Home to Big Stone Gap

This is the fourth and final book in Adriana Trigiani's Big Stone Gap series. I was sorry to finish it and know that there was nothing more to read about Ave Maria MacChesney, and her friends and family. I have enjoyed the previous three books immensely, but this is probably my favourite one out of the whole set, and it made me want to go back to the beginning and read them all over again!

In this book, Ave feels that life is changing - and she isn't sure she liked it. Her good friend Iva Lou seems to be keeping secrets, Ave's daughter Etta has got married and is living in Italy, and scariest of all, Ave's husband Jack is taken into hospital with a suspected heart condition. The prospect of losing Jack makes both of them face up to what show more they still want to do with their life, and face up to the changes taking place around them. Ave has to face her fears and Jack has to face his mortality.

I love these books. As always, in this slice of life, there is a colourful cast of funny, flawed, compassionate and eccentric characters, who are by now familiar to readers of the series. I find myself really investing in the characters and caring about them.

The way of life in the mountains is well depicted, and the closeness of living in a small town is so well portrayed, and as always, this book left me wanting to visit Big Stone Gap, Virginia, for myself.

Adriana Trigiani novels are the written equivalent of curling up on the sofa with a cup of hot chocolate - undemanding, enjoyable and a treat to be savoured. Highly recommended. show less

Drawn to the cover on the thrift store shelf, I stood there and read a couple of pages. It passed the test, so I bought it. As it turns out, this is number four in a series. And apparently, not a series that works too well stepping smack into the middle of. Too many characters with too much backstory both implied and hurriedly trying to catch the reader up with. (Amn’t I a great review writer – two sentences in a row ending with prepositions!) There was good depth to the main characters, a married couple, but otherwise, too many straggling story lines that belonged to the series as a whole. It is not a series that I’ll continue with, though bits and pieces of this particular book were enjoyable.

Review :Home To Big Stone Gap by Andriana Trigiani. 12/12/2017

Trigiani is extremely insightful as she touches on so many widespread truths about the human spirit and life. The story makes the reader feel right at home introducing great characters and being in a serene town and cozy environment. This is a smooth clean cut novel with a family who lives in the mountains in Virginia. Most work around that area was coal mining and that’s where most of the men worked until some were stricken with black lung. The stories about a strong and independent woman, Ave Maria Mulligan who has reached a turning point in her life and she realizes that it’s time for changes and new dreams. However, before she can head down that path, her life is show more turned upside down.

People who know about Ave Maria call her the “town spinster” yet she works as the town’s pharmacist and for the Rescue Squad. As we are introduced to the town’s community and Ave Maria’s friends who are lovable characters as Fleeta, Pearl, Jack Mac, and Theo. For some reason she never felt a part of the community. Her life revolved around her work but when her mother dies of cancer she receives a letter from her mother’s lawyer that her mother had wrote. After reading the letter Ave Maria slowly unfolds the mystery surrounding her life and her family’s. The secrets and family information that were explained in the letter kept me captivated.

The story was full of surprises, adventure, tears, laughter, and suspense. It was a small town where everyone knew everyone and the behaviors, emotions, and happenings are what made the story interesting and the words flowed smoothly to the end. show less

Book on CD read by Cassandra Campbell

Trigiani takes the reader back to Big Stone Gap for the continuing story of Ave Maria Mulligan MacChesney and her family (book #4 in the Big Stone Gap series). Ave Maria is feeling a little down because her daughter has gotten married and moved to Italy. Then a stranger comes to town and this results in a break between Ave Maria and Iva Lou. Add to this the stress of Jack Mac’s health problems and the arrival in town of a coal company that plans to employ mountaintop removal and it’s no wonder Ave Maria is feeling out of sorts. On the other hand there is plenty to celebrate – a wedding, a community theatre production, Christmas, and a dream trip to Scotland. It’s an entertaining novel that show more shows the ups and downs of life and the importance of family, friends, and a place to call home. Campbell does a fine job on the audio. She has a good pace and enough skill with various voices to differentiate the many characters. show less

Ave Maria lives in Big Stone Gap and it seems I've found her after she has been around a bit. I had no idea when I choose this book that it was third or fourth of a series, perhaps i would have started at the beginning; however it stands very well on its own.
Ave Maria tells the story of the break in the relationship with her best friend, how she feels now that her daughter Etta has gotten married and moved to live in Italy, and how she copes when her husband gets ill. It is a simple, easy story which i enjoyed very much. Now I wish i hadn't read this one first.

Adriana Trigiani has kept up the high quality of her writing in this, the fourth book in the Big Stone Gap series. Even after twenty years of marriage, Ave Maria is finding that you still have to work at your relationship to your husband--you can't just coast and keep a vibrant love going. And she experiences other sides to friendships and the importance of making judgements about your friends.

The original Big Stone Gap is still the best in this series, but this sentimental fourth installment was perfect for a winter solstice read by the fireside.

I love Trigiani's insights about relationships and her character's emotional temperament. She makes an Appalachian small town come to life with people we care about.