I read this novel despite the ‘Oprah’s Book Club’ badge, not because of it. Generally, Oprah and I don’t share the same taste in books, with a little too much sentimentality and sop for me – or else too much ‘Issue’ weighing down a plot.

But The Pilot’s Wife really lives up to the line on the front cover: “Gripping…You don’t want to stop turning the pages.”

To be honest, it takes a lot to keep me turning pages. I’m not a ‘great’ reader in that respect, happy to throw down a novel and move onto the next with no sense of loss and abandonment. I enjoyed this one so much I didn’t want to fall asleep (but had to). I finished it over breakfast the next morning.

Only thing is, I’m sure it’s been made into a movie and I’m sure I’ve seen it – at least part of it – as I knew what was going to happen. I couldn’t quite remember the gist of it, so the ending was still somewhat of a surprise, but how much better it would have been had I not known?

The novel is written in different styles, alternated by chapter: One chapter is written in past tense (and refers to ‘the present’), whereas the next chapter will be a flashback to the past (and is written in present tense). This irony works surprisingly well. The style of writing is different, with flashbacks being more descriptive of scenery and slower in pace. Shreve even renders the dialogue differently. For the present she uses conventional speech marks whereas for the flashbacks she uses dashes, which gives more of a stream-of-consciousness feel. I really liked this way of structuring a novel and I think it works really well.

Perhaps next time I won’t be so dismissive of a book which has been recommended by Oprah. I might just enjoy the next one too. However, there is definitely a tendency among people, myself included, to shirk away from books which have been really popular. This one was a New York Times bestseller for ages. The thing is, once a novel has been recommended by Oprah, that in itself leads to a book’s popularity.

This one deserves its accolades. Not because it says anything amazing about the human condition (from what I can see) but because it’s a fast-paced, absorbing tale. Perhaps not one to read on a long-haul plane trip, though. ( )

Kathryn had a double tragedy ... death and then betrayal. It seems she may have seen signs of Jack's double life years before, if she hadn't of been blinded by her love and the routine their life had fallen into. There's no going back, but if he had left after the big fight, maybe it would have been better for all. I wonder what will happen to Diedre and Dermont now? I think Kathryn will recover with Robert's support and maybe even the two of them will have a future. Like He said Mattie will have the hardest time of all. ( )

http://thebookwormslibrary.com/?p=144... ( )

I just finished reading this book a short while ago. I am taking an accelerated online computer class and have had very little time. However, I just could not put this book down. This is one of Oprah's book club novels and it intrigued me right from the first page. The emotional ups and downs of the main character could be felt on almost every page. Since I am going through some tough times right now, I could really identify with her. A great read and I look forward to reading some more of Ms. Shreve's books.

The Pilot’s Wife was difficult for me to get through for personal reasons. I felt it did a great job of exploring the range of emotions someone goes through after the sudden tragic death of a family member. The rest of the story was unremarkable, bordering on the trite and even expected.

Despite this, I enjoyed the journey the author took me on. The writing was easy going and carried my along smoothly. I only wish there was more substance to the story as at end, this is nothing more than another story about a woman coming to grips with her husband’s infidelity. The only interesting twist was applying the steps to accepting the grieving process was applying the same steps to the accepting the infidelity.

This is a work of fiction. As such, the author is allowed certain liberties with reality. I could not accept, however, the pilot’s political alliance as easily as his personal alliance. That was a little too far-fetched for me. If you have no attachments to the plot, this should be a quick read. ( )