Caren J. Werlinger

Nearly twenty-five years ago, Kathleen Halloran's brother drowned during the last summer they ever spent with their grandmother on a remote island off Maine's coast. Like a siren's call she can't resist, Kathleen is pulled back to Little Sister Island. She leaves her job and her girlfriend, packs up her few belongings, and moves into her grandmother's cottage. Molly Cooper loves life on Little Sister, where the islanders take care of their own. Kathleen Halloran doesn't belong here, and her arrival stirs up unwelcome memories for the islanders-including Molly's brother. Molly is certain Kathleen will pack up at the first big blow. When she doesn't, Molly begins to see maybe there's more to Kathleen than she thought. Sometimes, before you can move forward, you have to look back.

When the Stars Sang

Lucia Correa

5 Stars for a "Re-read" however this time for the audio version of the book narrated by Ann Etter. This is the first time I've listened to Etter. I won’t hesitate to listen to her again. She does a credible job with the Little Sister Island native accents. I assume she made it a mix of their Irish and native Indian ancestors and probably a bit of Maine accent. I wouldn’t know the authenticity of any of these accents much less the mixture, but it worked for me. I enjoyed the audiobook just as much as the ebook. 

I won’t rehash my original review of the 5 Star ebook that I wrote in 2018. I highly recommend this book - either in print or audio.

But I will say - I no longer listen to audiobooks while at work (retired! Yeah!). So finishing audiobooks are much slower for me now since I generally only listen when driving or sitting in the spa. However, I still enjoy audiobooks, now more than ever as Lesfic books are much more common and many are coming out not long after print/ebook version (if not concurrently). I re-read a lot. Lately, I’ve been re-reading many favorite ebooks via audiobooks. One, I don’t get lost if there is a relatively long time between listening sessions and with some narrators, I’ve enjoyed the book even more than when I read it myself.

Jude Silberfeld

I’ve always believed (and still believe) that Paris is the most beautiful city in the world. However, as time goes by, I find myself more and more drawn to quieter, less populated places. It’s no surprise, then, that I am a little envious of what Kathleen found on Little Sister. Not so much the love of her life (I found mine twenty-five years ago) but the environment, the beauty, the quiet, and the community which prevents it all from being lonely. When I first read When the Stars Sang, in December 2018, my review was short and to the point: « Beautiful! Touching and heartwarming. I loved it. » Still true, but now that I’ve listened to the audiobook version, narrated by Ann Etter, I’m going to try and be a little more specific.

When she arrives on Little Sister, a tiny island off the coast of Maine, Kathleen doesn’t know much about life there, apart from what she remembers from her visits to her grand-mother as a child. She hasn’t set foot on the island in twenty-five years, since the death of her brother. Yet she’s planning on settling there, away from the unhappy place her life has been so far. When her brother died in a tragic accident, her parents more or less forgot all about her. She is so used to not being loved that she has been content so far in a relationship with a woman who mostly seems to want her when she’s ready to leave (she has her own problems to deal with, mainly an abusive father). Not everyone is happy to see Kathleen return to the island, though. The locals are wary of foreigners, or more precisely of rich foreigners whose only interest in the island would be to build huge mansions with no respect for their way of life. And what an interesting way of life it is! The islanders are descendants of First Ones (the people who first lived on the island) and survivors of an Irish ship which capsized near the coast a few generations ago. Their traditions reflect that mix too, taking from both cultures in a very organic way.

At first, some of the islanders are convinced Kathleen won’t last when she realises the ferry doesn’t come everyday, her cell phone won’t work, winds and storms will wreak havoc on electricity and internet access. One of those is the island sheriff, Molly, who holds Kathleen responsible, at least in part, for her brother’s problems, even though she knows how unfair that is. So now you know who’s going to fall in love with whom.

I loved watching Kathleen shed her unhappy and reserved self and grow into herself on the island. The process didn’t seem painful but it wasn’t easy either. « You’re serious? » is probably the question she asks the most in the course of the story, as she finds out about the ways of the island. Other reviewers have commented on the lack of chemistry between Molly and Kathleen, and I can’t disagree, since their relationship seems to come from a more cerebral place, from learning to know and respect and trust each other. Also, the environment, the island itself, its history, its customs play a huge role in their relationship, and the two of them are just part of it. The other inhabitants of the island are another. I can’t list all the secondary characters, but each and every one of those mentioned at some point in the book has depth and a real personality (even the dog, the cat and the gull).

As always with Caren J. Werlinger’s books, I am left with a lingering feeling of poetry and something surreal, almost dreamlike, but definitely heartwarming.

When the Stars Sang

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