"Stay a Little Longer"


"Stay a Little Longer"
by Dorothy Garlock

Source: provided by Anna at Hachette Books

My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

My Review:

Rachel Watkins' life irreversibly changed when her sister Alice died in childbirth. Rachel became a mother to her niece, Charlotte, and took over from her mother as the town midwife. Rachel's mother lost her courage to help bring new lives into the world after the loss of her daughter. Rachel is also in charge of the boarding house that her mother owns with her uncle. Rachel blames her sister's death as well as all the struggles of her new life on the fact that Alice's husband, Mason, died in the war. If he hadn't died, would everything be the same as it was before? Would he be able to fix everything if he could come back?

"Stay a Little Longer" had a really good story, but it was a little too simplistic at times. There were moments that were really exciting and even had me gasping, "Wow! I can't believe that happened!" This story was kind of like "It's a Wonderful Life," but people's lives really did fall apart because they thought Mason was dead, it wasn't all a dream.

The romance was okay, but I wouldn't really call this a romance book because the love story was on the back burner. It was more about Mason learning to live his life again. Some of the scenes with the villains were a little too grisly for me and at times I wondered how much more Rachel would have to endure.

However, I loved Charlotte's character and her faithful and loyal companion, Jasper the dog. These two really breathed life into the slow story. I also thought Rachel's mother and how Alice's death affected her was really interesting. These characters and their facets of the story really kept me interested in the book.

I really liked the poem at the beginning of the book and how it was the basis for the whole book. The poem is about a man who had survived a war and he doesn't want his wife to see his scars, both on the outside and inside. I think the book would have been more meaningful to me if Mason had been able to truly go back to his wife and see that she still loved him for who he was, regardless of the scars.


Main Characters: 3/5
Supporting Characters: 4/5

Setting: 3/5

Romance: 2/5
Uniqueness: 3/5
Cover: 4/5

Writing: 3/5



Bottom Line:
Overall, the story was nice, but a little slow and simplified for me. For fans of Garlock and Americana stories, I think this would be a nice, cozy read.

16 comments

  1. Nice review! If you liked Charlotte I think the next book is about her all grown up!

    XOXO~ Renee

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  2. Thanks, Renee!! Oh, that's interesting!! I didn't know that it was about Charlotte!

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  3. It doesn't quite seem like my kind of story, but you describe it wonderfully. I love how considerate you are in all your reviews--I always catch snark creeping into mine!

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  4. Thanks for sharing your review! This isn't something a book I would normally gravitate toward, but I really enjoyed reading your review. :)

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  5. Thanks for entering my giveaway and for the follow:)

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  6. Thanks for sharing the review Carrie. Sad to know is ones has to endure lots of obstacles and death in order to live or move on..

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  7. Wonderful review! Not my usual type of book, but you made it sound like a lovely story. Agree with Tiger Holland that you write really nice reviews!

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  8. Awww, thank you, Tiger!! I really appreciate it :)

    Violet, thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed the review!

    Deana, thank you for the follow also!!

    Darlyn, thanks! yes it is sad, I agree.

    Alexia, awww, thank you so much!! That is really sweet to say :)

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  9. Great Review!! Even though its not my kind of read, since I am big on the romance, but I love how strong Rachel seems to be!!!

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  10. Nice honest review. I don't think this is one I'll be rushing out to get, though.

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  11. Sounds neat! I would definitly try it out! Thanks for the review!

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  12. Ooh, this book sounds interesting. I really need to read some non-YA and this looks like something I might like. Thanks!

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  13. Lover of Romance, I know how you feel, I wanted there to be more romance in this one!!

    Carol's Notebook, thank you!!

    Milli, Thanks for stopping by, I hope you like it!

    blueicegal, thanks so much!

    Lisa and Laura, I hope you like this one! I know what you mean about needing something new sometimes.

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  14. I haven't read any of Dorothy Garlock's books but this does sound interesting even though it has flaws. Very nice review!

    I also wanted to let you know that I gave you an award at my blog.

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  15. Excellent review. I love the bottom line feature.

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Thanks so much for your lovely comments!