The Engagements by J. Courtney Sullivan

The Engagements focuses on five different decades and five apparently unconnected people who are all at varying stages of their relationships. One is single but married to her job, another is happily married but has a problematic son, the third is happily married but struggling for money, the fourth is in a contented marriage but longs for excitement and the fifth is very happily unmarried. The first person, Mary Frances Gerety, has just come up with the famous ‘A Diamond is Forever,’ slogan. Her story had a very Mad Men feeling and I loved it. It then cuts to Evelyn who has been married to Gerald for years but her son, Teddy is about to ruin his marriage. James is married to Sheila but they don’t have a lot of money and so he feels as though he’s not providing for his wife and children. Delphine has married her best friend but clings onto excitement when it comes knocking at her door and Kate is with Dan but not married and she doesn’t understand why people enter into such a thing.
This book definitely builds. There are a lot of characters to introduce and so much of the start of the book is establishing their individual stories. All the people seem unconnected and it isn’t until the end that you realise that there is a connection after all. Once all the characters were introduced,  it didn’t take me long to get enthralled in their stories. There is a little history thrown in as well which is always a good thing with me. Each story had its own point of view on engagement and marriage and had their own unique conclusions. There were some heart wrenching moments where I felt empathy with the characters. There were some stories I enjoyed more than others but overall, this was an interesting and enjoyable read.

(Published by Virago, January 2014. Available to buy in paperback and ebook.)

by

Laura

I'm Laura. I started Novel Kicks back in 2009 as I wanted a place to discuss books and writing - two loves of my life. As someone who has anxiety, these two things give me, and I am sure countless others, a much needed escape.
There is a monthly book club, writing exercises, prompts, reviews, author interviews, competitions and guest posts. I cover many genres and I hope there is something for everyone.
I grew up by the sea in Dorset and currently live in Poole with my husband, Chris and three cats. I love writing and have a BA (Hons) in Creative Writing from Falmouth University. I am writing my first book. If only I could stop pressing delete. Chris has threatened to stop it from working. Haha.
I have always loved creative writing since I was in first school and would very much like to meet my teacher, Miss Sayers, to say thank you for all the encouragement she gave me then.
When not writing, I love reading, cats, Disney, singing (I can't sing but this doesn't stop me,) and falling into a good TV show or film. If I could step into any fictional world, it would be amongst the characters in ABC's Once Upon a Time.
I love reading many genres and discovering new authors.