Review of Teardrops
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Tamorie Hargro
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Review of Teardrops
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Teardrops" by Helen Burger.]
Teardrops by Helen Burger is an emotional tale about two sisters, Tina and Sarah, and Sarah's best friend, Sharon. The three young women leave England in search of new beginnings and end up in three different places: Switzerland, France, and Italy. In their respective locations, the women meet extensive hardships, forcing them to make mature and often heart-wrenching decisions. Although miles and miles apart, the passionate romances that these women find with affluent and mysterious men force them into a deep, dangerous web that ultimately keeps them all connected.
I want to begin by mentioning how fitting the title Teardrops is for a story like this one. The summary, which had fascinated me, helped me expect a dramatic tale that would forever change the lives of three young women. I was served drama, all right! It was even more than I had expected, and the author did an amazing job depicting the characters' lives in vivid detail. Burger's ability to write realistic fiction, with often devastating twists, was demonstrated throughout the novel. It was quite easy to sympathize with the characters' various situations and feel bothered by those who caused them unnecessary suffering. I also enjoyed the intensity of the bonds the characters shared with one another as they grew to embrace those around them as either lovers, family, or friends.
What I liked most about the novel is also something that I disliked about it, as it eventually became poorly handled. Teardrops is broken up into three major points of view, beginning with Tina's, then Sarah's, and then Sharon's. Afterwards, the major points of view were revisited as needed. I enjoyed having three stories to closely follow, seeing how expertly they all converged as the story climaxed and neared its end. However, I also found this separation of points of view to become less focused, more jumbled, and eventually, horribly confusing. Oftentimes, one character's movements would be the focus of a paragraph and within the next paragraph (ie: the next sentence), another character in an entirely different country in an unrelated situation would become the focus. And these point of view switches were not limited to only Tina, Sarah, Sharon, and those closest to them but also included even the most insignificant of characters.
In addition to this, there were plenty of other things that bothered me about the novel. Firstly, I found that the book was in many places pointlessly sexual, especially at the beginning when I counted at least six men within the first 23 pages unable to control some animalistic sexual desire for the two main characters. Even a very homosexual man felt this same insatiable magnetic pull. I found this all ridiculous and was quite slow to read the beginning. Additionally, sometimes the author's awkward word choice forced me to reread or literally just pause to process it. Other times, the characters were the problem, threatening to become unlikeable due to their unnecessary, dramatic-just-for-the-heck-of-it, and often cowardly behaviors despite "maturing" with age and experience. I personally think that the book could have ended at least 60 pages before the 415th page; instead, drama forced the story to an awkward and unsatisfying conclusion. Finally, I found several punctuation and grammatical errors that bring up the concern of professional editing.
In all, I rate this book 3 out of 5 stars. On average, the story was well-rounded and went "full circle" in closing up all the early loose ends that I was interested in. However, as I found the beginning a bit tedious to read and the ending overly dramatic, I found it less enjoyable than I desired. Teardrops has drama, romance, and danger, making it an intriguing read from the get-go for readers who enjoy this combination of story elements. I also recommend this book to only ADULT readers, as the book is mature and contains graphic content.
******
Teardrops
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Teardrops by Helen Burger is an emotional tale about two sisters, Tina and Sarah, and Sarah's best friend, Sharon. The three young women leave England in search of new beginnings and end up in three different places: Switzerland, France, and Italy. In their respective locations, the women meet extensive hardships, forcing them to make mature and often heart-wrenching decisions. Although miles and miles apart, the passionate romances that these women find with affluent and mysterious men force them into a deep, dangerous web that ultimately keeps them all connected.
I want to begin by mentioning how fitting the title Teardrops is for a story like this one. The summary, which had fascinated me, helped me expect a dramatic tale that would forever change the lives of three young women. I was served drama, all right! It was even more than I had expected, and the author did an amazing job depicting the characters' lives in vivid detail. Burger's ability to write realistic fiction, with often devastating twists, was demonstrated throughout the novel. It was quite easy to sympathize with the characters' various situations and feel bothered by those who caused them unnecessary suffering. I also enjoyed the intensity of the bonds the characters shared with one another as they grew to embrace those around them as either lovers, family, or friends.
What I liked most about the novel is also something that I disliked about it, as it eventually became poorly handled. Teardrops is broken up into three major points of view, beginning with Tina's, then Sarah's, and then Sharon's. Afterwards, the major points of view were revisited as needed. I enjoyed having three stories to closely follow, seeing how expertly they all converged as the story climaxed and neared its end. However, I also found this separation of points of view to become less focused, more jumbled, and eventually, horribly confusing. Oftentimes, one character's movements would be the focus of a paragraph and within the next paragraph (ie: the next sentence), another character in an entirely different country in an unrelated situation would become the focus. And these point of view switches were not limited to only Tina, Sarah, Sharon, and those closest to them but also included even the most insignificant of characters.
In addition to this, there were plenty of other things that bothered me about the novel. Firstly, I found that the book was in many places pointlessly sexual, especially at the beginning when I counted at least six men within the first 23 pages unable to control some animalistic sexual desire for the two main characters. Even a very homosexual man felt this same insatiable magnetic pull. I found this all ridiculous and was quite slow to read the beginning. Additionally, sometimes the author's awkward word choice forced me to reread or literally just pause to process it. Other times, the characters were the problem, threatening to become unlikeable due to their unnecessary, dramatic-just-for-the-heck-of-it, and often cowardly behaviors despite "maturing" with age and experience. I personally think that the book could have ended at least 60 pages before the 415th page; instead, drama forced the story to an awkward and unsatisfying conclusion. Finally, I found several punctuation and grammatical errors that bring up the concern of professional editing.
In all, I rate this book 3 out of 5 stars. On average, the story was well-rounded and went "full circle" in closing up all the early loose ends that I was interested in. However, as I found the beginning a bit tedious to read and the ending overly dramatic, I found it less enjoyable than I desired. Teardrops has drama, romance, and danger, making it an intriguing read from the get-go for readers who enjoy this combination of story elements. I also recommend this book to only ADULT readers, as the book is mature and contains graphic content.
******
Teardrops
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
J.K. Rowling - Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban wrote:Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.
Latest Review: Teardrops by Helen Burger
