Rating: 
Summary: A Must Read Book
Review: I knew I would love this book after reading the first page. Right off the bat the author tells you basically what the book is going to be about. As the story develops details and problems start occurring, but many questions initially go unanswered. This book is intermixed with difficulties dealing with the loss of a husband and father. It shows the true love for your family in hard times. Consisting of 294 pages, The Pilot's Wife was impossible to put down. While your reading you feel the characters pain. I strongly recommend that everyone read this book.The story begins when a woman, named Kathryn. Lost her husband in a terrible plane accident. Not only is it hard for her but she has to break it to her 14 year old daughter, Mattie, who is literally torn apart from this shocking news. It then becomes a mystery in which Kathryn tries to figure out what really happens since she knows what everyone thinks is incorrect. While trying to figure out the mystery she encounters plenty of twists and turns which will shock you. During this whole process she makes a friend, Robert Hart who is there to comfort her and accompany her wherever she goes. This book was well written but some parts towards the end could have used some further clarification. I really liked how everything just seemed to come into play and how it altered what happened next. I found the storyline to be an interesting and full of heart thrilling events. I am looking forward to reading her other books. Anita Shreve's writing style always keeps you on your feet and make you never want to put the book down until your done. I also really appreciated how she kept on coming back from flashbacks and fond memories. In my opinion this made the book personal and more enjoyable. This is by far the best mystery love story that I have ever read. It shows a true wife's loyalty and I'm glad to see that some people believe in true love. I have a feeling I understand why the Author wrote this book. She meant to show what love really is all about and also to try to make you more aware and curious about what is happening in you families lives. She made this a mystery because it brought out the families faith and love for their father and husband. The theme of this book revolves around two principles. 1. Love can make or break a family. 2. Caring and being there for each other can prevent a lot hurt. I hope that you think about these themes and after you finish this book you cherish it as much as I did. I just hope that when you sit down to read this book you appreciate it as much as I did. You know the expression "time flies when you're having fun"; well when I read this book, trust me, I was having fun.
Rating: 
Summary: The pilot's wife
Review: I read "The Pilot's Wife" by Anita Shreve. In my opinion this book was mediocre. Like most books it did have its flaws where the book seemed to stop and get boring. But then there were parts in the book that made you want to keep reading and never put it down. "The Pilot's Wife" got more and more interesting as I kept reading. It definitely deserves to be on Oprah's book list. I would suggest that you read this because the author wrote it so well and you really get drawn into the book from the first page. There is much detail in the book and it makes you aware of what it is like to have a "secret life" and go through a death. The main characters in the story are Kathryn, Mattie, Jack, Julia, and Robert. The book carefully develops its characters and their relationships by revealing the thoughts, feelings and memories of Jack. Mattie is Kathryn's daughter. Jack is Kathryn's wife. Julia is Kathryn's grandmother who raised her and Robert is the man who helps Kathryn get through the Jack's death. Many things in this book took me by surprise. One was the relationship that Kathryn and Mattie had. It was unusual to me that they were not that close. But after the death of Jack they became closer. In the week after Jack's death Mattie reveals to Kathryn that she has had sex, which she claims she didn't tell Kathryn before because she was afraid that she would tell Jack. I figured the author did this to show how Jack's death changed their lives. I also thought that Robert and Kathryn were going to kiss at one point in the book, but yet they never did. The narrator would say things such as how "the way he looked in the light", or "the way his strong hand laid upon mine." This book was really realistic. The struggles that Kathryn and Mattie went through were unbelievable and it made you almost want to cry at times. The betrayal that Kathryn must have felt was real too. It was disappointing when only one of Mattie's friends called her to see how she was and how she broke up with her boyfriend over her dad's death. I also thought that the book started out slow. In the beginning it was very detailed (which was good) but it just seemed that it took to long for the plot to develop. The author rambled on about trivial things. The ending could have also been stronger like the rest of the book was. Certain aspects seemed incomplete. The rest of the book was full of suspense and many twists where the ending was not as intense. I didn't understand was why Robert comes back at the end. I also didn't understand why Jack actually had the affair. His motives were never revealed in the book. I think that Anita Shreve intentionally left us asking the same questions as the wife. In this book it makes you think how well do you really no someone? All throughout the book I kept thinking of the relationships that I have with my best-friends and family and it made me wonder, "How well do I know them?" The author makes Jack out to be this great husband in the beginning. He is always doing stuff with Mattie and kissing/hugging Kathryn. As the story progresses, the reader learns that Jack wasn't the perfect husband that he was made out to be. He started acting like a jerk. I could not believe how the story took a twist and added an additional wife and children. I would never have guessed. The person I really felt sorry for was Mattie. She had such a close relation with Jack. No matter how much you love and trust a person, you cannot stop them from doing what they want. You can never truly know another person's heart. Kathryn obviously learned the hard way.
Rating: 
Summary: Another wife betrayed
Review: Maybe I'm not cut out for these stories of women betrayed by deep, dark secrets. Kathryn's anguish over the plane crash that takes her husband is wrenching. The eventual revelations that she gets, from the news releases, from the man from the airline assigned to help her through this, are intriguing. One always wonders about the families in these crashes, how it is handled, what they must experience. However, her investigation to clear her husband's name when it appears he is responsible for the crash leads to discoveries that she really didn't know him at all. It was fairly obvious to me quite early on what was going on in his life. Even the supposed plot twist was one I could see coming. I'm sure the intent was to create a story with unexpected twists and turns in the plot line, but they seemed like familiar territory to me. Another Oprah pick I wouldn't have chosen myself.
Rating: 
Summary: Insomia? Try reading this one...
Review: Predictable and plain boring. I tried to feel for Kathyrn but could not find empathy for any of the characters. It took me over a week to read this book. I had to force myself to turn the pages. I will confess that I finished the book but breathed a heavy sigh of relief when I was able to put this one of the shelf.
Rating:
Summary: Could this really happen? Really?...
Review: This story opens when Kathryn opens the kitchen door at 3am to a gentlemen from the pilot's union with the horrible news that her husband, Jack, has perished in an airplane explosion just off the coast of Ireland. At first the reader is horrified but knows that there must be much more to this book than just how Kathryn grieves. And there is something very complex and actually (in a terrible way) beautiful about Shreve's descriptions of Kathryn's grieving process - I could never imagine how it must be to lose a loved one this way, but this was extremely well written. We discover that, as suspected, there is much more to the explosion of the plane and Kathryn and 15-year-old daughter, Mattie, are forced to deal with first, the possibility of suicide, then an incredible series of betrayals that are both a shock to the family and reader and also a bit of a reality shove for both ("How well can we ever really know another person"). This was a gripper, a late night, eye-drops to keep going kind of book. When I told my husband about this however, he was a lot more skeptical about a human being's ability to keep such a vast portion of his or her life so totally hidden from a loving spouse and family. Perhaps this is why the book is such a gripper - because most people believe this would be an impossible scenario - but the tiny possibility that it could happen is enough to keep you reading to find out how, and why.
Rating:
Summary: Just another Romance novel!
Review: Publishers think that if you put non-romance novel cover on a romance book that readers will believe it is a great literary work. It worked with this book. This reminded me of Bridges of Madison County.
Rating:
Summary: The Pilot's Wife
Review: In the book, The Pilot's Wife, Katherine discovers that people cannot always put their trust into the ones they love dearly. After finding out that her beloved husband was killed in a plane crash, and through much heartache and distress, she starts to experience feelings of uncertainty. Clues keep popping up everywhere indicating that the man she married, the love of her life, is not who she thought he was. The possibility that the crash is the pilot's fault due to a suicidal attempt arises and Katherine denies that to be true immediately. She begins to ponder whether or not she really knew her husband, after all he had seemed unhappy lately and their relationship had been diminishing slightly. With the help of detectives, Katherine opens up to the idea that the unpleasant incident should be explored. Katherine, the one doing the investigating, realizes that her husband had been unfaithful to her for many years. Katherine, heartbroken, determines that she did not know her husband at all. This book does an excellent job of expressing the emotions of the characters, especially Katherine, the wife of the pilot. The shock and the confusion along with the sadness and despair that she experienced was articulated very well. There is not a single thing that the author did that I would change to make the story different. The main compliment I can give to the book is that it was wonderfully written in that it described real, human emotion and that seized this reader's interest.
Rating:
Summary: A book you can't put down!
Review: Me, a high school sophmore, was working at Barnes & Noble on night trying to get people to get their books gift wrapped with my school's Spanish club. My friend, suddenly, rushes over to a display and picks up "The Pilot's Wife" and started saying, 'Oh, you HAVE to read this! I couldn't put it down! You have to buy it!' So I say all right, and I leave it by the table. I, personally, give ANY book a try once, and I read ANYTHING (I love books, if you haven't figured that out!), so I read the back, it seems interesting and I buy it. Later, when I get home, I start reading it...I couldn't put it down! And the next morning, I got up, and started reading where I had left off. Soon, it was after seven and I was getting picked up in about ten minutes...almost late for school because I got caught up in a book...! Then at school, it was of course, carried to every class...hid behind larger books (so I could at least LOOK like I was paying attention, while I was practically crying--I cry easily--at the story!) Anyway, basically, I just have to say that this book is a must read! It was compelling, with romance, drama, and mystery all tied into one!
Rating:
Summary: Fast-paced, good read
Review: This book was a quick read and a page turner; I finished it in two days. The story was gripping and it was hard to put the book down because I wanted to know what was going to happen on the next page. Great story -I recommend it. My only warning is that it has a female focus. Those who appreciate a Tom Clancy like detailed explanation (who, what, why, where, and how of a dastardly deed) will not appreciate the book as much.
Rating:
Summary: Tragedy hits calm hometown...storm at sea begins...
Review: Kathryn Lyons knows something is wrong when someone is at the door knocking in the middle of the night. Is it her daughter Mattie? Or Jack? She never liked the fact that her husband was a pilot...but his confidence in his profession and its safety usually gave her confidence. She opens the door and she knows. Jack is dead. Her life begins to crumble. However, what she is yet to learn will be what causes the avalanche to begin for her and her daughter. The real question...do you ever really know somebody? I really enjoyed this book. It was the first book I have read by Anita Shreve and I do not believe this will be my last. The book is filled with love, suspense, sorrow, and happiness. The characters are believable and well developed. I feel all types of readers would enjoy this book.
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