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Rating: 
Summary: Wallace Stegner meets Barbara Kingsolver in the Adirondacks
Review: I loved this book.
Intensity of time and place similar to Stegner's Crossing to Safety.
Main character, Isabel, is a grown up woman (what a nice change!) going with her second husband to meet his family at their compound in the Adirondacks. This plot is successfully interspersed with her thoughts of her first marriage, work, and grown child.
Isabel is an environmentalist, and her sometimes lectures on the subject evoke Kingsolver.
Somewhat predictable in part, but a cliffhanger ending redeems it.
Refreshing to read about a successful adult woman dealing with themes of love, abandonment, mothering, career, identity.
Very well written, engrossing.
I will be discussing this with my bookclubs when it comes out in paperback.
Rating: 
Summary: A wondeful and mesmerizing novel!
Review: I read this book in hopes of giving to my Grandma as it sounded like somthing she would enjoy. In the end however, I found it trite and frankly boring. The characters were far too one-dimensional for me to dredge up any sympathy or interest. Robinson had several good ideas and somethimes you can catch a glimpse of what she was trying to achieve but overall I found this book to be a letdown. But that's just me :-).
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Summary: a real novel
Review: It feels strange to refer to a novel as "a real novel," but that's exactly what I felt while I was reading this book. The story of Isabel Green's marriage to Paul Simmons, and the resulting complications, reminded me of books where neither plot nor literary value are short-changed. The two books it put me most closely in mind of were Jim Harrison's "Legends of the Fall" and Wallace Stegner's "Crossing to Safety," the latter being a perennial book club favorite. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me in the least if this novel became a book club favorite as well.
Rating:
Summary: a real novel
Review: It feels strange to refer to a novel as "a real novel," but that's exactly what I felt while I was reading this book. The story of Isabel Green's marriage to Paul Simmons, and the resulting complications, reminded me of books where neither plot nor literary value are short-changed. The two books it put me most closely in mind of were Jim Harrison's "Legends of the Fall" and Wallace Stegner's "Crossing to Safety," the latter being a perennial book club favorite. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me in the least if this novel became a book club favorite as well.
Rating:
Summary: A brilliant exploration into the heart
Review: Pair erupting forest fires and an environmentalist involved with a family simmering with incendiary conflict, and you've got the makings for an atypical story of love and loss. Isabel, recently widowed, is looking for love in all the wrong places, starting with the wilderness on a vacation in the Adirondacks with new man in her life, Paul, his family, and his dangerously attractive brother. This all makes it sound like some sappy romance novel - and it's not. It's a rapturous paean to love of life and love of nature, penned by a gifted writer.
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Summary: Quietly sumptuous says Kat from Readerville.com
Review: Robinson has a knack for telling stories about people starting over and this novel is so fine in that regard. But "Sweetwater" isn't only about starting over but locating self in the world such that both benefit, or, at least, hope to. This is a quiet book in the midst of which a fire rages literally. Yet it's the fires raging below the surface that captures the reader's attention and holds it perfectly to the end which is imperfect but that's not Robinson's fault since she merely reflects the imperfect world in which we live. Yet, that ending, aspires, at least, to perfection. I loved this novel, finest kind. And, if you're one who revels in nature, the refection of it in this book is a special treat.
Rating:
Summary: Quietly sumptuous says Kat from Readerville.com
Review: Robinson has a knack for telling stories about people starting over and this novel is so fine in that regard. But "Sweetwater" isn't only about starting over but locating self in the world such that both benefit, or, at least, hope to. This is a quiet book in the midst of which a fire rages literally. Yet it's the fires raging below the surface that captures the reader's attention and holds it perfectly to the end which is imperfect but that's not Robinson's fault since she merely reflects the imperfect world in which we live. Yet, that ending, aspires, at least, to perfection. I loved this novel, finest kind. And, if you're one who revels in nature, the refection of it in this book is a special treat.
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful and complex but compelling book!
Review: This is a wonderful book with a subtly interwoven plot and a mystery at the heart of it. I can't imagine that anyone wouldn't like this novel. This is a very fine writer in wonderful form, and I couldn't put "Sweetwater" down even though I had many other things pressing. I'm online just to order everything else I can find by Roxana Robinson.
Rating:
Summary: A brilliant exploration into the heart
Review: This novel caught me by surprise. I expected the writing to be good, but it's nearly perfect. Robinson has created highly believable characters and a story line that grips from beginning to end. The persona of Isabel is beautifully wrought. The reader can worry about her, get annoyed with her, understand and love her. As for her new family: I felt as if Robinson invited me to stand in a corner of that rustic retreat and observe the action. It was a great visit.
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