Title: Leaving Before It’s Over
Author: Jean Reynolds Page
Publisher: Avon A
Publication Date: August 10, 2010
Paperback: 398 pages
ISBN: 978-0061876929
Genre: Fiction

From the Publisher:

From the author of The Space Between Before and After comes a compelling novel that explores the true meaning of family.

When Roy Vines married his wife, Rosalind, he traded his family and his inheritance for love—a painful choice that has blessed them with years of joy nestled in rural North Carolina with their beautiful daughters, sixteen-year-old Lola and little Janie Ray.

But their happiness is threatened when Rosalind suddenly falls ill. Desperate to get her the help she needs, Roy does the one thing he swore he’d never do—turn to his heartless and bitter identical twin brother, Mont, for help.

The price is steep—and includes opening their home to a teenage boy who believes Roy is the father who abandoned him. As bad blood threatens to destroy her family, Rosalind must make a difficult choice. Should she walk away—like Roy once did—for love, or try to mend wounds that may never be healed? And will the pain of choosing be more than her heart can bear?

My Review:

Family, secrets, and choices, Leaving Before It’s Over by Jean Reynolds Page explores the complex dynamics that make up the Vines family. Lola and Janie Ray Vines grew up believing their father’s parents were dead, and had no idea they had an Uncle Montgomery until the summer their mother Rosalind became ill and money was desperately needed. Roy Vines hitched his way to Gray’s Hollow to beg money from his parents and strikes a deal with his parents and his twin brother Montgomery. He will have financial assistance only if he takes 17-year-old Lucas to live with him. Roy does not know how he will explain this to Rosalind or his girls, especially when it is more complicated than it appears. Roy believes Lucas is Montgomery’s son, but his father and Montgomery are adamant that Lucas is the product of his first marriage, unfortunately Sherry is no longer alive to tell her side of the story. Confused? So are the members of the Vines family. Leaving Before It’s Over is filled with family love, adversity, misunderstandings, mistrusts, loyalty and love. The story is told through various members of the Vines family, which turns out to be an excellent choice allowing the complex emotions of the family members to shine through. Page writes a complicated family drama and clearly details how each family member deals with the dramas as they unfold. Leaving Before It’s Over makes for a quick read and anyone interested in family dynamics or likes a good drama may find Leaving Before It’s Over to be the perfect pick for an afternoon of reading.

About the Author:

Jean Reynolds Page is the author of The Last Summer of Her Other Life, The Space Between Before and After, A Blessed Event, and Accidental Happiness. She grew up in North Carolina and graduated with a degree in journalism from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She was a dance critic for more than ten years before turning full-time to fiction in 2001. In addition to North Carolina, she has lived in New York, Boston, Dallas, and Seattle. She and her family recently moved to Madison, Wisconsin.

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I received a complimentary copy of Leaving Before It’s Over by Jean Reynolds Page from TLC Book Tours to be a part of this tour and offer my honest review of the book. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of aforementioned book.