REVIEW: Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate

Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate
Audiobook Narrated by Emily Rankin and Catherine Taber
My rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Synopsis

Memphis, 1939. Twelve-year-old Rill Foss and her four younger siblings live a magical life aboard their family’s Mississippi River shantyboat. But when their father must rush their mother to the hospital one stormy night, Rill is left in charge—until strangers arrive in force. Wrenched from all that is familiar and thrown into a Tennessee Children’s Home Society orphanage, the Foss children are assured that they will soon be returned to their parents—but they quickly realize the dark truth.

Aiken, South Carolina, present day. Born into wealth and privilege, Avery Stafford seems to have it all: a successful career as a federal prosecutor, a handsome fiancé, and a lavish wedding on the horizon. But when Avery returns home to help her father weather a health crisis, a chance encounter leaves her with uncomfortable questions and compels her to take a journey through her family’s long-hidden history, on a path that will ultimately lead either to devastation or to redemption. (Via Goodreads)

Review

Overall this is an enjoyable listen read by very effective readers centered on a fascinating topic, but unfortunately it wasn’t it is as strong as it could have been. The pairing of Avery and May/Rill's stories felt mismatched, each story was a distraction to the other rather than a companion. Although Rill's story is the real draw of the book and more engaging Avery's isn't necessarily worse. I was very drawn by Avery's journey to find her grandmothers past but the past we are presented is not hers, we never really find out anything about how Grandma Judy grew up and very little about her actual circumstances.

Of course it is established very early that there is a familial connection between Avery and May, the few attempts the book makes to seed doubt in that are lackluster and unconvincing. The issue is that that although I found myself continuously wishing for a deeper connection between Judy and May there is no evidence of genuine connection until the end of the book and at that point it felt insubstantial and glancing rather than a compelling reason for this journey.

Ultimately this book is not bad, it just feels like it should have been two books in a series rather than one. Having these stories combined into one prevented either from being fully realized and left me as a reader feeling wistful for the book I could have heard instead of the one I did.

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