Book Review: Paige

First of all, let me apologize for being late with the blog.  My son had oral surgery this morning and there were complications that required I be at his side to take care of him today.  But I knew you were all waiting on the edge of your seats, so I got here as fast as I could.

Paige is the third installment in the Newport Ladies Book Club and written by Annette Lyon.  At first I was worried because we are going over the same events from the other two books, but I worried needlessly.  It definitely sucked me in right from the start.

In this book we delve into Paige's background, a woman who has recently divorced when she caught her husband cheating on her.  It is an emotional journey as Paige tries to carve out a new life for herself and her boys.  There were scenes that were so gut-wrenchingly emotional to read, like when she has to turn her boys over to her ex and his new wife for the Christmas holidays that just make you want to cry right along with Paige.  There were also heartwarming moments when she makes friends with the ladies in the book club and starts to understand herself in a different way the closer she gets to them.  I like the background of the book club.  It's familiar and fun and the center that ties everything together throughout all the books.

I thought Paige felt very real as she reached deep inside herself to be a good mother and a good friend.  She begins a journey of self-discovery as she struggles and it was like the reader was right there along with her.  I liked that a lot.  There were a few places where it felt a bit repetitive, but that's only because we are reading the third perspective on essentially the same events.  Other than that small thing, however, I really enjoyed this book and while the ending is not exactly happy, (it kinda sorta is, depending on how you look at it) but it is satisfying and I'm looking forward to the next installment in the series.

Here is the back copy:


After a bitter divorce from her unfaithful husband, Paige moves from Utah to California with her two little boys and vows to make a fresh start. She finds a job at a dental practice that helps her get back on her feet, but it’s the friends she makes at her new book club who help her realize how strong she is and who give her support to carry on as she faces the challenges of being a single mom.

She also meets Derryl, a wonderful, kind, attentive man who treats her right, something her ex never did. Yet Paige struggles to figure out who she is as a woman rather than a wife, how to help her boys adjust to a broken home, and whether she can ever trust a man or love again.

As Paige leans on the book club ladies and Derryl’s everpresent care, one thing becomes clear: healing from the past requires more than a change of address.