The Fortune Quilt

Oh, boy. This is going to be another one of those books I can't write about because I liked it too much.

Television producer Carly McKay is pretty comfortable in her life. Until she interviews psychic quiltmaker Brandywine Seaver. Carly's disbelieving, but that doesn't stop Brandy from giving Carly a quilt that she "knows" is hers and giving her a reading:

* her career is in upheaval
* something about South America
* her emotional center is jagged
* pay attention to the paintbrushes
* return the frog
* accept the book with the amber spine
* take the cab
* Mary isn't dead

Carly's shaken by the last pronouncement--Mary is her mother who disappeared when Carly was twelve. But she writes it off until one by one, the predictions start coming show more true. She loses her job, her mother returns, and her best friend Christopher suddenly announces he wants more from their relationship.

So Carly returns to the quiltmaker's small town to... well, to escape from the upheaval, but she tells herself it's to make Brandy remove the curse and take the quilt back, and she ends up renting a cabin from Brandy and starting a new life, including a romance with her fellow tenant Will, an ex-boyfriend of Carly's older sister.

It's a very emotional story, but at the same time, it's not sappy or maudlin. Most importantly for me, Carly is not a saint. One of the main reasons why I shy away from women's fiction is that when it comes to things like her mother returning after disappearing 17 years ago, the main characters tend to be saints--they forgive immediately. In fact, most women's fiction heroines seem to put up with anything from their mothers, and simultaneously divorce their husbands at the first hint of anything other than fairy tale bliss. Heh. Maybe I've read the wrong women's fiction. Anyway, that is not this book.

Carly's younger sister Five (there's a story behind this name, but you'll have to read the book to find out), and her older sister Ella welcome their mother back with open arms, as does their father, though his reaction is more complex, understandably. But Carly, who'd ended up with all the responsibility when Mary left, is angry and hurt. I very much appreciated that about her. It seemed an honest reaction, and the way it was settled in the end was very satisfying and believable.

The romantic relationships in this book are also a large part of it, though I should warn you that it's not a romance. I didn't really know until the end who Carly would end up with, and I was pleased with her choice.

And there's community. The small town where Brandywine lives is full of artists, making for a lot of interesting characters. Even though they're unusual, they're still believable, and there are some nice sub-plots involving them. It's a town I can imagine being able to visit.

Okay, that's probably enough rambling. I loved the book. It made me laugh aloud, and made me cry. I have all of Lani's books, and she's on my must-buy list. show less

Sweet and heart-breaking. The story of Carly, a woman who has had to be the strong one in the family since she was twelve and begs the question how do you quit being strong and start living life. The characters were engaging, funny and completely brilliant. Love the town of Bilby, if a town can be welcoming and accepting this place would be it. Second book of Ms. Rich's books that I've read and this is better than the first. Will be getting the rest in print if I can find them.

Some reviewers compared Rich to Jennifer Crusie, there are definite similarities, from the quirky characters in a Gilmore Girls-like small town, to the effervescent romance, to the subtle messages about life that were strewn throughout the book. I really liked the heroine, Carly, who's of course 29 (most popular age for chicklit protagonists) and about to endure one crisis after another. Carly's rude awakening was brought to her by a "fortune-telling quilt," think of it as a tarot card spread, but in fabric. After the mandatory denial and breakdown period, Carly goes off reimagining her life in an artists' retreat community where everyone is nice, or will turn out to be. She ends up being neighbors with her sister's ex and gets to know show more him a lot better. Of course, she still has her old life to haunt her and past conflicts to resolve. Super-enjoyable read. show less

I was actually pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. Sometimes you get away from a true romance with a twist of paranormal (or is it belief) you decide once you read this heartwarming story. The characters were likable, quirky, and probably like none other you will ever read about. Lani Diane Rich wrote a story and told it like many others could try but could probably not do. It was a great book and it was free. I don't know what it is now but go try it and you might like it, too!

Lani Diane Rich's books are so much fun to read, filled with quirky characters and interesting plots. You never feel like you are reading the same story over and over. This one was no exception. I enjoyed every minute and finished in a day because I couldn't put it down.

The Fortune Quilt is a quick, easy read that is a lot of fun. It deals with serious issues, but never takes its eyes off the fact that it is, at its core, a light-hearted and enjoyable novel. I liked this treatment; it never downplayed the gravity of Carly's situations but it kept the book from becoming heavy or overdramatic.

My favorite part of The Fortune Quilt was Carly's slow transformation as a character. At the beginning of the book, she is basically living in denial, refusing to acknowledge when she is hurt or upset. Gradually, Carly begins to express herself and opens up to Brandy, Will, and the other people she meets. They help to draw her out and transform her into a person who has room within herself to believe in the show more predictive power of Brandy's quilts.

Carly's mother was harder for me to swallow. I didn't like the way Carly's family turned on her, especially after she had raised her two younger sisters after their mother's departure. I would have hoped they could have been more understanding of her aversion to their mother's return. That being said, because Carly grew so much over the course of the book, she was able to make decisions that prove her transformation into a more understanding and open woman (MUCH more understanding than I think I could have been).

I enjoyed The Fortune Quilt very much; it was quick and easy, perfect for when you don't want to get too bogged down in a book. I'd recommend it to any chick lit fans.

From S. Krishna's Books show less

Carly's life is moving along just fine, if predictibly, until she interviews a woman who claims to read people's futures in the quilts she has made. Carly ignores her predictions of major changes until one by one things that she was told start to happen. She loses her job and her missing mother returns to the family. In desperation she returns to see the psychic in Bilby, Arizona and ends up staying, making friends and getting a new job.

I truly love this book. It is funny and endearing. It also touches on bigger issues and was just the book that I needed at this time. All my friends have read the book, and they all loved it too.