Molly Arnette and her husband live in San Diego, where they hope to adopt a baby. But the process terrifies her. Because Molly is very good at keeping secrets...
As the questions and background checks come one after another, Molly worries that the truth she's kept hidden about her North Carolina childhood will rise to the surface and destroy not only her chance at adoption, but her marriage as well.
She ran away from her family twenty years ago after a shocking event left her devastated and distrustful of those she loved: her mother, the woman who raised her and who, despite Molly claiming is dead, is very much alive, her birth-mother whose mysterious presence raised so many issues, and the father she adored, whose death sent her running from the small community of Morrison Ridge.
Now, as she tries to find a way to make peace with her past and embrace a future filled with promise, she discovers that even she doesn't know the truth of what happened in her family of pretenders.
Publisher: Macmillan
Pages: 384
Molly and her husband Aiden are living in San Diego and they are in the process of applying to adopt a baby. That in itself is stressful but Molly has the added worry of the secrets from her past being revealed. As far as Aiden is concerned, Molly's parents are dead, how will he react when he discovers that Molly was actually adopted herself and in fact only her father is dead? Molly
Pretending to Dance flits between the present day situation with Molly and Aiden and then back to the summer that Molly's father died. She was only fourteen and the events of that holiday would change her forever.
Molly was incredibly close to her father. A child 'pretend therapist', he was confined to a wheelchair due to having MS. Whilst Molly could take on board her father's limitations, she still believed he would always be there so his death is devastating to her and when she discovers the circumstances surrounding it she runs away.
Diane Chamberlain handled Molly
's fourteen year old character so well. I think she really showed the mix of emotions you experience on a daily basis at that age. Molly fiercely wants to be more independent, especially when it comes to boys and she fights against her parents to get more freedom. That comes at a price though and Molly realises that perhaps she is not as grown up as she thought and I can remember several instances where that happened to me as a teenager.
Pretending to Dance looks in particular at love within a family unit; the lengths we will go to in order to protect each other. Molly, even as an adult, has not come to terms with the decisions family members made on her behalf. When the prospect of becoming a mother herself becomes imminent, Molly is able to look at things a little differently; what would she do if in a similar situation with her own child?
I think that Diane Chamberlain dealt with a lot of complex and emotional issues in this book and she did it very well. I loved the back and forth nature of the story and it was interesting to see just how much Molly's past had effected her present day life.
Pretending to Dance is an engrossing, well-written book about family and love. Chamberlain's writing is emotive and well-thought out; this is a book that particularly resonated with me and reminded me what a fantastic author she is.
Many thanks to Macmillan for inviting me to be part of this blog tour, Pretending to Dance is available now!
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