These Tangled Vines

A fast-paced, easy read, that bounces back and forth between the main character (the daughter) uncovering family secrets, and her mother's affair some 31 years prior. Marital troubles, a whirlwind love affair, a horrible accident, and a code of silence in terms of who knew what (and when did they come to know it), adds layers to the betrayal. You'll love some characters and hate others. Not a HEA for the lovers, as they are both already deceased when this story unfolds, but somehow still an inspiring love story. An enjoyable summer / beach read.

This is my first review on this platform, and a bit off genre for me so excuse any weirdness. This book is relatively short, only 296 pages on my kindle and 304 on the paperback. It explores both a woman uncovering the secrets surrounding her biological father's and mother's affair and how it went down from her mother's point of view. Their is quite a bit of character switching in this book, but even as a person not a fan of the practice, I did not find it too jarring. I do like how the main protagonist's view of the events becomes more complex and understanding of all parties, especially in the chapter before the epilogue.

About the message I mentioned in the title, it is actually explicitly stated in form of the protagonist's thoughts. To summarize, it's about not letting your regrets define you and to count your blessing, though written much more eloquently than I could ever express.

If you just want a nice Realistic Fiction book to pick up this serves that purpose well. It's even on Kindle Unlimited if you have it. I don't know how to end this review but thank you for bothering to read this mess of a first review.