Wednesday 6 May 2009

A Note in the Margin by Isabelle Rowan - Story so Far

Currently on page 118/263. First the blurb:-
John McCann, a man who judges life by the tally of an accounts ledger, has a supreme goal in life: To achieve, live, and enjoy the rarified executive lifestyle. But he's encountered one problem:

The migraines are going to continue to get worse unless you make some major changes in your lifestyle. What you need is a 'sea change'… Perhaps buy a nice little business in the country, settle down, something easier to occupy your time…

While John knows the doctor is right, he just can't resign from the job he's fought so hard for. He decides the sacrifice of taking a year's leave of absence won't interfere too much with his plans, and so he finds himself running Margins, a cozy little bookstore, with the help of the former owner's son, Jamie. John expects to put in his year, get his stress under control, and then get back to business.

What John doesn't expect is how Margins and its denizens draw him in, particularly the quiet, disheveled man who takes refuge in the old leather chair in the second-hand book section. John's plans for an unattached year of simple business crumble when he meets David and is forced to reevaluate life, love and what he really wants from both. John and David are forced to come to terms with their pasts as they struggle to determine what possible future they might build together.


I've read reviews for this book in a couple of places (Wave's Blog) and was really looking forward to reading it. Especially as I've discovered that Dreamspinner press titles are available in the UK from the Book Depository.

So I was initially a little disappointed that the story didn't grab me from page 1 and have me wanting to devour it. However, my faith in Wave was not misplaced :). For me this was a story that I had to settle into, it pulls you in to the world gradually and by page 50 I can see what the other reviewers loved about the story. I'm now halfway through and very much looking forward to finding out how the story ends and if David and John can have some kind of happy ending.

8 comments:

Mary M. said...

I'm glad you're not revealing too much about the book, as I have yet to read it myself. I ordered it after reading Wave's review too ;) - she's usually very good advice. I'm waiting until i'm in the right mood to read it; the last days were bright and sunny so all I wanted to read was light, fluffu stuff, which I know this book is not :).

LesleyW said...

Mary - I'll be posting a longer review soon that you might want to avoid until you've read the book. As I'll probably reveal a little bit more in that review.

Jane Seville said...

I felt the same way about Margin, and I ended up loving it. It isn't too long, so it's satisfying.

Mary M. said...

Thanks for the warning, Lesley :).

LesleyW said...

Jane - I ended up loving it too. :)

Mary - You're welcome. :)

Tracy said...

I saw something about this somewhere. Glad to hear it's good!

LesleyW said...

Tracy - just about to post the longer review. :)

Mary M. said...

Oh, nice! I've just finished reading this book too, not an hour ago :-D I'm probably going to wait before I read your review because I intend to write one too (sort of) and once I start reading oter people's review I seem to become unable to formulate my own original thoughts - I always feel other people say it so much better than I could have :). But I will come back and read yours afterwards ;)