ARA Review by AlisonJSeely of The Reel Sisters

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AlisonJSeely
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ARA Review by AlisonJSeely of The Reel Sisters

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[Following is an OnlineBookClub.org ARA Review of the book, The Reel Sisters.]
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5 out of 5 stars
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Review of the Reel Sisters (Five stars out of Five star rating)

I thoroughly enjoyed the Reel Sisters by Michelle Cummings. Initially it was a quiet journey into the world of fly fishing. I was engrossed by the details of this unfamiliar art. I was surprised when the cast of characters caught me and swept me into an engaging saga of human drama and relationships. I am delighted to rate it with an unequivocal 5 stars.

The book chronicles the friendship of five very different women. Although they are dissimilar in age, ethnicity, and life situations, they are linked in a passion for fly fishing. The book starts gently and lulls you with its fly fishing imagery and metaphors. It then startles the reader as the plot thickens with human conflict, complicated relationships, and life challenges.

Each chapter is written from the vantage of the five different women, Sophie, Veronica, Amanda, Rose, and Melody. Cummings manages to give each woman a different voice and style. Sophie is the glue of the group, strong, single, and passionate about the sport and her friends. Veronica is an unlikely fisherwoman, a happily married African American city woman who perseveres with the sport after an initial foray with broken fingernails, and weaves the sport into her public motivational talks. Amanda is the baby of the initial four, juggling two small children and a career as a teacher, with the challenges of a beloved absentee military husband. Fishing and the warm friendship of the fishing circle gives her a needed mental break from her responsibilities at home. Rose is the gentle southern lady who mothers the women and teaches both fishing and life skills to her adopted brood. Melody, an Asian American photographer, is a late comer who arrives in a hilarious fashion and welcomes the fishing circle who fill a void in her life that she was unaware had existed.

Cummings is unabashed in her fishing metaphor. The chapters are punctuated with stylistic fish whenever there is a break in time or thought. Each chapter starts with an artful signature of the character voice, encircled by a fishing rod. A passage from a fishing manual or book divides each chapter, slowing the pace to one suitable to the patience of fishing. It is not all smooth sailing, however. The novel starts slowly with a gentle teasing of the surface of the characters. Then the reader is literally hooked by the accelerating plot. The finale, where the characters are threatened by a flash violent storm which mirrors similar storms in their current lives, is a clear tussle with a fish at the end of a line. The final chapters bring you down from the emotional precipice from the results of that storm. They are reminiscent of the gentle release of the fish in the “catch and release” program espoused by the women.

I started the book casually, reading a couple chapters a night for the first half of the book, and then read the second half of the book without pause. The pace definitely accelerates throughout. I was left eager for more examples of this authors work. I am also inspired by the seductive descriptions of fly fishing. I may well pick up my grandfather’s old fishing gear next time I visit the family lake cottage.

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