September 14, 2012

The Unfinished Work of Elizabeth D.: Nichole Bernier

Elizabeth dies in a plane crash that is overshadowed with September 11th, the one that changed the world we all live it, occurred soon after. But, her friends can't forget her and how she died as well as the others.

Kate stops on her way to a summer on an island to get away from the world to pick up Elizabeth's journals that she left her in the will. Kate decides she is going to spend the summer learning about her friend. The more she learns about Elizabeth and the friendship she thought she had the more she questions, about Elizabeth and her own life.  While Elizabeth's husband is pushing Kate to share what she learned and that is a decision Kate isn't sure she is ready to make.

Written between Elizabeth's past journal entries and growing up and Kate in the present reading the journals and considering what she is learning. Questioning choice she has made, her marriage, what she knew about her friend, and what she might want to do in the future.  Through out the plot you get to see both characters grow and change.

I enjoyed how the plot of this book deals with difficult issues, making the reader think about the choice they make, what they think they know about their friends and how they judge people or how they might be judged by the others around them.

I thought one great growing point that Kate could have done through this book that she didn't is she talked about how she enjoyed reading Elizabeth's journal and she wished that she had a journal or something to show how she grown to her husband, but she never did journal or try to write or anything. I wish that she would have tried, but see how that could have made the plot more complicated too.

I haven't ready any of other books by Bernier (this may be a debut novel not sure) and I would pick up more by her. I think she has a great writing style and provides a different view of how to look at things. I would suggest this book to others. It reminds me a bit of early other authors I enjoy, Emily Giffin, Jennifer Weiner and other recognizable names.

I would give it 4 stars.

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