Review: Bethlehem by Karen Kelly

Bethlehem

by Karen Kelly

Publisher: St Martin's Press

Pages: 304

Format: eARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  A young woman arrives at the grand ancestral home of her husband’s family, hoping to fortify her cracking marriage. But what she finds is not what she expected: tragedy haunts the hallways, whispering of heartache and a past she never knew existed.

Inspired by the true titans of the steel-boom era, Bethlehem is a story of temptation and regret, a story of secrets and the cost of keeping them, a story of forgiveness. It is the story of two complex women—thrown together in the name of family—who, in coming to understand each other, come finally to understand themselves.

Kritters Thoughts:  There are two time periods in this book, in one in the 1960s, Joanna Collier moves into her husband's family home with his mother and grandmother which puts her in an interesting spot, she isn't quite the woman of the house, but she is trying to make it a home for her and her family.  In the other time period, it goes back further in time to her mother-in-law's time as a young woman in the 1920s in the same home and how maybe this home holds some bad juju.

For me neither of the time periods really grabbed my attention both were equally just fine.  I felt as though it took a long time for characters to develop and for action to start taking place and once things starting moving and happening the book was almost over.  I wish that there had been some sort of movement earlier in the book, it made it hard to get in and really enjoy the book.  

The atmosphere of the book made me the happiest when reading the book.  I could feel the eeriness of the setting and the home.  The reader could tell that this home held secrets and that maybe it even caused some of the pain in this family.  

This book was just ok with me.  As I read a lot of historical fiction, I am not sure I would recommend this one to my friends who do not read a lot in this genre, but for those friends who have read all the historical fiction, this was an interesting departure from the usual and doesn't take place in the heart of World War II!    


Rating: enjoyable, but didn't leave me wanting more

Ebook 2019 Challenge: 28 out of 100

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from St Martin's Press.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.