"The Winter Sea"by Susanna Kearsley
Publisher: Sourcebooks, Inc
Release Date: Dec 1, 2010
Source: sent by publisher
My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Summary from goodreads.com:
Carrie McClelland came to Scotland to research her next book. Renting a cottage in the same town where her story takes place, Carrie embarks not only on her novel, but on a romance with her landlord's handsome son, Graham Keith. When the boundary between past and present begins to blur, Carrie finds herself channeling memories not her own. Pulled deeper and deeper into the memories of the past, Carrie realizes these visions are more than the means to another bestselling novel, but also a way to right the wrongs of the past and create a future with the man whose love is her destiny.
This book was along the lines of an epic movie. There was a lot of history and a lot of emotion here. Carrie finds herself almost "predicting" the past as she writes her book. Or rather, the book basically writes itself. Then, Carrie discovers piece by piece, that her version of history is actually the truth. The author has based this on the theory of genetic memory, that Carrie has the memory of her ancestor hidden deep within herself.
The theory of genetic memory is very intriguing. The reader definitely has to have an open mind to really feel the story and believe all that is happening.
For me, I liked the notion that Carrie has memories from the past, but there's almost too much historical detail for me to get really lost in the story. While I really enjoyed the historical characters, there were a lot of details and facts to keep straight that took me out of the story a little.
Main Characters: 3/5
Supporting Characters: 4/5
Setting: 3/5
Romance: 3/5
Uniqueness: 4/5
Cover: 3/5
Writing: 4/5
Bottom Line: This is an excellent "time-travel" story with alternating chapters set in modern time and in the past. I would definitely recommend this book to those who love an epic story rich in historical detail.