SAM'S LETTERS TO JENNIFER

Author: James Patterson ISBN: 0316710571 6/2004 CONTEMPORARY Publisher: Little, Brown and Company (TW)

A young woman revisits the lakefront village where she grew up and experiences not one but two remarkable love stories. Jennifer rushes to her childhood home when news comes that her beloved grandmother has been hospitalized. In the house where she spent her happiest years, she finds a series of letters addressed to her-letters that tell a passionate story of intrigue and secret desire. This is the real story of her grandmother's life, and it's not the story she's always known. It is a shocking family secret that has been concealed for decades, and the most moving love story Jennifer has ever heard. Then comes the biggest surprise of all. Jennifer lets her guard down for a moment and is suddenly caught up in a whirlwind of exhilarating emotions. This new love may come with an unbearable cost-but her grandmother's letters make Jennifer think that love may help her find a way.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

James Patterson is perhaps best known for his suspense/mystery books. His achievements in that genre are many, including several movies based upon his bestsellers. His newest release to be offered this June, is an ever-so-slight mystery interwoven with romance; a surprise to his readers, I’m sure, as well as a delightful surprise to me, in more ways than one.

For starters, this story takes place in the Great Lake regions of Chicago, Illinois and Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, making reference to several key areas close by in Michigan and Indiana, all of which I am very familiar with. Patterson's scenic descriptions were right on target while I felt his overall tone in this story conveyed a sense of the laid-back lifestyle we Great Lakers tend to strive for. (Notice I didn’t use the term “Midwesterners”. While we do possess a bit of the Midwestern attitude, I think we Great Lakers are a breed all unto our own.) I’ll admit I've never read this author before, but for someone who wasn't born nor raised in this area, I can't tell you how extremely pleased I was to see how accurate and thorough Patterson's scenic research seemed to be.

As for the story itself: Jennifer has had it tough. She’s had a lot of loss and heartache in her young lifetime, but has always mustered the courage to continue on with the guidance, support and love of her grandmother, Samantha (Sam). After the recent tragic loss of her own husband and child, Jennifer is called back to her childhood home when her beloved Sam becomes terminally ill. While Sam lingers in a coma, Jen finds a special gift from her – letters detailing her grandmother’s marriage to her grandfather, which reveal the secret that Sam had lived her life in a loveless marriage. But despite this, Sam goes on to tell Jennifer that even while surrounded by unhappiness and disappointment, she somehow, unbelievably, found and held onto the greatest love of her life. As to who that great love is? At this point Sam’s not telling, and therein arrives this story's mystery element.

SAM’S LETTERS TO JENNIFER could have so easily turned into a maudlin, weepy rendition of “Love Story”. Everyone seemed to have a sense of the terminal and dying about them, and at a time when Jennifer seemed to find happiness in her life again, the fact that her newfound love becomes terminally ill, well, it made me huff a bit and wonder just what more could possibly go wrong for this woman. However, this is where the story changes, and the true meaning of Sam’s letters to Jennifer takes this book from being just another “Love Story” and turns it into a tender and heartwarming message of hope, acceptance and unconditional love. (I won’t reveal who Sam’s great love is, other than to say I wasn’t surprised. However, I can see how it may upset a few readers, who may not be able to justify in their own minds these two people’s actions, no matter how in love they had happened to be.)

Overall, SAM’S LETTERS TO JENNIFER gets a 4 Rose Award from me. It has all the qualities of angst, tragedy, love, hope, forgiveness, and a somewhat happily-ever-after ending we all look for in our romantic reading. Not to mention that it is written by one of the most popular and gifted writers in today's literary world.

One more final note, though. Before you read SAM’S LETTERS TO JENNIFER, be sure and have the hanky ready. You’ll need it.

Nancy Davis