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I tried, I really did.

My heart wanted to love A Portrait of Emily Price.

It’s hard for me to admit that I didn’t really like it because there was so  much to love.  Unfortunately, it missed the mark for me.  It was a little like ordering a favorite dish at a restaurant then finding that they’ve changed the recipe, using canned sauce instead of the homemade heaven that is usually poured over the pasta.  Or, another way to describe the feeling — that moment when you realize there’s only 15 minutes left of the movie, and you know the rest of the movie will be rushed in order to resolve things.  It’s not what I’ve come to expect from Katherine Reay.

Don’t despair! There were some things I loved about the story.  Reay’s characters were charming as always.  Endearing while flawed, the main character Emily had a lovely, sweet spirit about her.  She was presented as headstrong and responsible, which didn’t really fit with her actions in most of the book.  The story was mostly based in Italy (with a quick, contrasting start in Atlanta).  I kept reading in hopes of more art, more sibling squabbles, more something.

Emily’s choices seemed to be out of character for her, as I previously mentioned.  However, I felt more like she chose the wrong guy.  In my opinion, Reay tried to squeeze too much into this dramatic family novel, and it came out feeling like a weak punchline.  Several times, I thumbed through the parts I’d already read, trying to figure out if I missed something.  Emotions didn’t translate through the conversations, and it wasn’t because of the Italian. The book lacked cohesiveness, and that made me feel disconnected.  There’s also an “It’s” on the very first page that doesn’t seem to be the correct usage….and that bugged me.  I’m sure that I have some typos/grammatical errors on my site, too.  Then again, I’m not a published author.

No worries, though.  Not every book can be Dear Mr. Knightley, and I’m sure that Reay has more rainbows up her sleeve.  I’m holding out for a winner next time.