The Clover Girls
My Rating: 4.5
Genre: Fiction
Format: ARC*
Publication Date: May 18, 2021
Author: Viola Shipman
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The Clover Girls Blurb
From the USA Today bestselling author of The Summer Cottage
“Like a true friendship, The Clover Girls is a novel you will forever savor and treasure.” —Mary Alice Monroe, New York Times bestselling author
Elizabeth, Veronica, Rachel and Emily met at Camp Birchwood as girls in 1985, where over four summers they were the Clover Girls—inseparable for those magical few weeks of freedom—until the last summer that pulled them apart. Now approaching middle age, the women are facing challenges they never imagined as teens, struggles with their marriages, their children, their careers, and wondering who it is they see when they look in the mirror.
Then Liz, V and Rachel each receive a letter from Emily with devastating news. She implores the girls who were once her best friends to reunite at Camp Birchwood one last time, to spend a week together revisiting the dreams they’d put aside and repair the relationships they’d allowed to sour. But the women are not the same idealistic, confident girls who once ruled Camp Birchwood, and perhaps some friendships aren’t meant to last forever…
USA TODAY bestselling author Viola Shipman is at her absolute best with The Clover Girls. Readers of all ages and backgrounds will love its powerful, redemptive nature and the empowering message at its heart.
The Clover Girls Review
As a quick reminder, here is my rating structure:
- 1 star: Did not finish
- 2 Stars: Finished but I do not recommend
- 3 Stars: Liked but could use some improvements
- 4 Stars: Loved this book!
- 5 Stars: Rare. The unput-down-able, binge read obsession.
My star ratings are also based also genre based. I compare all books with books of the same genre. While I would love to believe that my love of books in general transcends all bias, there are genres I prefer over others.
I’m human.
Example: If I read a mystery novel and think it deserves a 5-star rating, then I have compared it to other mystery books, and determined it to be one of my absolute favorites. The unputdownable mystery.
This will hopefully keep me from comparing Outlander, a personal obsession of mine, with the experience of reading The Hate You Give. Both 5 star books for me, but completely and totally different. I couldn’t even try to rate them against each other, so I don’t. Makes my life easier. 🙂
My Thoughts
I am a big fan of viola shipman and this book was so much fun to read. A little mysterious at times, but mostly focused on female friendships before and after betrayal and loss. I genuinely loved both parts of the story, the flashbacks from their youth at camp and the current events happening during their reunion.
There is a lot of emotional turmoil in The Clover Girls but it was beautifully done. It feels like we are, as a society, becoming more comfortable with the idea that events from our childhoods can have lasting impacts. The phrase, “it happened years ago,” doesn’t quite mean what it used to. Just because something happened a long time ago doesn’t mean that we’ve dealt with or that it didn’t shape the person we are today.
Gave me some definite When We Believed in Mermaids vibes.
Young friendships are valid, foundational relationships that might have a more lasting impact than many of our transient adult friendships.
Anyway, the story is well written and paced. I enjoyed reading it so much, as I have with other Viola Shipman books, but I am admittedly a big fan of their writing. I have already bought my mother a copy for mother’s day. This one is a perfect gift.
Conclusion
People who enjoy a story about redemption and friendship would enjoy this emotional journey.
*Special thanks to Viola Shipman, Netgalley, and Graydon House for providing a copy of The Clover Girls in exchange for an honest review.
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