Rating: 
Summary: Lost me in the middle
Review: I'm not a big fan of Hoffman but thought she would redeem herself when I began this book. The storyline was intriguing and she pulled me in from the beginning but lost me in the middle. The story seemed to sag, leaving me wondering what the point was to it. Maybe Hoffman lost the point as well in the middle. As for the wife of Ethan going to visit the brother of the murdered girl, PLEASE! What was that about? Talk about FICTION, that would NEVER happen. All in all, I was very disappointed in this book, although Hoffman's poetic writing is beautiful.
Rating:
Summary: Where has Hoffman gone?
Review: I agree with the reviewer who asked what happened to the Alice Hoffman who wrote "Turtle Moon", "Practical Magic" and some of her other novels. I especially loved "Illumination Night". It seems like I am reading a different author in her last few novels, some of which I didn't even bother to finish. I've always said Hoffman was one of my favorite authors. I am starting to think I will have to say that she USED to be one of my favorite authors.This novel was an enjoyable read with an interesting story line, but I also did not understand what motivated some of the characters to act the way they did. It was especially hard to understand what caused Ethan to suddenly become a "good guy". Maybe that was the idea, that he had no soul or personality of his own as shown by his not having a reflection in a mirror. I also did not understand the brother of the young girl, his not moving on at all with his life did not really ring true. All in all it was a good book that raised some thoughtful questions, but not the kind of book I have come to expect from Hoffman.
Rating: 
Summary: Beauty Is Only Skin Deep
Review: Alice Hoffman paints an exquisite picture of evil lurking beneath the idyllic facades of New England small town life in "Blue Diary". The novel conjures up similar themes to those found in the film "American Beauty" where everything is not what is seems. Although she never lets your forget that with good must come evil (and vice versa), Hoffman spends a lot of time on the gray areas in between. It seems life's conflicts cannot always be resolved and tied up in a nice, neat package. "Blue Diary" is by far one of her best - and most mature - works.
Rating: 
Summary: As always, Hoffman shines
Review: It's a question we've all pondered: what would happen if we saw a neighbor on America's Most Wanted? And what would happen if we turned him in? Hoffman explores this question in her trademark lyrical, magical prose, and as always, gives us a glimpse into the human psyche--warts and all. In Hoffman's world, people follow their hearts, no matter how dire the consequences, and the characters of Blue Diary are no different. There is not much suspense to this novel--Ethan Ford admits his crime in the very beginning--but the novel is not meant to be a mystery. It's meant to be an exploration of what happens after the confession, and it does that admirably. It brings up the question "how well can you really know a person?" Looks can be deceiving, and the ones you think you know best are often the ones you know the least about. Hoffman's writing is magical, and her descriptions of New England and Maryland in the summertime are among the most well written passages in the book.It may not be her best work (Here on Earth deserves that description) but it is a solid book, and well-worth the time.
Rating:
Summary: Very superficial treatment of characters
Review: The storyline was unique and interesting (a woman suddenly discovers after 13 years of marriage a horrible secret that her husband has been carrying), but the treatement of most characters in teh book was superficial and at times, even vague. I was left with the feeling that Alice Hoffman thought of a storyline, and hurriedly assembled characters around it without giving much thought to how people may actually think or behave in a situation like this. I was disappointed since there was a fair amount of hype surrounding the novel.
Rating:
Summary: Vintage Hoffman
Review: How well can you really know a person? This is the question readers must ponder in Alice Hoffman's latest novel BLUE DIARY.
Dark, lush and beautifully written, BLUE DIARY is the story of Jorie and Ethan Ford and the consequences that affect their lives after Ethan is arrested for a rape and murder he committed 15 years ago.
Devotion, betrayal and forgiveness are familiar recurring themes of Hoffman's novels, and she handles them masterfully in BLUE DIARY.
And while Hoffman is never one to give you a happily ever after ending in her books, she does, ultimately, offer quiet optimism and hope in her novels. For Hoffman fans, BLUE DIARY will not disappoint.
Rating: 
Summary: Stick With Her Whimsical Novels!!
Review: I really wanted to like this novel -- especially since her last two books, "Local Girls" and "River King," were equally disappointing. Where is the Alice Hoffman of "Practical Magic," "Seventh Heaven," and "Turtle Moon" gone? I don't have a problem with disturbing books if they are done well (i.e. J.M. Coetze's "Disgrace," or Chang Rae Lee's "A Gesture Life"). But this is not done well. Hyperbole does not work in this vein and ultimately I could never get past the fact that we are supposed to believe Ethan is redeemed instantly after years of horrible behavior. If you want to read great fiction by Alice Hoffman, stick with her older stuff!
Rating:
Summary: her most boring book
Review: I have read a number of Alice Hoffman's previous books. Loved a couple and liked 'em all. Not this one. Trite handling of serious subjects. Bad writing and worse characters. I read a third of the book, skipped to the end and skimmed the rest, looking for something in this book to like and never found it.
Rating:
Summary: When perfect is too perfect---
Review: Ethan and Jorie Ford appear to have everything, while their neighbors all appear, at the beginning of this deceptively simple novel, to have somewhat failed lives, or at least half-healed scars. This is a book that starts with the beautiful surface of the Fords' lives and strips them down to their cores--honest and strong, in Jorie's case, and rotten, in Ethan's--and simultaneously brings out the richness and strength in the all-too-human characters around them. This book is rich with imagery and symbolism--flowers, birds, the richness of summer. There is an ominous quality to the lushness here that draws the reader in. I did not expect to be drawn into this story, and I was. It grows on you.
Rating:
Summary: How does she do it?
Review: Who else but Alice Hoffman could take a story like this and handle it with such tenderness? Told in her lyrical fashion, Alice Hoffman brings us into the lives of Ethan and Jorie Ford as they spend an exquisite June in New England weekday morning making passionate love, then suddenly we feel utterly betrayed by the ugly accusations made against Ethan. How could this have happened? Immediately I felt shocked, and was completely drawn into the lives of these people I had only moments before been introduced to. How does she make me feel so much so fast? I have loved all of Ms. Hoffman's books. I find it amazing the way she can tell stories dealing with such heavy subject matter (as with this one and "At Risk") in such a fairy-tale, lyrical fashion. Her talent is remarkable!
| 
