The Shell Seekers by Rosamunde Pilcher is named for the last unknown painting of famous artist Lawrence Stern which is owned by his daughter Penelope. Having reached the ripe old age of sixty-four, two of Penelope's children think it is time she sell the artwork and go ahead and pass the proceeds on to them. An epic novel, this book delves somewhat deeply into a variety of characters and takes a long swim in the past where we follow Penelope's journey through WWII, her marriage, the loss of friends and family members, and the building of new friendships and relationships.
I have strongly mixed feelings about this book. The story was good, the characters were interesting, some I loved and some I loathed, but the book was just too long. Especially the first half of the book I felt was extraordinarily slow to start and it made it difficult to get into it and want to continue reading. I persisted simply because it was a book club selection, otherwise I would probably have let this one go. I did enjoy meeting the characters and hearing about Penelope's life. I do think this is a book that some people would really love, but it would likely help to know it requires an investment in time, but that it is worth it in the end.
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