Barbara M. reviewed on + 147 more book reviews
I first heard of author Elizabeth Berg when she (or the book "Durable Goods") was on someone's recommended list. I read the three books of the "Katie" trilogy (which I liked) and then read "Talk Before Sleep" (which I didn't like). I decided to try "Range of Motion" next and got that (like the others) through paperbackswap.com or the local library. My opinion of this book is the same as "Talk Before Sleep"--I don't care for it.
Early on in the book, Lainey, the narrator, mentions that her family lives in a duplex just outside of St. Paul. I've lived in the Mpls.-St. Paul area since 1972. If you live "just outside of St. Paul" you are in a suburb. So why not just use the name of the suburb? My guess is that the author has probably never been to this area but, for some reason, decided to set the story here.
I didn't find Lainey to be all that interesting. The numerous appearances of the "ghost" didn't add anything other than pages (the book is only 217 pages in my paperback version, so would be even slimmer without the ghost appearances). Alice, the neighbor, was a much more interesting character than Lainey. Lainey's two kids, who were supposed to be four and ten, talked like they were older than their actual ages. The older girl sounded like a teen.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS: Ted was a good looking, young (I think 30s) guy who often visited his wife at the care center where Lainey's husband was. Ted's wife was in a coma from a brain hemorrhage and eventually died. I expected that Ted and Lainey might gravitate toward one another and eventually have an affair. That didn't happen but if it had, it would have added more interest to the story. END OF SPOILERS
The other thing that drove me a little crazy is that there are no chapters in this book. When the story changes location, etc., there is a one inch gap where the previous scene ended and the new one begins. Maybe the publisher was trying to save on paper.
After reading two "clunkers" in a row, I'm not sure I will continue reading Elizabeth Berg.
Early on in the book, Lainey, the narrator, mentions that her family lives in a duplex just outside of St. Paul. I've lived in the Mpls.-St. Paul area since 1972. If you live "just outside of St. Paul" you are in a suburb. So why not just use the name of the suburb? My guess is that the author has probably never been to this area but, for some reason, decided to set the story here.
I didn't find Lainey to be all that interesting. The numerous appearances of the "ghost" didn't add anything other than pages (the book is only 217 pages in my paperback version, so would be even slimmer without the ghost appearances). Alice, the neighbor, was a much more interesting character than Lainey. Lainey's two kids, who were supposed to be four and ten, talked like they were older than their actual ages. The older girl sounded like a teen.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS: Ted was a good looking, young (I think 30s) guy who often visited his wife at the care center where Lainey's husband was. Ted's wife was in a coma from a brain hemorrhage and eventually died. I expected that Ted and Lainey might gravitate toward one another and eventually have an affair. That didn't happen but if it had, it would have added more interest to the story. END OF SPOILERS
The other thing that drove me a little crazy is that there are no chapters in this book. When the story changes location, etc., there is a one inch gap where the previous scene ended and the new one begins. Maybe the publisher was trying to save on paper.
After reading two "clunkers" in a row, I'm not sure I will continue reading Elizabeth Berg.
