Ashley's Reviews > Tom Lake

2.5 stars. I like Ann Patchett. Some of her novels are better than others, but in general I think she’s a really good writer, and I was looking forward to this release. Of course the writing is solid—I was interested in the cherry farm setting, and the relationship between the narrator and her grown daughters.

But… I just did not buy the whole massive-movie-star-who-was-once-my-summer-boyfriend-thing. Peter Duke did not come across as a beautifully gifted, if somewhat troubled, actor—he came across as a manipulative jerk. There was nothing attractive about him.

I also grew tired of all the “Our Town” references (unpopular opinion but that play is so irritating) and the Covid timeframe. I’m not ready to read novels set during Covid, especially ones that romanticize the experience as a time to make potato salad and to hand sew face masks. Get serious. But maybe that’s just me…