Jodi Newby

This debut novel features 32-year-old Leah and the 96-year-old grandmother to whom she expresses her concerns about not living her best life, mostly due to an unsatisfying marriage. This revelation prompts Grandma Maddie to tell "a story" that turns out to be decades' worth of trials and tribulations, which she relays to Leah over the course of several hours. Maddie has led an interesting life but the message boils down to "women have more choices than in my day so don't settle for being unhappy."

Leah's character is less well-defined. She is described as a woman with low self-esteem (despite a loving and supportive childhood) who rarely thinks for herself or places value on what she wants. Yet, she started her own catering business right out of college and built it into a success. She freely chose to marry a man whose values did not align with hers and, now that she finally realizes it, can't decide if she wants to leave. Sans kids, pets, and pressure from family to stay married, Leah is not "stuck" - she simply doesn't have the courage to make a different choice. She feels unworthy of love, or is a people-pleaser, or has a religious commitment to her marriage, or is in denial. The reasons vary from chapter to chapter.

Maddie's chapters carry the narrative while Leah's chapters do not flow smoothly, often meander, and are overly wordy. Better editing and tighten prose would help but Leah is also surprisingly unlikable. Worse, the author fails to connect Maddie's lengthy stories to effecting a change in Leah. The focus is on what Maddie overcame, not how she did it. The reader is expected to believe that's enough for Leah to finally claim her own power of choice.… (mehr)