A recently widowed mother of two, Sylvie Bates-McAllister finds her life upended by a late-night phone call from the headmaster of the prestigious private school founded by her grandfather where her adopted son Scott teaches. Allegations of Scott's involvement in a hazing scandal cause a ripple effect, throwing the entire family into chaos. For Charles, Sylvie's biological son, it dredges up a ghost from the past who is suddenly painfully present. For his wife Joanna, it forces her to reevaluate everything she's hoped for in the golden Bates-McAllisters. And for Scott, it illuminates harsh truths about a world he has never truly felt himself a part of.
But for all the Bates-McAllisters, the call exposes a tangled web of secrets that ties the family together: the mystery of the school hazing, the event that tore Charles and Scott apart the night of their high school awards ceremony, and the intended recipient of a certain bracelet. The quest to unravel the truth takes the family on individual journeys across state lines, into hospitals, through the Pennsylvania woods, and face-to-face with the long-dormant question: what if the life you always planned for and dreamed of isn't what you want after all?
My thoughts
This is the story of the Bathes-McAllister family and how the family structure crumbles after the death of James, the father. Sylvie, his wife realizes that her friends are not really her friends and her relationships with her two sons (Charles and Scott) are strained. Charles and his wife Joanna have their own problems and Scott (who is adopted) is implicate din a death of a student.
Does it sound like a soap opera? Could be, but I thought it would be a family struggle to survive after one’s death. Maybe it’s that; I didn’t care for the characters enough to be interested in what they do or their decisions. Not what I expected.
Disclosure: I received this book for review from the publisher. I received no compensation for my thoughts.
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