A review by chrissymcbooknerd
Heart Like Mine by Amy Hatvany
The night I met Victor, the idea that I might become the mother of his children was the furthest thing from my mind. In fact, being a mother was pretty much the furthest thing from my mind any night of the week.
As CEO of a successful organization, Grace is widely known as a woman who is passionately devoted to her career. While she is confident in her ability to excel in the workplace, she feels a bit more out of place on the domestic front. While Grace's friends and family all have beloved children of their own, Grace herself has no intention at all of ever having babies. Where is that maternal instinct and innate desire for children that people so commonly attribute to women?
So, when Grace meets Victor, she is hesitant to really allow herself to fall for him. After all, he has a teenage daughter and a younger son who do spend part of their time at home with their father. Although Grace is comforted by the fact that Ava and Max will still be primarily parented by their mother, Kelli, she still has a difficult time fitting into her new role as a parental figure for the children -- especially after Victor proposes and prepares to announce the news to the kids.
And then, one terrible moment changes everything when Victor learns that Kelli is dead, presumably inflicted by her own hands. Max and Ava are sent to Victor's home where they will now reside full time, forcing Grace to rearrange her priorities and her hours at work to accommodate the new living scenario. When the children rebel and Victor seems to side with his daughter over his fiance on numerous occasions, Grace wonders if her love for Victor is enough to counter the misery she now feels at home. Is it possible for a woman who never wanted a child to learn to have a heart for mothering?
Soon, Ava and Grace uncover new clues that suggest that Kelli was hiding a terrible secret that ultimately led to the demise of her young life. What really happened to Kelli when she was just fourteen years old that caused her parents to abandon and disown her like they did? And will the terrible truth of this woman's reality be the one thing that threatens to destroy Grace's relationship with her new family?
I really enjoyed HEART LIKE MINE and I was impressed with the sensitivity and honesty that the author conveyed in presenting the story. For starters, I really enjoyed the manner in which the story was displayed through alternating chapters from the perspectives of three key characters: Ava, Grace, and Kelli. Both Ava and Grace were detailed in first person, while Kelli's portions took a more distant third person perspective that often gave the reader flashbacks into the past in order to really build the back story. The layout of the novel was a bit reminiscent of the style of Jodi Picoult, which obviously works for her based on the popularity of her many fabulous books, of course.
I think the story raised interesting questions not only about female relationships but also about the nature/nuture debate as it relates directly to motherhood. Grace really struggles with the fact that she seems to lack that emotion and skill that other women describe as an innate mothering instinct, yet she finds herself falling into a new, protective love towards Ava and Max that was strangely new and unexpected for her. Simultaneously, it is also interesting to observe the manner in which the relationships change at different points throughout the story -- first, when everyone learns about Kelli's death and later as more information surfaces about the history of her young life. The multi-layered nature of the novel was really appealing on an emotional level, beyond the interest generated in the curiosity of what really happened to Kelli.
I'm glad that I had an opportunity to read and review HEART LIKE MINE, and I thank the publisher for allowing me to partake of such an enjoyable new novel! :)
As CEO of a successful organization, Grace is widely known as a woman who is passionately devoted to her career. While she is confident in her ability to excel in the workplace, she feels a bit more out of place on the domestic front. While Grace's friends and family all have beloved children of their own, Grace herself has no intention at all of ever having babies. Where is that maternal instinct and innate desire for children that people so commonly attribute to women?
So, when Grace meets Victor, she is hesitant to really allow herself to fall for him. After all, he has a teenage daughter and a younger son who do spend part of their time at home with their father. Although Grace is comforted by the fact that Ava and Max will still be primarily parented by their mother, Kelli, she still has a difficult time fitting into her new role as a parental figure for the children -- especially after Victor proposes and prepares to announce the news to the kids.
And then, one terrible moment changes everything when Victor learns that Kelli is dead, presumably inflicted by her own hands. Max and Ava are sent to Victor's home where they will now reside full time, forcing Grace to rearrange her priorities and her hours at work to accommodate the new living scenario. When the children rebel and Victor seems to side with his daughter over his fiance on numerous occasions, Grace wonders if her love for Victor is enough to counter the misery she now feels at home. Is it possible for a woman who never wanted a child to learn to have a heart for mothering?
Soon, Ava and Grace uncover new clues that suggest that Kelli was hiding a terrible secret that ultimately led to the demise of her young life. What really happened to Kelli when she was just fourteen years old that caused her parents to abandon and disown her like they did? And will the terrible truth of this woman's reality be the one thing that threatens to destroy Grace's relationship with her new family?
I really enjoyed HEART LIKE MINE and I was impressed with the sensitivity and honesty that the author conveyed in presenting the story. For starters, I really enjoyed the manner in which the story was displayed through alternating chapters from the perspectives of three key characters: Ava, Grace, and Kelli. Both Ava and Grace were detailed in first person, while Kelli's portions took a more distant third person perspective that often gave the reader flashbacks into the past in order to really build the back story. The layout of the novel was a bit reminiscent of the style of Jodi Picoult, which obviously works for her based on the popularity of her many fabulous books, of course.
I think the story raised interesting questions not only about female relationships but also about the nature/nuture debate as it relates directly to motherhood. Grace really struggles with the fact that she seems to lack that emotion and skill that other women describe as an innate mothering instinct, yet she finds herself falling into a new, protective love towards Ava and Max that was strangely new and unexpected for her. Simultaneously, it is also interesting to observe the manner in which the relationships change at different points throughout the story -- first, when everyone learns about Kelli's death and later as more information surfaces about the history of her young life. The multi-layered nature of the novel was really appealing on an emotional level, beyond the interest generated in the curiosity of what really happened to Kelli.
I'm glad that I had an opportunity to read and review HEART LIKE MINE, and I thank the publisher for allowing me to partake of such an enjoyable new novel! :)