audiobooks

I have read every book by Danielle Steel but recently have been very dissapointed in her style of writing and the sameness of her stories. This book, however, is much different in the story line. She obviously has an insight into the the pain of the loss of a child and the agony of mental illness. Having had a son who suffered both, she writes from the heart. I also lost a child.So I can also identify with the loss that this mother endured. But the story also shows the path of recovery and going forward with your life after tragedy. There are other issues the book deals with. But Steel manages to blend them together for a "happy ever after" outcome.
Her style of writing is still lacking------she uses the word "and" far too much as she runs sentences together. She does repeat herself over and over again far too often. She's a mass producer of stories. If she took more time to work on grammar and proper sentence structure, she'd have a much different book. The way she writes now is not a good quality-----but putting that aside, the story is easy to read. In fact, I skim over most of the words to grasp the story-----a quick read. I would prefer, however, that she go back to school and learn how to write in a way that is respected. She's a "fluff" writer---but the content can be fun.
I enjoyed the fact that this story got to my heart, made me cry and encouraged me to learn more about the people. Now if only she'd write in better form------but I guess we can't expect both from her anymore. She's writing too many books in too short of a time. Slow down-----and continue to tell us stories that have heart. This was one of her recent best.

Finally Danielle Steel has written a book that doesn't sound just like all of her others. Sure....same bit of storyline..but much better developed characters and a refreshing twist. Pip is a very sweet 11 yr-old girl who wins the heart of painter Matt. Pip's mother Ophelie was a disturbed mother who had suffered a loss but finds herself again after spending time with Matt. Add Mousse, the dog, and a few other additions and you have the perfect story. The ending was a bit far-fetched but overall, this book is a winner!

I was hesitant to read Steel's latest novel, because they were all very similar in character type and happy ending stories. Out of habit, and never wanting to miss a Steel book, I read Safe Harbour, and was pleasantly surprised. The characters were likeable, and I enjoyed the pace of the story, and its ending was very moving. My only criticisms are: Ophelie's name, it gets annoying to pronounce names like that, and especially when that person is a main character, it gets distracting after a while. Second, the repetition and run-on sentences were not what I expect from a writer of Steel's caliber. Overall, this was one of her better new releases.