Lavender Morning

Title: Lavender Morning
Author: Jude Deveraux
Genre: Romance
Time: half to a whole day

I sorta ran out of books to read so I checked what books I ear-marked for later reading.  I found that I still have a few books of Jude Deveraux that I haven't read.  So I settled with Lavender Morning and I remembered the previous books I've read of hers was part of the Edilean Series.

Her Edilean Series, from what I can gather, are centered on the characters in this small storybook town in Virginia where almost everyone is related to each other.  Each book talks about different heroines and how they end up with their "Mr. Right" as well as give readers a little bit of background on the "elders" in town whom they are somewhat connected to.  Lavender Morning's heroine is Jocelyn and her Mr. Right is Luke (one of the residents in town). 

So anyway, I don't wanna delve much into details as this blog is about my reactions and thoughts on the books I've read (as a way to keep track of how many I've read).  This book is a light read.  Light read is something I would describe a book that is not dark, thrilling, overwrought, deep or mind blowing but not boring or dragging.  It's something you wanna read while relaxing at the beach or on a cold, rainy afternoon.  Like any light reads, it has a happy, feel-good ending.  My complaints are:

1) Why is her family with her when the will was read?  As a grown up, you'd think she was already living independently/on her own as she was such an odd duckling with her family.  Why were her sisters there?  Author addressed this by implying that the family was that "selfish"/money hungry but it just felt like such as stretch.  My guess was so the author would have a reason for the step sister to suddenly show up again in the middle of the book.

2) The "horrible", "disastrous" party.  I don't get how the step sister wreaked such purported havoc in her cupcake party.  Sure, she said the adult cupcakes contained illegal drugs but I doubt the people who already consumed it would believe that, especially when, in fact, they liked that the "adult" cupcakes had tequila in them.  I know the whole thing was written to "surprise" the readers about Luke's wife but I just find it such a stretch for the step sister to suddenly show up in Edilean.  What for??  To "wreak havoc" by the implying Jocelyn drugged the cupcakes?  Or is was it to make Joce jealous of Ingrid?  But that would imply that the step sister is privy to Joce's secret attraction to Luke and as the book has been saying, they're not particularly close.  So how would the step sister know that Ingrid would make Joce jealous?  And just as suddenly as she appeared, the step sister disappeared.  Why would a famous model, fly in her entourage to a sleepy little town to attend a private party then leave right after?  Why waste money on that trip when the book implies that her career is going south.

3) The plot twist in the end was pretty predictable.  I figured out early on that Joce could be Ms Edi's grandchild, so the Harcourt line of descendants wouldn't stop with Ms. Edie.  But I was wrong in thinking that Ms. Edi knew all along.  Although, I didn't right away guess Luke's "secret" but I knew he was loaded.  My hunch was money in stocks or from a previous business venture.  But a writer is perfect for Joce (see what I mean by feel-good endings?).  And another "feel good" revelation is David still being alive all this time.

The book ends with still a few questions (or "secrets" as the townspeople calls them) unanswered.  I guess so you would read the other books of the Edilean Series.

Verdict: Not exactly a page turner but a good read if you want something light.  As a romance book, it lacked "kilig" as we call it in the Philippines but the somewhat interesting "secrets" sorta made up for it.