Status
Call number
Publication
Description
Kenny's Department Store, with its handsome Edwardian facade and unique cherry-picked goods, it is the jewel in the Irish town of Ardagh's crown. David Kenny, its charismatic owner, has poured his heart and soul into transforming the store. Star Bluestone sells her beautifully crafted tapestries at Kenny's. Made with natural dyes, they embody her mother-earth spirit and creative vision. She has a special reason for caring about Kenny's beyond her sales. Meanwhile for Ingrid Fitzgerald, hotshot political interviewer and wife of David Kenny, the store is the 'other woman' in her marriage. With her children leaving home and her career blossoming, she is worried by the toll the store is taking on her husband. Unable even to confide in her best friend Marcella, Ingrid convinces herself all will be well. Natalie Flynn shares a flat with Ingrid's daughter Karen. She tries not to envy her friend the relationship she has with Ingrid, but it's hard when your own mother died when you were ten. And Charlie is one of David's staff, with her own issues with the mother/daughter relationship.She is one of the first to hear the rumour that Kenny's is facing with a takeover bid. As the threat of closure looms and with an owner who doesn't seem his usual self - what does the future hold for the women who are bound together by its fortunes?… (more)
User reviews
Is this chic lit? Yes and No. It certainly has all of the aspects of chic lit. Girls, divorce, make up , shopping and so on. But the characters are much richer, and the story is much richer than some of the chic lit I have read.
This is a story of women who live in a small town in Ireland. Small town all have one thing in common, it seems. Everyone either knows or knows about everyone else in town. I think what drew me in most was the character of Star. She felt like a kindred spirit.
I liked Charlie Fallon. She is one of those women who it would be very easy to dismiss as a young woman with little substance. She works in the make-up department of the Kenny department store.
We find out just how wise and gentle this character really is when she grows a little and feels more comfortable in her own skin.
Kenny's is the basically the heart of the book. Many of the characters are involved in some way with the store or the family. David Kenny inherited the stre from his parents and is struggling to keep it going during difficult financial times. His employees are like extended family and he knows how difficult it would be for them if he lost his battle to keep the store as is.
Ingrid is Davids wife. He has a son and a daughter, and they have friends and lives of their own that figure into this story. I enjoyed this story. I liked most of the characters and cared what happened to them. I also liked the way that acceptance was both a reality and a lesson.
If you are looking for a good story with likeable characters, this is a book for you. I will be happy to read more from this writer. I also plan to gift copies to at least two people I know who will enoy the story, and perhaps learn about acceptance.
Good read for a relaxing afternoon.
The novel is set in
Oh if only the book had focused more on the troubles of running the store and less on the grieving and womanly spirituality! The promise of a diverse cast of women was cut short by how obsessively focused they were on David. Men, no matter how well loved and respected they are, are not the be all and end all of women. The idea too, that women turn to other women when the patriarch is not available, also strikes me more as alien and less as affirming or heartwarming.