Scarlet Feather

Rating:
Summary: Last, but not best
Review: I'm an avid Binchy fan who couldn't wait to read Scarlet Feather. 380 pages into it, I finally gave up on it. Cathy Scarlet and Tom Feather, cooking school friends who start their own catering business, are both genial but bland characters. Trouble develops in their respective love relationships, leaving me predicting the book's end. Typical of Binchy books, there are a score of characters, whose various situations become too tedious to care about. I feel as though I've lost a friend I had always counted on to deliver a charming and warm story. If you have patience and enjoy a lukewarm read, try it. But for true Binchy gold, try Echoes or Circle of Friends.

Rating:
Summary: Save your time and money!
Review: I've enjoyed and loved most of Maeve Binchy's books, but this book was a complete disappointment. The one dimensional characters are boring, and reading about the minutiae of their lives is such a chore. The story drags on uneventfully for more than 500 painful pages. If you're going to read a Maeve Binchy book, please do not choose this one.

Rating:
Summary: A pleasant read.......
Review: While on vacation in Ireland, I picked up this book. I was thrilled to actually go to some of the places mentioned throughout the book as this charming story unfolds in Dublin. True, this is not the strongest Binchy effort. But as a true fan from years back, I still did not want the story to end! There are many characters in this book and not all are explored to the depth that one would like or have their stories completed quite as thoroughly as one would expect. The ending is leaning towards the fantastical side. But overall, this story will still charm and delight the reader who enjoys a 'comfort' book and a story that transports you to the magical emerald isle!

Rating:
Summary: Scarlet Feather
Review: I have read every single book Maeve Binchy has written and was eagerly awaiting this one. What a disappointment. It's almost as if someone else wrote it. I kept going expecting it to get better -- but it didn't and I found myself skipping though paragraphs and pages at a hectic clip. Usually when I get close to the end of a Maeve Binchy book I try to slow down in order to make it last as long as possible. Not this time. The character development is shallow and the story is just plain boring. Hope she doesn't leave us with this as her final work!

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Read
Review: I have read most of Ms. Binchey's books and loved them all. This is another book that I could not put down.

Rating:
Summary: Boring and Poorly Written
Review: This book is my first Maeve Binchy read--it has been terribly disappointing, and difficult to get through. The text is wordy--with grammatical errors throughout. The characters and storyline read like a soap opera--ie. the characters are stereotypical and lack any depth, and the storyline is predictible from page 1. Don't waste your time!

Rating:
Summary: Meave doea it again
Review: I love the bittersweet end of this book, instead of the harrowing way I felt when I finished reading Tara Road. I could hear the pleasant Irish accents and smell the delicious food. I loved it. If you like Binchy, you'll probably like this. Tuck in and have a good meal!

Rating:
Summary: don't even rent it
Review: What a disappointment. Maeve was one of my favorite authors, and I liked everything she did prior to this jumbled up story. Most of the characters were unbelievable, and the few believable ones were boring. Don't waste your time. Maeve Binchey, what happened?

Rating:
Summary: Go ahead and read it
Review: It's true, this isn't the best Maeve Binchy book, but hey...bad Binchy is better than a lot of people's best efforts. Actually, I wouldn't even consider this to be "bad Binchy". It simply is not up to her normal standards. But READ IT ANYWAY. The only thing wrong with it is that there are too many characters populating this novel and that ending of the book is a little too rushed. If you liked The Evening Class and Tara Road I think you'll like this. It isn't old fashioned Binchy.

Rating:
Summary: Don't waste your money or your time....
Review: I finally just stopped reading this book. I have read most of Binchy's books and have loved them all, especially Tara Road. I thought her writing was getting better with every book. What happened? The book is poorly written and just plain BORING!!!!!!!!!!!! I read about 150 pages and finally decided that I could not waste any more time on this snoozer. The characters are drawn like caricatures rather than believable people as had been done in her many marvelous books. I'm terribly disappointed as is our book club for picking this dud.