I have mentioned before how I relate better to teenage characters in books, rather than adults in their 30's, 40's, and 50's, because although I am 25, I do not have a husband, children, or REAL job. I am still kicking it in grad school until DECEMBER 8th, and then I will be forced to take my place as a productive member of society. I know many of you could care less if you can make connections to the characters you read about because to you, reading is escaping your actual life, and living vicariously through someone else for a while. I enjoy this aspect of reading too, but I also enjoy a little camaraderie with characters.That being said, I was unsure of how well my current maturity level would handle Elin Hilderbrand's latest novel, Silver Girl, involving childhood best friends, Meredith and Connie (49 and 50 years of age). I mean, my mom is 49, what could I possible have in common with these ladies? Um...who cares?
My point is, with this story Hilderbrand covered all of her bases. She wrote the novel going back and forth between Meredith and Connie's perspectives in the present AND in the past. I was able to get to know these characters in their adult lives, and as teenagers and college students. Hilderbrand spent most of the time in the present, which was necessary because the conflicts were excellent. I was pleased with the easy and natural balance between the two.
A bit of a summary for y'all: Meredith and Connie have been best friends for forever, literally. Meredith lives in New York City and Connie lives in Bethesda. Connie's husband Walt, died two years earlier from brain cancer, and Meredith's husband, one of the richest men in NYC, had just been exposed in a scam that cheated rich investors out of billions of dollars. Investors lost everything, Meredith lost everything, including her family. Freddy was thrown in prison for 150 YEARS, and Meredith was even under investigation because the FED's believed that she must have known about the scheme. Her oldest son Leo was under investigation as well because he worked for Freddy's company, and was forced to hide out with her youngest, Carver until he was proven innocent.
Meredith has nowhere to go, literally everyone in the world hates her. She becomes desperate enough to call Connie, even though they are not on speaking terms. The two had a falling out a few years back when Connie and Walt decided to take their money out of Freddy's enterprise. Connie was preparing to spend her summer on Nantucket, as she does every year, and invites Meredith to come along, out of pity, and out of loneliness. These two women spend the summer rekindling their friendship, dealing with their grief, and basically picking their sorry asses up off the floor. When Meredith becomes threatened on the island full of Freddy's investors, and Connie meets a handsome local who makes her feel desire she hasn't felt since her late husband, they realize how much they really need each other.
Meredith and Connie are a couple of hot messes, and I really enjoyed reading all about it.
