Alix Strauss

I stumbled upon this book while shelving at the library (how I find about 92% of the books I read nowadays). The story looked interesting and I'm always open to discovering a new author, so I checked it out. The book itself was a very quick, easy read. I finished it over the course of three commutes to work and one bubble bath--which is pretty good for me (I'm a slow reader, despite what many may think, but I refuse to "skim" through a book). This first portion of the novel is told from the perspective of Morgan--the general manager of the Four Season's Hotel. Through her perspective and narration, we see both her inner pain and struggle in the loss of her sister years earlier, as well as meet several of the books secondary characters, whose paths all seem to cross through Morgan and the posh hotel. After the first couple of chapters I really began to connect with Morgan's character, so the switch in perspective disappointed me. The second half of the book devotes each chapter to another woman in the story. Each has some kind of dysfunction, either family/friend drama or outright mental illness, and very few get the help or closure they so desperately need. Despite some of the online descriptions, I wouldn't say it's a "dark" novel (at least in comparison to some of the other books I reed) but the glimpses into each character happen at each of their darkest hours. While I wish there was more closure and a tidier ending, I will give Strauss credit in creating such a varied, disparate group of characters, some of whom continue to haunt the reader even after the final pages have been read. Each has a sad, but believable story and the next time I'm standing in a hotel lobby, this book will having me wondering about the lives of each guest who strolls past… (more)