Silver Bells

Rating:
Summary: Luanne Rice does it again
Review: Every year, widower Christopher Byrne leaves Nova Scotia and comes to Chelsea, New York City to sell his Christmas trees through out the month of December. Last year, Christy brought his two children along with him but only went back home with his daughter Bridget. Christy got into a huge fight with his 17 year old son, Danny about him staying on in NYC and in the end, Danny ran away.

Catherine Tierney, a resident of Chelsea, used to love everything about Christmas until her husband died 3 years ago right before Christmas. Now all she wants is the holiday season to pass her by as fast as possible.

When Christy returns the following year to Chelsea to sell his trees, Catherine tries to avoid him. You see, she has a secret. The night after the fight between Christy and Danny, Catherine sees Danny searching for food in the trash cans outside her home and she offers to help him whenever he is willing to accept it.

Christy and Catherine are drawn together over the love and affection they share for Danny and they learn to believe in the miracles can happen when we are most ready to give up.

Silver Bells is a book that I will treasure for years to come because it is a touching story that teaches us to look up every once in a while and see the beauty that right before our eyes.

Luanne Rice is the author of many books including True Blue and Beach Girls but this is her first holiday book and I hope it is not her last.



Rating:
Summary: Disappointing - But Luanne Rice is still one of my favorites
Review: Let me start by saying that I am a fan and faithful reader of Luanne Rice. I've been buying & reading her books since the release of CLOUD NINE several years ago, and she is still one of the best (and most beloved) authors of women's fiction today! Most of her books follow the same theme - Boy meets girl, girl falls in love w/boy, an obstacle threatens to keep them apart, true love perseveres and the lovers find their way to each other, and all live "happily ever after!" While the theme of each novel may be the same in each book, what makes each one an interesting read & keeps readers coming back are the character development and story settings, which are so well done, the reader finds themselves emotionally attached. Although I've loved some of her books more than others, they've all been the kinds of books that I can't wait to see what the next chapter brings, and leave me wanting more at the end. Sadly, I can't say the same was true of SILVER BELLS.

With the success of the holiday novels from Best Selling authors like Debbie Macomber, John Grisham, and Nora Roberts, perhaps Ms. Rice felt it was time to "jump on the band wagon" and write her own tale of love at the holidays. Unfortunately, it fell flat, and my advice would be to stick to the traditional stories like BEACH GIRLS, CLOUD NINE and FOLLOW THE STARS HOME.

There was no character development, and no one to truly root for. As a reader, I didn't find myself emotionally drawn to any of the characters in this story, and didn't really care one way or another if the characters ended up together or went their separate ways. From the small amount of background on each character that was provided, it was hard to believe some of the choices that they made and the ending just seemed to be a little unbelievable. The whole story just seemed to be a little bit forced, and there was way too much drama for such a short holiday story. This particular story may have been better told as a full length HC novel, instead of an abbreviated holiday tale.

While I usually find myself anxiously turning the pages of a Luanne Rice novel, the reason for this is because the story holds so much of my interest that I can't wait to see what happens next. More often than not, I'm disappointed when I'm done - not because the story was a disappointment, but because the author's left me wanting more! This time around I found myself anxiously turning the pages for an entirely different reason - I actually couldn't wait to finish the book and see it end already. And this time my disappointment when I was done had nothing to do with my wanting more - I was just glad to be done with it already, and to finally have it end.

I usually start my New Year off each year by reading the newest novel from Ms. Rice. This year, however, I have to wait until June for her newest book, which I guess was caused by the time it spent her to write SILVER BELLS so that it was ready for release in time for the holidays. I'm looking forward to returning to a more "traditional" Luanne Rice novel. I can only hope that this was the first and last holiday read from Ms. Rice, and that next year I can return to starting my new year off with the latest HC novel from one of my favorite authors!

If SILVER BELLS was the first Luanne Rice book that any of you have read, I encourage you to go back and read any of one of her previous novels to get the full scope of this author's talent (BEACH GIRLS, CLOUD NINE or SUMMER FIRES would be a few good choices!) Or wait until June and pick up a copy of the HC SUMMER ROSES or the PB SUMMER'S CHILD, both of which I am anxiously looking forward to!

Rating:
Summary: Yes, something's missing
Review: Like a number of other readers, I felt something was missing in this story; it seemed very dark and somehow didn't affirm much that was positive or hopeful. Family tensions seem shelved rather than resolved, and Catherine seems almost to let go of her love for her first husband along with her grief. For a better look at what Rice can do, check out "Follow the Stars Home." Even better, get the Hallmark DVD adaptation of "Stars," which tells a slightly different story.

Rating:
Summary: Just missed the mark
Review: Normally I enjoy Luanne Rice novels and look forward to each new one, but after just finishing "Silver Bells" I have to say that for me it missed the mark. Yes, the story and nice and the ending is "feel-good," but the characters are one-dimensional and it appears that Ms Rice didn't waste a lot of time writing this one. I hope her next one is better.

Rating:
Summary: What Happened to Luanne Rice?
Review: OK maybe its time for me to stop reading one of my favorite authors because this book really disappointed me. Silver Bells isn't an altogether bad book if somebody else wrote it, but its certainly not Luanne Rice's finest moment. As a matter of fact I would venture to say she dashed this one off rather quickly to make it in time for the holidays.

Yes, she weaves a rather sad story of two people who meet and help one another. And yes she writes about a family in distress and she also resorts to the new wave of mysticasl happenigns at a pivitol moment and paves the way for some resolution to some people's problems. So what went wrong for me. I didn't really feel much for the characters -- they sort of were there but whereas in the past I would sink into their lives and cry with them and then be happy for them, I just found this book a sorry excuse for a holiday read. And the premise was hard to believe - a tree grower's son runs away in Manhattan and now its Christmas time and the tree grower is back to sell his trees and find his son. And he just happens to make friends with the woman who is harboring him? This was such a disappointing read for me that even Rice's quasi travelouge about Manhattan, a city I love and lived in for 24 years, left me wishing for one of her books in Black Hall or firefly beach.

I know that in recent years many popular authors like John Grisham, Jan Karon,David Baldacci and Janet Evanovich have written small holiday books just in time to purchase these books for gifts. And yes, while I read these books and thought they were OK, I can't say the same about Luanne Rice's attempt at her first holiday book.

It really grieves me to write this review since for the most part I have always loved Luanne Rice's books. I'm afraid that I will approach her next title with a bit more skepticism which is sad for me and her other readers who have come to love her charters and their lives. At best this was a rather somber book and didn't leave me with the joy or spirit of the holiday even as I closed the book.




Rating:
Summary: delightful holiday romance
Review: One year ago, Nova Scotia's Christmas farmer widower Christopher Byrne took his two children with him to sell trees in the Chelsea section of Manhattan. Chris and his sixteen years old son got into a fight over the teen's future and soon the police arrive to take the older Byrne away. Danny vanished and has not been seen since and Chris regrets his actions ever since.

Widow Catherine Tierney works at the private library of the Reinbeck Corporation. She has seen Chris sell his trees for years and saw last year's fight. She and her pal Lizzie have tried to help Danny who they call Harry for Houdini. A vanished teen and his distraught younger sister play matchmaker as the big city woman and the rural farmer fall in love, but it will take a miracle for this foursome to find peace on earth.

SILVER BELLS is a delightful holiday romance starring an ensemble of characters who will make readers believe in the miracle of Chelsea. The story line contains the serious elements of a runaway teen and the homeless yet manages to uplift the audience with its caring cast. Readers will quote Al Michaels "do you believe in miracles?" with an astounding yes when it comes to Luanne Rice.

Harriet Klausner


Rating:
Summary: Disappointed- 3 1/2 stars
Review: Unfortunately I have to agree with the other reviewers in that I was disappointed in this book. While I LOVE Luanne Rice and her writing ability, her wonderful characters and memorable backdrops; Silver Bells was disappointing.

The story of a man who's wife died a few years prior, and now his son has run away while in New York...leaves something to be desired. While the descriptions of the stars and the nature all around us- and the specialness of Christmas time is excellent; the characters leave something to be desired. I had a hard time really getting into the story and the characters, which usually comes very natural for me with a Rice novel. While I did care what happened to see if Christy would ever find love, if Catherine would ever stop mourning her husband, and if the brother & sister would ever be reunited- something was missing.

I DID enjoy the ending though. Maybe it was just too early for a Christmas story for me. I don't know...but I do hope her next book goes back to her old formula's.