As Bright as Heaven

This is the type of story that, upon reading the last page, you slowly close the book, close your eyes, sigh and reflect. So many emotions roil through your mind and it takes some thought to allow them to settle.

I didn’t know what to expect from As Bright As Heaven. I’ve read other books by Susan Meissner, (Secrets of a Charmed Life is a favorite) so I was confident the author was a gifted storyteller who infuses deep emotion in her work, and I was drawn in by the exquisite cover art. But upon choosing a book to read, I normally only skim over the blurb to avoid learning ‘too much,’ so all I basically knew was the story was set in Philadelphia during the First World War.

I’m glad I didn’t know more, because learning each show more aspect of the multi-faceted story as it happened surprised me, grabbed me, and refused to release me. The storyline is riveting, the storytelling is stunning, and each heartbreaking challenge encountered is delicately wrapped in the hope and strength of the human spirit.

The story is presented in two parts, before the First World War and Spanish Flu pandemic (1918-1919) and after (1925.) The narration is voiced from the four riveting first-person points of view; the mother and three daughters of the Bright family—Pauline, Evelyn, Maggie, and Willa.

I became attached to each girl. They have distinct voices and views of the world, but I mostly connected and sympathized with Maggie. Perhaps because I’m also a middle sister.

Not only was I drawn into the Bright’s story, and pulled into the early 1900s and the hardships and atrocities endured and succumbed to, but I also learned much about the history of the Influenza (Spanish Flu) pandemic—the deadliest disease in history! I also have a better understanding of what it meant to be the wife and daughter of an undertaker during this time period, how widespread the Spanish Flu was distributed, precautions taken (or not,) and how bodies were delivered, prepared, and presented (or not) during the outbreak.

The Bright family finds themselves in a new city, new home, and new life after the death of their youngest Bright, only months-old, baby Henry. With death, war, sickness, and heartbreak around every corner, will they have the strength and desire to do more than exist in the new world they’ve been propelled into?

Without giving you more of a description or breakdown of the story, I can tell you that you will learn a lot.

You will most likely shed some tears, and find yourself in the circle of life and death, sadness and hope, heartbreak and healing. You might even wonder why you’re willingly putting yourself through such a host of emotions. But upon completion of the book, I doubt you’ll be able to forget a single member of the Bright family. And I’m also confident that you’ll be forever changed. Yes. It’s that powerful.

As Bright As Heaven is much more than a story. It is a powerful, riveting, unforgettable experience.

I received a complimentary copy of this book via BookPleasures and NetGalley. show less

"Every action has consequences. Even those that are done with the best of intentions have consequences that are often unseen and far reaching."...
Susan Meissner hits it out of the park with this refreshingly original tale. The Spanish flu pandemic coupled with an undertaker's perspective is intriguing and fresh. The stories that mirrored and overlapped each other through this blight, as well as afterwards, are heart wrenchingly fascinating, and definitely made the tapestry of As Bright As Heaven equally so.
Meissner's voice is intelligent, witty and stimulating throughout. The varying character points of view gave a unique insight into the events of this full bodied novel. The depths that were reached and the intricacies achieved are show more what avid readers crave and are the rare product of masterful writing.
Evie summed this novel up for me when she said,.."....it's not how short or long an experience is, it's the depth to which it touches the core of who you are that matters." As Bright As Heaven touched deeply- bravo.
* I received an arc from the publisher for an honest review show less

In a year when the flu hit the US much harder than usual, Susan Meissner’s As Bright as Heaven, set during the deadly Spanish flu pandemic of 1918, sparks heightened interest. Following the death of an infant son, the Bright family moves to Philadelphia to aid an elderly uncle with his funeral business. As the flu strikes with a vengeance, the Brights struggle to balance helping those in need and keeping their own family safe and healthy. While categorized as historical fiction, the novel reads more like a melodrama with shallow characters making irresponsible and irrational decisions in exaggerated situations.

Pauline, the matriarch of the family, and her three daughters, Evelyn, Maggie, and Willa, narrate alternating chapters in the show more first person perspective. While the four women are easy to differentiate due in part to age and personality differences, the characterization appears lazy and superficial. Once Pauline is established as the mother, that’s all she is. Evelyn never moves beyond her label as the “intellectual,” while Willa, despite a significant leap in time halfway through the novel, is always the needy and selfish baby of the family. Maggie, the middle child and the character with the most substance, eventually loses her charm as she becomes consumed by her obsession with a young man. Poorly fleshed out characters lead to apathy and boredom.

The novel is separated into two parts, with the first half taking place pre- and post- flu, and the second half jumping ahead seven years to an older, allegedly wiser, family who have rooted themselves in the Philadelphia community. The three daughters have budding careers, but their personalities and decision-making abilities remain static. They do not learn from or even acknowledge the mistakes they made in the past. The tone shift between the two parts is also jarring. It is difficult to jump back and forth between profound tragedies and trivial matters. Whether it be a byproduct of so many different perspectives or not, it does not do the novel any favors, and comes across as insensitive.

Historical events take a backseat to the everyday lives of the Bright family. Meissner could have placed her characters in any time period and the essence of the novel would not have been affected. Readers who picked it up specifically to read about the Spanish flu will most likely leave disappointed, as it only directly appears in the middle of the novel, causes paranoia and death, and then promptly disappears throughout the last half. The Great War does play a small role, as well as Prohibition, but they are both glossed over quickly and without deep reflection.

As Bright as Heaven by Susan Meissner tries and fails to present a moving glimpse into the lives of a family intimate with death during the largest flu pandemic in modern history. Superficial characters, inane plot threads with laughable resolutions, and a lack of delicacy surrounding sensitive topics left me perplexed and disappointed. If you’re in the mood for tragedy dripping with drama, you may leave satisfied, but I still highly doubt it. show less

As Bright as Heaven by Susan Meissner is a poignant story about a young family who moves from a small town in Pennsylvania to Philadelphia to begin a new, and hopefully better, life after the death of their youngest child. The story is told from four points of view, Pauline Bright and her three daughters, Evelyn, Maggie, and Willa.

When Thomas Bright’s Uncle, a permanent bachelor, asks him to move to Philadelphia to learn and take over his funeral pallor business, Tom sees it as a chance to lift his family out of poverty. With much hope, the family relocates and starts their new life. As everyone settles in to their new home in Philadelphia, the Great War in Europe is raging and the United States enters the conflict and Tom is called show more to serve his country. Not long after, the Spanish Flu makes it way to North America and to the city the Bright’s now call home.

Pauline begs her parents to let them return to Quakertown until the flu has passed. They refuse her, because they fear she will bring the flu with her and give it to her sister’s new born. Forced to stay, Pauline watches as the number of dead from the flu arrive at the funeral parlor in staggering numbers. She is careful to keep her mouth covered and those of the children. Yet as careful as she is, tragedy strikes the Bright family and Willa, the youngest, is the first to fall ill. Then just as she turns the corner toward recover, Pauline becomes ill too. Pauline fought hard against the flu in little Willa and she has no reserves left to fight her own battle with this enemy. In the end she succumbs and not long after their Uncle dies too.

Amidst all the tragedy, Tom and the girls open their home and their hearts to an orphaned boy. How can they not, when the city is now full of children that have lost their parents to the flu epidemic? Little do they realize that this one selfless decision will give them the hope and courage they will need to face the future.

As Bright as Heaven is an elegantly written, well researched, historical fiction. Ms. Meissner, knows how to write a story that pulls at your heart strings. The characters are portrayed with a realism and authenticity that is hard to find. The story flowed so nicely and the end came much too quickly. So quickly in fact, that it felt a little rushed. That aside, it is well worth reading. I recommend this book to lovers of historical fiction and women’s fiction.

For more of my reviews, and author interviews, see my book blog at www.thespineview.com. show less

As Bright As Heaven, set in Philadelphia during the Spanish Flu epidemic of 1918, is a dramatic example of the resilience of the human spirit. Heartening and dramatic, the book releases February 2018 from Berkley Penguin Random House.

As Bright As Heaven opens with a flash forward scene set in 1918. Pauline Bright stands over the grave where a child has been laid to rest. She falls into reverie about the child’s birth. With that, the story of how she and her husband Thomas came to relocate from a poor tobacco farm to Philadelphia quietly and powerfully reveals itself. The shroud of the Spanish flu epidemic is about to cover the city and the Bright family will be fiercely tested and impacted. Clouds of love and compassion enfold the show more gravitas of their circumstances.

Meissner excels at her craft. Her writing astounds in prose and plot. The tenacity of the human spirit is a signature of her novels. Written with exquisite prose and articulate historical detail, her prose wafts over the reader, pages clipping by like lightening.

As Bright As Heaven brims with unforeseen awakenings in the midst of loss. Narrated by various family members, the tension mounts as each reveal their experiences during the plague and experience emotional epiphanies. Characters are fully realized with distinctive personalities. We become completely absorbed into the lives, losses, and triumphs of the Bright family.

Meissner includes detail on embalming a dead body, an absorbing side trip. See if you can figure out the surprise ending before you read it. Complex in depth with a sweet aftertaste, As Bright As Heaven is highly recommended.

I thank Penguin Random House and Bookish First for the advance reader’s copy. show less

Set during WWI and the outbreak of the Spanish flu epidemic, As Bright as Heaven follows the Bright family and their move to Philadelphia to begin a new life helping their uncle run his funeral business. There are 3 daughters: Evelyn, Maggie, and Willa, who each have their own plans for the future. The family is already under the burden of mourning, and they hope that starting again in a new town may help overcome their grief. The book is organized with multiple points of view, so the reader can understand the family’s situation from different characters’ perspectives.

The Spanish flu affected everyone during this time, especially a funeral home overwhelmed with the number of victims requiring burial. The flu took the old and young show more alike, the healthy and the infirm, and there was no explanation for those who recovered and those who did not. On top of the desperation and fear of the flu, men were leaving to fight in the war, leaving behind many women to endure this calamity on their own. This book was well-researched and skillfully organized.

This story is wholesome; there is little violence, no bad language, and no sex. It’s a book you can lend to your grandmother or your middle-schooler without concern. Despite the lack of the usual sordid inclusions, it’s still a riveting story and the drama doesn’t disappoint.

As Bright as Heaven had steady pacing, and the plot moved forward with new developments to keep my interest. The writing was superb, never trite or cloying. I read this book in two days, and I always looked forward to reading more. There were no slow sections, no middle-of-the-book slump. I enjoyed the experience of this book,and I’m definitely going to investigate some of this author’s previous work.

Recommended to anyone who enjoys historical fiction or an easy-to-read, enjoyable story.
Many thanks to BookishFirst and Penguin Random House for this advance copy in exchange for my honest review. show less

Susan Meissner is one of my favorite authors. I have loved all the books that I have read by this very talented author — from her poignant contemporary debut through her richly detailed historical novels. When given the chance to read As Bright As Heaven, I, of course, issued a resounding YES! But I have to say I have mixed feelings about this novel. It is indeed a beautifully written novel set during an unfamiliar (to me) era in US history. But it was a difficult book to read. I said to a friend that it was very true to life, making it messy and filled with sorrow despite the joy. I definitely recommend this one, but this book requires work on the part of the reader, so don’t expect a quick or easy reading experience.

The setting of show more As Bright As Heaven is Philadelphia in 1918 and then skips ahead 7 years to 1925. The book begins in the early days of the United States’ involvement in WWI and before the devastating Spanish Flu pandemic hits the city. The Bright family has made a big transition from tobacco farm to the big city and a new venture for parents, Pauline and Thomas. The story is written in the first person voice of the Bright women, mom Pauline and daughters, Evelyn, Maggie, and Willa, with each chapter alternating perspective. The style of the novel provides an intimate look into each character’s thoughts while spotlighting the family dynamics. As the tragedy and consequences of both the flu and the war unfold, Meissner explores the impact on this family and the community as a whole. The combination of the two large events presents a unique framework to show how lives can be changed quickly and unexpectedly. Meissner certainly did her research — the fear, loss, and desperation of those times are clear. While the book is at times rather dark, the Brights have moments of beauty that keep the soul hoping and living. As one character puts it — “We only see a little bit of our stories at time, and the hard parts remind us too harshly that we’re fragile and flawed. But it isn’t all hard. Your story isn’t all hard parts. Some of it is incredibly beautiful.” That pretty much sums up the book and life in general. The characters are very real — they make bad choices often for the right reasons, and those have unimagined and widespread effects (again very true to life). For those who have read Meissner’s Christian fiction, this book is targeted to the general market and has no overt faith message. However, the author’s worldview informs the novel and breaks through in subtle ways.

As Bright As Heaven was a difficult book for me to read. It is a bit unconventional and it touched on difficult circumstances. I didn’t ugly cry during it, but I did have feelings of sorrow for both the characters and those who lived through those difficult times. Meisnner is a very talented writer and has created a beautifully crafted novel. It is a recommended read for me.

Recommended.

Audience: adults.

(Thanks to Berkley for a complimentary copy. All opinions expressed are mine alone.) show less