of mimicking writing that prompted him to write.

So... maybe blogging is time-filler while waiting for inspiration to strick. But it beats staring at a blank page screen.

What is your writer's block?

In Through The Window #NaBloPoMo

I found this writing prompt over at Mama's Losin It to write about a time you climbed in through a window.
Well... it wasn't ME exactly.  I wimped out. But once when my friend Sarah came to visit... we drove up to my parent's house (where I lived at the time)... and discovered nobody was home. Somehow (I have NO idea how this happened) I did not have a key with me. Somehow (I have no idea how this happened) the "hidden key" was missing.

This wasn't a dilemma (because that would mean we were choosing between TWO options)... it was a predicament, indeed.

Ever resourceful, Sarah noticed a ladder near the deck. Of course, she wanted to use it to climb into the 2nd story window. Did we check the bottom floor windows first? I'm guessing we MUST have, otherwise we really are crazy! My memory is fuzzy on this, but I am pretty sure the downstairs window were locked per the usual. But that the upstairs bathroom window was open for ventilation.

However, the ladder did not reach the second floor window! So... we (?) decided to push together some benches and put the ladder atop them. Fearless Sarah volunteered to climb the ladder, peel off the screen and crawl in through the window. I bravely volunteered to stabilize the ladder from below.

And that is just what she did! In through the window. Quick as a cricket!

Then she ran through the house to the kitchen and let me in! What a hoot! I still can't believe I let my friend climb some McGyver-ized contraption to break into my own house!

And to this day I am NOT sure what the rush was... could we not have waited for someone to come home? Apparently no.

Have you ever had to go in through the window anywhere?