Mason's Retreat

Rating:
Summary: REFRESHINGLY DIFFERENT--DESCRIPTIVE-- GOOD STORY!
Review: AN EXCELLENT ACCOUNT OF AN AREA OF THE U.S. AND THE TIMES PRECEDING W.W.2.THE AUTHOR IS CLEARLY AWARE OF THE RURAL AREA OF THE EASTERN MARYLAND SHORE AND THE PEOPLE WHO LIVED THERE IN THE EARLY 1900'S. IWOULD DEFINITELY READ MORE BY THIS AUTHOR

Rating:
Summary: REFRESHINGLY DIFFERENT--DESCRIPTIVE-- GOOD STORY!
Review: AN EXCELLENT ACCOUNT OF AN AREA OF THE U.S. AND THE TIMES PRECEDING W.W.2.THE AUTHOR IS CLEARLY AWARE OF THE RURAL AREA OF THE EASTERN MARYLAND SHORE AND THE PEOPLE WHO LIVED THERE IN THE EARLY 1900'S. IWOULD DEFINITELY READ MORE BY THIS AUTHOR

Rating:
Summary: This is a book to experience, not just read.
Review: Christopher Tilghman's ability to describe the feelings and perceptions of each character with incredible clarity allows the reader to experience, not just read. This is a book about people, their relationships and their struggles to balance the need to live the life dealt to them, while striving for the lives they truly want. Mason's Retreat is a book that transports you into the world of Edward Mason and his family each time you pick it up. I enjoyed this book just as much as other highly regarded books such as Jane Smiley's "A Thousand Acres".

Rating:
Summary: A family estate with a tale to tell - perhaps another time.
Review: How does a slender 30-something mother of two make a real life for herself, when her loudmouth misfit ... of a philandering husband departs for England and a dashing young yachtsman comes calling? Tend to her garden? If her husband is her choice, how does she aid him to overcome the disrespect of practically everyone who knows him, including her parents, the hired help, even their teenage son? There are the makings of a good story here.
Unfortunately, I found this first novel to be very much a freshman effort. The main failing was lack of gut-wrenching scenes, those that draw the reader in emotionally. I recall only one, and the author rushed through that one. The characters are hardly able to engage with one another and remain disconnected throughout. Most disappointing was the treatment of the Mason family estate, Mason's Retreat, which was never allowed to reveal its dark secrets.

Rating:
Summary: A family estate with a tale to tell - perhaps another time.
Review: How does a slender 30-something mother of two make a real life for herself, when her loudmouth misfit ... of a philandering husband departs for England and a dashing young yachtsman comes calling? Tend to her garden? If her husband is her choice, how does she aid him to overcome the disrespect of practically everyone who knows him, including her parents, the hired help, even their teenage son? There are the makings of a good story here.
Unfortunately, I found this first novel to be very much a freshman effort. The main failing was lack of gut-wrenching scenes, those that draw the reader in emotionally. I recall only one, and the author rushed through that one. The characters are hardly able to engage with one another and remain disconnected throughout. Most disappointing was the treatment of the Mason family estate, Mason's Retreat, which was never allowed to reveal its dark secrets.

Rating:
Summary: Hauntingly Beautiful
Review: Mr. Tilghman has created a gem. In a deceptively simplistic way, he allows the reader to explore the nuances of the characters' relationships. As someone who is familiar with the Eastern Shore, every detail evoked this solitary but lovely place. This is a book you'll reflect on long after the last page is read.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting characters, place & time make a very good read!
Review: Our book club read this as a monthly selection and we liked it. The characters are well-developed and the story continues to keep your interst. The setting on the Eastern Shore of Maryland had a particular interest for our Maryland book club but it is also informative for those not familiar with the "shore". The description of the time in history and the various relationships between different classes and races only adds to the character of the story.

Rating:
Summary: a rich and moving novel
Review: Wonderfully drawn characters and a masterfully haunting sense of time and place. Characters include very real children (so much of literature is made up only of a world of erudite adults -- clearly not the planet I live on). I think of this book every time I go to the Eastern shore. Does anyone know if the author is in fact related to the folks that Tilighman is named after?