A Daughter's Place

A Daughter's Place by CJ Carmichael

When Libby Bateson was seventeen her world fell apart.  Her mother and brother were killed in a tragic accident and another trauma leaves her pregnant and homeless.  Now, eight years later, Libby finds herself needing to seek shelter with her now-reclusive father whom the entire community believes she abandoned.  Does she have the courage and strength to claim a place in his world for her and her daughter, even if he isn't ready to give it?

Gibson Browning knows a lot about the struggles of being a single parent.  After his wife's death five years ago, Gibson has been doing the best he can to give his daughter everything she needs.  But when his best friend's little sister moves back to town after eight years with a daughter of her own, Gibson is forced to re-evaluate his struggles and parenting style.  Can he and Libby find a happy medium, or will they be forever separated by a secret Libby is just not ready to share?

How many ways can you break a person until they are damaged?  I think this book was a perfect study in just that subject.  Poor Libby is put through the ringer in more nightmarish ways than any one person would care to imagine, yet she still manages to come out of it.  Not on top, just above water.  She is not proud.  She is not even a shining example of how to handle a situation.  But she survives.  That in and of itself is remarkable.  Her daughter still loves her and comes out not terribly damaged.  Again, another victory.

The characters in this book really run the gamut from lovely to despicable.  The main characters are flawed in many ways, but still manage not to be awful people.  Most of the rest of the support characters can't really say the same.  Connie and Garnet manage to stay on the side of awesome, but everyone else, including Allie spend a bit of time in the "shame on you" category.  Surprisingly, I think that is a good thing.  You can't grow if you don't make mistakes, and some of these people make very understandable mistakes that they (mostly) learn from.

Overall, I think this is a very healing book.  Sometimes people come to point where they need to know that life is truly unfair, but that doesn't mean it is hopeless.  It is a tough book for the subject matter, but a great story about survival, hope, and trust.

Ratings:

(1=unacceptable, 2=poor, 3=acceptable, 4=good, 5=excellent)

Continuity/Flow – 5

Sex – 4 

Characters – 5

Storyline – 5

Overall – 5