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Geoffrey Tremont is untroubled by his neat, contented bachelor life in bustling New York City. On an ordinary day, Geoffrey arrives home to find a letter awaiting him with a postmark from an unfamiliar town: Shady Grove, New York. An old friend has named him the executor of her estate. Twenty years ago, in college, Geoffrey and Laura Welles had been each other's confidant; as their lives diverged, they went their separate ways. Now she's reached out of the past to ask him a final favor.
Traveling up to Laura's hometown, Geoffrey meets Marian Ballantine. A widow living in the shadow of an idyllic marriage and now grieving the loss of her best friend, Marian knows a lot about Geoffrey. Laura often spoke of him, she tells him, and though he's flattered, he's also thrown off balance. From the moment he first sees her, Geoffrey instinctively knows this attractive, plainspoken woman has the power to upend his cool, compartmentalized life.
The First Warm Evening of the Year is a gripping and evocative novel that resonates on every page with the joys and pains of being alive.
Anonymous
Posted June 2, 2012
Maybe this rating is unfair but I had to quit this book half way through, got so tired of all the introspection & psychoanalysis
5 out of 6 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Looking at the cover of this book, almost beckons the reader to open it's cover and discover a wonderful story inside. However, for me this wasn't the case. It's unusual after having read so many books during the last three years to find one you can't quite connect with but can't really explain why. This is one of those for me, however it may not be for you. This is a novel about two characters drawn together by an unusual set of circumstances.
Geoffrey Tremont, currently living among the busy life in New York among his sophisticated friends, and a bit too organized for me as a man in a relationship with Rita, whom he claims he loves but doesn't really think about her much when they are apart. Does that mean they aren't really in love or simply not right for each other. It seems they are both very content with their individual lives but have issues when it comes to compromising ways that they would each have to give things up if they were to be successful at their relationship.
Geoffrey gets a break from this relationship when he is called as an executor of an old friends will. This shows the reader throughout the book, how the impact we make in relationships we get involved with will and can have lasting results in those people's lives, something we should consider with everyone we meet. Laura Welles was someone from Geoffrey's past, two years ago, from college who asks him to deal with her estate and to send the funds to the music program at the college she attended.
This brings Geoffrey into contact with the only remaining relative of Laura's, her brother Simon. Together the two of them work together to try and make sense of their lives at this point and to find a way to sell Laura's home in Shady Grove. When they both arrive, Geoffrey encounters his possible soul mate, who is also grieving a recent loss, Marian Ballantine, who seems to know Geoffrey based on the conversations she used to have with Laura. Geoffrey seems convinced that Marian can change him in ways that he wasn't willing to compromise with Rita over. However Geoffrey will soon learn that the situations that Marian has gone through in life will also make her a victim of circumstance and has changed her in ways she may not be willing to give up. It's those qualities that have enabled her to survive up to this point.
Will they both be able to find a way to get past the barriers they both have put in place based on the circumstances life has dealt them or will they come to realize that some people will never possess the ability to change, even if something good comes into their life they've been waiting their whole life for?
You'll need to read, The First Warm Evening of the Year by Jamie M. Saul to find out what happens. I received this novel compliments of William Morrow, a division of Harper Collins Publishers for my honest review and I have to say I'd rate this one a 3 out of 5 stars. I just could not connect to the characters well enough to truly care about what happens to them. Perhaps its because they were too set in their ways or just had to many issues to deal with in life, that they were content to be who they were. It just didn't resonate with me, even though the writing is well thought out and the premise sounding interesting as well as the cover draws you in. I know others might be drawn to this story but it just didn't work for me.
1 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.DebraJ24
Posted May 17, 2013
I thought this book would have more of a story, but have found myself getting angry with the characters because of the dialogue which drags on and on and I can not really get the meaning of what the Geoffery is trying to say. Very disappointing at best. I am 50 pages from the end and I am going to stop right there with this story. Too many other good books to read to waste time on this one.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted March 27, 2013
Eveningsnow here. Follow these directions to enter my best mate contest.
1.Post your bio on the 2nd result.
2. Go to the 3rd result to answer my questions TRUTHFULLY.
3. On the 4th result ill post results.
4. And on the 5th result is where my bio is.
5. The 6th result is where you can chat with me.
Hope you enter my contest.
And may the best mate win!
Eveningsnow
0 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Shar-Ron
Posted June 17, 2012
store line I did like but over written; store oould have finished at 100 pages less. But worth the read for summer.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 30, 2013
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted July 26, 2012
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted April 8, 2013
No text was provided for this review.
Overview
Geoffrey Tremont is untroubled by his neat, contented bachelor life in bustling New York City. On an ordinary day, Geoffrey arrives home to find a letter awaiting him with a postmark from an unfamiliar town: Shady Grove, New York. An old friend has named him the executor of her estate. Twenty years ago, in college, Geoffrey and Laura Welles had been each other's confidant; as their lives diverged, they went their separate ways. Now she's reached out of the past to ask him a ...