Where or When

A recent acquisition at a local library sale, this was a quick, enjoyable read. When Cal and Sian were young teens, they met and fell in love at a Catholic summer camp. Years later, Cal happens upon an article complete with a photo of Sian who is now an accomplished author of poetry.

Tripping down memory lane and thinking fondly of those long ago memories, allow Cal a respite from his coastal life in Rhode Island were the economy is fast in a downward spiral. Fearing the loss of his nice house, his car, and his insurance business, a married man and father of three, Cal longs for excitement instead of the pain of watching the town businesses close one by one as foreclosure is the norm.

Reaching out to Sian, he writes a letter. When she show more returns with a letter to him, they eventually agree to meet at the camp where long ago they held hands and allowed their hearts to glow. Now an upscale inn, they continue to meet. Quickly, they are both obsessed. In the beginning it appeared he was the most obsessed, but as time goes on, Sian happily follows his lead.

She has a husband who is a farmer, and in addition, they both teach at a local college. They share a beautiful three-year old daughter. There is much to lose if the relationship continues. And, at Christmas time, their indiscretions come to light.

I don't usually read romance novels, but this was well written, and good with a surprising ending. show less

Charles first meets Sian thirty one years ago on a camp. It takes three decades to meet again and both are married with a family. They start an affair which which forces them both to face betrayal and have to live up to the consequences.

My Thoughts:

I picked this book up off my shelf for something different to read. I quite enjoyed this book more than what I thought I would. I was actually swept away wanting to now what was going to happen.

The love that that Charles and Sian rekindle is powerful and does have severe consequences. The ending of the book I had mixed feelings about. I think the ending could have been different and it did make the book rather bleak.

Sian’s story was told in the first person but Charles was told in the show more third. I would have preferred both to have been told in the first person to feel what both characters were feeling.

I enjoyed the story but didn’t like the ending. show less

I read this book quickly, so possibly I missed some of the logic that would lead two married 46-year old people to abandon everyone significant in their lives to be together. Their relationship didn't make sense to me. I simply cannot see myself overcome with lust at the sight of someone I thought I loved 31 years ago. I'd like to think that these people required a longer period of connection. Also, how did both of them have so much unfettered time? Did Charles' financial worries disappear when he bought champagne, gifts, meals and a hotel room for them? Didn't his wife's reaction seem a bit odd? I think I am a consummate romantic, but I just didn't buy it.

Two mid-lifers connect after 31 years, after their one week summer camp romance at age 14. While intense in emotion, an interesting story, many questions remained unanswered. Not sure how realistic the entire scenario is, but it was an entertaining read.

Charles first saw Siân at summer camp thirty-one years ago, and he fell in love. He never really lost memory or longing of her, even though they never saw each other again after those few fateful, scorching weeks they spent together; so when he comes across her photograph serendipitously while flicking through a literary magazine, his world begins to spin in a new direction. He needs to see her. Forget the wife, forget the kids—he needs Sîan. His sinking business and financial security set the tone of this gloomy, cryptic novel; little does he know that they will mark his failure, as well as his downfall.

I couldn't really get into this one because I couldn't connect with the characters. Each of them are most intimately portrayed by show more Shreve's dense, flowery prose, but they still seem too detached, too cold. The power of first love—and in that, the illusion of romanticized childhood—is expertly detailed upon, but emotionally, personally... Charles and Sîan are a let-down.

I have mixed feelings about the writing style; on one hand, it's gorgeously crafted, but on the other, it's kind of rambly, descriptive in unnecessary places and too vague in others. There's a quaint perceptiveness in Shreve's penmanship that's both distant and generic; I liked this, but it hinders the story's progress, so overall Where or When was sort of difficult to read.

The blithe bay setting, with brief flashes of Rhode Island and of east coast beaches, is nice. Nothing powerful, but definitely appropriate for the content and style: hazy, breezy, and static.

Ah, but the ending—what in the world?? Unfulfilling, miserable, wretched thing! I like the take on the tragic ending, but the way the author decided to terminate the connection between the two lovers, not so much. I feel like there was a better path she could have taken, so the ending was what finally ruined the story for me.

The affliction over an impossible love permeates throughout this book—from the first page, to the last. Even in the title, is a direct allusion: it's where or when, but never and, never both, which signifies how the self-serving motives and foolishly insatiable desires of the human heart will eventually lead to catastrophe.

Pros: Intimacy between characters, and between characters and readers // Lush prose // Breezy east coast backdrop // Interesting storyline about childhood lovers

Cons: Unmoving // Terrible ending // Style is syrupy; hard to read // Just didn't affect me in any which way

Verdict: Where or When is a futile account of a mistaken love that consumes two very unhappy individuals. I say futile because there is nothing about it that's touching or engaging; it's just a flat story with flat characters, and I put it down having gained very little. It does however, contain Anita Shreve's exquisite prose, and well-interprets the tragedy of time, of timing. This wasn't a completely deplorable read, but I don't care for it much, and wouldn't recommend it.

5 out of 10 hearts (3 stars): Doesn't particularly light any of my fires; I feel indifferent about this book.

Source: Complimentary copy provided by TripFiction in exchange for an honest and unbiased review (thank you!) show less

The main character in Where or When, by Anita Shreve, is a middle aged man with a wife and three children who is depressed at the beginning of the novel, and very quickly becomes obsessive over a woman he met more than 30 years ago for a few days at a summer camp when they were both 14. This character just isn't convincing to me. Part of him was trying to relive his youth, while at the same time avoiding his responsibilities to his family and his employer. This sometimes happens in middle age, but his obsessiveness is too over-the-top.
This is one of Shreve's earlier novels. Thank goodness, she got much better.

A right load of tosh. Perhaps I'm being a bit mean. I generally like Anita Shreve, both the writing and the stories. Here the writing seemed to verge on the pretentious and the story was like a car crash in slow motion. Charles gets back in touch with Siân who he knew briefly at the age of fourteen in 1960. It's now 1991 and they are both married with children. Will they still like each other? Will they wreck their lives for each other? The dates are important as the plot details are mostly tied up with music of 1960 and the recession of the early 1990s. There's nothing wrong with this plot of course, it could produce a good book. And there's nothing wrong with having a couple of central characters that it's difficult to sympathise show more with. But taken altogether it was just too much to enjoy. About the only thing going for this book is that it's short; had it been long I don't know if I would have finished it, but alternately, if it had been longer the peripheral characters might have had more page time which would have made for a better read. I appreciate that the close focus on Charles and Siân was supposed to mirror the intensity of the relationship between them but it just wasn't interesting enough for me. Funny how sometimes it's easier to say what you dislike than what you like. show less