5 people brought together to tell their stories...
If there's one thing I've learned over 25 or so years of reading fiction, it's that everyone has a story to tell. Some are a little more, or even a lot more, exciting than others but they are all real, living, breathing stories and each is important in its own way. I like to think that might have been what author Rachel Hauck was getting at when she penned The Fifth Avenue Story Society and introduced her five mismatched characters to the world. Like every real person they have made mistakes both big and small, they have secrets buried in their hearts, baggage from the past that is hard to let go, and fear. Fear of the future with all of its possibility for triumph and tragedy because of the pain of the past.
I've not read a lot of Rachel Hauck's stories but The Fifth Avenue Story Society seemed a little different, I think partly in style, than her other books. It's not a bad different, more of an interesting different. There's a little romance, quite a bit of personal drama, and even a little touch of mystery. Some of the things that I really liked about the story would be: the wide age range of the Story Society members, late 20s to 70s, the different economic situations of the characters, from an Uber driver to the owner of a multi-million dollar company, the careful layering of the characters' intersecting lives as the story progresses, and the requisite true HEA ending.
One thing I have to mention is that if alcohol consumption bothers you, there is quite a bit of it in this book with more social drinking than in the average Christian novel. There are 5 main characters, though, all living in New York City, so... This book is aimed more at adults as sex is referred to several times, the marriage problems themes, etc., so, not a book I would give to a tween or young teen.
Anyway, The Fifth Avenue Story Society was an interesting read, I enjoyed the premise of people sharing their stories in order to heal from the past and look forward to the future. Rachel Hauck has a cast of characters that are different, fun, and will leave you thinking about them even after you've finished the book. The question is, will we get to visit the Fifth Avenue Literary Society Library again....?
(I received a copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions are entirely my own.)
