Book Review: Seven Letters

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Release Date: October 8, 2019

Genre: Adult Women's Fiction

Kate Moreton is in Ireland on sabbatical from her teaching position at Dartmouth College when she meets Ozzie Ferriter, a fisherman and a veteran of the American war in Afghanistan. The Ferriter family history dates back centuries on the remote Blasket Islands, and Ozzie – a dual citizen of Ireland and the United States – has retreated to the one place that might offer him peace from a war he cannot seem to leave behind.

Beside the sea, with Ireland’s beauty as a backdrop, the two fall deeply in love and attempt to live on an island of their own making, away from the pressures of the outside world. Ireland writes its own love stories, the legends claim, and the limits of Kate and Ozzie’s love and faith in each other will be tested. When his demons lead Ozzie to become reckless with his life—and Kate’s—she flees for America rather than watch the man she loves self-destruct. But soon a letter arrives informing Kate that her heroic husband has been lost at sea, and Kate must decide whether it is an act of love to follow him or an act of mercy to forget.

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My Review ♥️

I started this novel with high hopes that were quickly dashed when this novel went from one that piqued my historical and cultural curiosities to one of a passionate, self-absorbed relationship that was hard for me to read. Though it was told from only Kate's point of view I struggled to connect with either her or Ozzie, especially when I wasn't allowed to hear his side of the story. The selfishness of the heroine is astounding and the Kate/Ozzie dynamic so nauseating that at about the halfway mark I felt like giving up, but I held out hope that the narrative would improve. For me, it didn't.

Normally I am a sucker for a good romance but the entire story did not bode well with me. The writing was good but felt choppy at times and I found myself skimming quite a bit, especially the last half, fighting to make it to the end.

In saying that, I fell in love with the imagery and reading about Ireland and the Blasket Islands, and wish the love story wouldn't have tarnished this enchanting portrayal of a forgotten history. The story does go into an interesting direction, which at first showed promise, but then it quickly went back to being foreseeable.

I really wanted to love this story but sadly it was a huge disappointment for me.

My Rating: ★★1/2

Get to Know & Connect With Author

J.P. Monninger

J.P. Monninger has published novels for adults and teens and three works of nonfiction. The New York Times Book Review has said of Monninger that he “comes to writing with his five sense wide open”. His work has appeared in American Heritage, Scientific American, Readers Digest, Glamour, Playboy, Story, Fiction, The Boston Globe, Sports Illustrated and Ellery Queen, among other publications.

He has twice received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and has also received a fellowship from the New Hampshire Council for the Arts. He served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Upper Volta, now Burkina Faso, from 1975-77.

He is a Professor of English at Plymouth State University in New Hampshire where he lives in a converted barn near the Baker River.

Mr. Monniger also writes under the name Joseph Monninger.

*I have reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from St. Martin's Griffin through NetGalley. All opinions are completely honest, and my own.