"Shauna looked stricken, but no-one except Della was looking at her. They were all looking at Greg, who had gone a dull red from his neck to his hairline... Shauna felt as though she was hearing Della's voice from a long distance. She couldn't take her eyes off Greg. He wouldn't look at her. Fear engulfed her. Her stomach twisted in knots. Della was right ..."
During Term 4 I began reading the novel "Divided Loyalties" By Patricia Scanlan. This fictional story is told from three different characters who all come from the same family but experiences very diverse problems. These three unique characters are Shauna, Carrie and Bobby.
Shauna is having trouble to overcome all the obstacles life throws at her. Her marriage is under pressure because she wants another baby while Greg (her husband) strongly disagrees. Her obnoxious in-laws named Eddie and Della (who are also known as the Freeloaders, being people who arrive at her home at the drop of a hat, always staying as long as they like and relaxes there, not even lifting a finger to do any work) also gets on her nerves.
Carrie, Shauna's sister is fed up about how life is always so demanding. She carries the burden of looking after her elderly father who freaks out at little health problems such as headaches, always negatively thinking that he will die. Even though Carrie is the oldest of the three siblings she does not like the fact that her younger sister and brother both held grudges against their father, forcing Carrie to do all the chores their father asks.
The only son in their family, Bobby, has a bad relationship with their father who blames Bobby to be the cause of his wife's death. According to their father, Bobby does not follow God's rules since he has always been the one who troubled their family during the time of his childhood, being a child who had a playful and optimistic personality from when he was born.
How will these people overcome their own individual problems? Will Shauna be free of the "Freeloaders" at last? Or will she stay in their evil clutches all through her lifetime? What about Carrie? Would she stand up for herself for once? And last, but not least, Bobby. Will his father and himself sort out their differences? Or are their problems too deep to overcome now? If you want any of these questions answered read the book to find out and I promise you will not regret it.
Overall I really enjoyed reading this book, learning about situations that just might happen in real life someday. The author had done a good job on creating interesting characters and making them seem so realistic. I could imagine the tension between Della and Shauna, feel the love and passion between Dan (Carrie's husband) and Carrie and finally, the happiness of the children when they were playing on the beach, enjoying some family time together. Because of the author's powerful writing I identified absolutely no weaknesses throughout the book. It can truly be described as a heart warming book for a cold winter's night.
This is why I would definitely rate the book 5 out of 5 and would recommend it to everyone!
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