aleenabeth's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
sandeestarlite's review against another edition
3.0
Lila leads a very dysfunctional life where her brother is her universe, little though he seems to respect her. Her husband, her career, her choice of reading materials are all filtered through Billy's eyes. And her husband filters everything through Lila's eyes, making for an interesting spiral downward for everyone.
While everyone is very needy, the author does a good job with plausability. We all know people like this - it's a tough read when you just want to shout "WAKE UP".
While everyone is very needy, the author does a good job with plausability. We all know people like this - it's a tough read when you just want to shout "WAKE UP".
nfrazzetta's review against another edition
2.0
Really depressing view of other types of abuse. What a messed up family... Makes me appreciate my own a lot more!
vballerin's review against another edition
2.0
This just wasn’t good. Had some real promise but it was all over the place, hardly had characters developed, and the writing wasn’t great either.
nutti72's review against another edition
3.0
Hard to put this book into words. A very compelling read with very intricate characters.
literaryfeline's review against another edition
4.0
In today's climate, with the news full of stories men turning to mass murder and suicide, The Promised World seems an even more fitting book for the times. Unlike the men in the news stories, however, Billy Cole had no intention of killing anyone other than himself the day he aimed his unloaded rifle at an elementary school. His pain had become too much for him to bear. Lisa Tucker offers a firsthand look at a family in crisis and the impact suicide can have on such a family.
Billy had been everything to his twin sister, Lila. Billy was her hero and her mentor. He had been her support for many years, nurturing her and rescuing her from a past she has no memory of. Billy was the person who filled in the gaps of her memory and inspired her love for books. His death shattered not only her heart, but her world as well--everything she thought she knew and believed suddenly came into question. Lila's husband could only watch his wife unravel before him, unsure of what to do and how to help her. His wife was not quite the woman he thought she was. What seemed to be a perfect marriage, suddenly was falling apart.
Billy's death left his own family, his three children and estranged wife, confused and angry. His teenage daughter, Pearl, wants to understand her father and why he would do such a terrible thing. William, Billy’s 8 year old son, continues to hang on to the promises he made to his father, wanting to make him proud even after death. Ashley had loved Billy but also been afraid of him. He was the perfect father one minute but his mood swings and secretiveness proved more than the couple could bear.
I was intrigued when I first read the description of this novel and jumped at the opportunity to be a part of the book tour. The Promised World sounded liked something I would like. And it certainly was. I was especially mesmerized by the momentum the author built as the story went along. I was caught up in the downward spiral leading up to the climax, wondering where the author would take me next. How much worse could it get for this family as they struggled to come to terms with the past and move forward in their own lives?
I went back and forth in my opinions of the characters, sometimes liking them and sometimes wondering what the heck they were thinking. Each was flawed, dealing with a catastrophic event that would scar anyone in his or her shoes. Everyone dealt with Billy's death in different ways. Still, they all felt a similar pain and anger, and even the shame. My heart especially when out to the children.
There is so much to this novel. The author took on the issue of child abuse, looking at it from varying angles: from false allegations to the lasting damage and impact of long time abuse. The novel also delved into the fragility of memory--how easily it can be manipulated or colored by perception and time or forgotten all together, repressed. Secrecy also plays a role in The Promised World. Billy and Lila kept their past well hidden. They lied to those they loved. When the truth came out, was it any wonder their loved ones felt betrayed?
Lila and Billy both shared a love for books. There are many book references that will attract fellow book lovers. Lila used books as an escape from her past, and most especially to keep her memories from overwhelming her, however unconscious that may be. “I’m a great believer in stories. I used to tell Billy I was afraid we loved stories more than real life, but he said, ‘What is life but a story we don’t know the meaning of yet?’” [pg 10:]
It was not until a few hours after I had finished reading The Promised World that I could fully appreciate all the author had set out to accomplish. While on the surface, the novel is entertaining and a page turner, in its depths it is a story about lost innocence, betrayal and the complexity of relationships.
Billy had been everything to his twin sister, Lila. Billy was her hero and her mentor. He had been her support for many years, nurturing her and rescuing her from a past she has no memory of. Billy was the person who filled in the gaps of her memory and inspired her love for books. His death shattered not only her heart, but her world as well--everything she thought she knew and believed suddenly came into question. Lila's husband could only watch his wife unravel before him, unsure of what to do and how to help her. His wife was not quite the woman he thought she was. What seemed to be a perfect marriage, suddenly was falling apart.
Billy's death left his own family, his three children and estranged wife, confused and angry. His teenage daughter, Pearl, wants to understand her father and why he would do such a terrible thing. William, Billy’s 8 year old son, continues to hang on to the promises he made to his father, wanting to make him proud even after death. Ashley had loved Billy but also been afraid of him. He was the perfect father one minute but his mood swings and secretiveness proved more than the couple could bear.
I was intrigued when I first read the description of this novel and jumped at the opportunity to be a part of the book tour. The Promised World sounded liked something I would like. And it certainly was. I was especially mesmerized by the momentum the author built as the story went along. I was caught up in the downward spiral leading up to the climax, wondering where the author would take me next. How much worse could it get for this family as they struggled to come to terms with the past and move forward in their own lives?
I went back and forth in my opinions of the characters, sometimes liking them and sometimes wondering what the heck they were thinking. Each was flawed, dealing with a catastrophic event that would scar anyone in his or her shoes. Everyone dealt with Billy's death in different ways. Still, they all felt a similar pain and anger, and even the shame. My heart especially when out to the children.
There is so much to this novel. The author took on the issue of child abuse, looking at it from varying angles: from false allegations to the lasting damage and impact of long time abuse. The novel also delved into the fragility of memory--how easily it can be manipulated or colored by perception and time or forgotten all together, repressed. Secrecy also plays a role in The Promised World. Billy and Lila kept their past well hidden. They lied to those they loved. When the truth came out, was it any wonder their loved ones felt betrayed?
Lila and Billy both shared a love for books. There are many book references that will attract fellow book lovers. Lila used books as an escape from her past, and most especially to keep her memories from overwhelming her, however unconscious that may be. “I’m a great believer in stories. I used to tell Billy I was afraid we loved stories more than real life, but he said, ‘What is life but a story we don’t know the meaning of yet?’” [pg 10:]
It was not until a few hours after I had finished reading The Promised World that I could fully appreciate all the author had set out to accomplish. While on the surface, the novel is entertaining and a page turner, in its depths it is a story about lost innocence, betrayal and the complexity of relationships.
ljohnson130's review against another edition
3.0
Lila is incredibly close to her twin brother Billy, so when she finds out that he has intentionally died at the hands of the police, she is at a loss for words. Lila desperately tries to understand why Billy would choose "suicide by police," and her search leads to places that no one expected. The book deals with Lila's relationship with her husband and her brother, while also focusing on Billy's relationship with his family and his children. The book has many flashbacks as the reader tries to understand Billy and Lila's backstory and what got them to this point in life. While confusing at times, the end ties everything together and allows you to better understand their life.
ashj_1218's review against another edition
2.0
Complicated...but not really in a good way. Started strong and drew a confusing picture of relationships and what happened to who... but by the time the book should have been giving tidbits about the story, it was still stringing the reader along and then the "revelations" ended up feeling flat and kind of overdue. And I honestly still don't know what to think about the characters. Not quite what i expected.
gweiswasser's review against another edition
2.0
You know it’s bad when you only have 15 pages left of a book, and you can’t bring yourself to read them.
The Promised World by Lisa Tucker started out promising enough: a tale of family dysfunction focusing on twin brother/sister, Billy and Lila, who have an abnormally close relationship and a lot of unanswered questions about their past. When Billy kills himself – suicide by police – Lila tries to figure out why, and starts unraveling a lot of mysteries about their childhood and what she remembers. Meanwhile, Billy’s three children each deal with their own issues in the aftermath of their father’s death, and his estranged wife struggles to keep custody of her children.
My issues with this book:
Inconsistency. It seemed like Tucker just made up things as she went along, without a consistent narrative that tied all the facts together. Houses appear out of nowhere that are fully furnished, even though nobody has lived in them for years. Memories crop up, then fade away, and are then replaced by conflicting memories. Evidence points to certain events that are never addressed or brought up again. I realize that Lila’s past was shadowy and confusing, but sometimes she has total clarity about events and other times she is missing decades of her past.
Plot developments that are supposed to be pivotal, but aren’t. Billy supposedly shot his stepfather, but that is never really explored. Lila fell down the stairs and had a head injury, but that’s also not really addressed until the last few pages, and then only with the briefest of treatments.
Overblown insinuations of incest and abuse. Did Lila and Billy have an inappropriate relationship? Maybe… it’s hinted at but never really explored, and no one can agree on the answer. Did their stepfather abuse them? Maybe… but again, never resolved.
Unrealistically crazy and/or evil characters. Lila and Billy’s mom is pure evil, and Billy himself is highly unstable and paranoid. And Lila did her own stint in a mental institution. Yet we are supposed to follow these characters and relate to their perspective…?
The Promised World clearly wasn’t for me. Maybe Tucker was trying to explore the nature of memory and who we trust in creating our own narratives? But there were holes all over the place that made it much more confusing than powerful. The only sane people in the book – Billy and Lila’s spouses – were the only characters I could really follow and enjoy. The rest were just a mishmash of inconsistent or crazy.
I listened to The Promised World mostly on audio, until the last chapter, and I invested a lot of hours into it. (The audio is decent, through the narrator was a little too precise and prim – almost like she was reading a children’s book – which was inconsistent with the overall mood of her material.) By the end, I was annoyed with the book, bordering on angry, and really wishing I hadn’t spent my time on it. I have too little time to read these days to spend it on books that are this unsatisfying. Ultimately this one wasn’t worth it.
The Promised World by Lisa Tucker started out promising enough: a tale of family dysfunction focusing on twin brother/sister, Billy and Lila, who have an abnormally close relationship and a lot of unanswered questions about their past. When Billy kills himself – suicide by police – Lila tries to figure out why, and starts unraveling a lot of mysteries about their childhood and what she remembers. Meanwhile, Billy’s three children each deal with their own issues in the aftermath of their father’s death, and his estranged wife struggles to keep custody of her children.
My issues with this book:
Inconsistency. It seemed like Tucker just made up things as she went along, without a consistent narrative that tied all the facts together. Houses appear out of nowhere that are fully furnished, even though nobody has lived in them for years. Memories crop up, then fade away, and are then replaced by conflicting memories. Evidence points to certain events that are never addressed or brought up again. I realize that Lila’s past was shadowy and confusing, but sometimes she has total clarity about events and other times she is missing decades of her past.
Plot developments that are supposed to be pivotal, but aren’t. Billy supposedly shot his stepfather, but that is never really explored. Lila fell down the stairs and had a head injury, but that’s also not really addressed until the last few pages, and then only with the briefest of treatments.
Overblown insinuations of incest and abuse. Did Lila and Billy have an inappropriate relationship? Maybe… it’s hinted at but never really explored, and no one can agree on the answer. Did their stepfather abuse them? Maybe… but again, never resolved.
Unrealistically crazy and/or evil characters. Lila and Billy’s mom is pure evil, and Billy himself is highly unstable and paranoid. And Lila did her own stint in a mental institution. Yet we are supposed to follow these characters and relate to their perspective…?
The Promised World clearly wasn’t for me. Maybe Tucker was trying to explore the nature of memory and who we trust in creating our own narratives? But there were holes all over the place that made it much more confusing than powerful. The only sane people in the book – Billy and Lila’s spouses – were the only characters I could really follow and enjoy. The rest were just a mishmash of inconsistent or crazy.
I listened to The Promised World mostly on audio, until the last chapter, and I invested a lot of hours into it. (The audio is decent, through the narrator was a little too precise and prim – almost like she was reading a children’s book – which was inconsistent with the overall mood of her material.) By the end, I was annoyed with the book, bordering on angry, and really wishing I hadn’t spent my time on it. I have too little time to read these days to spend it on books that are this unsatisfying. Ultimately this one wasn’t worth it.
sariggs's review against another edition
4.0
This gets 4 stars for addressing the topic of collective memory and the relationship between boy/girl twins. Lisa Tucker, my hat's off to you.