Julie and Romeo - the Bard would have been pleased....
Written: Oct 21 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Great characters, nice story
Cons: none
The Bottom Line: The ultimate feel-good book.
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| tuggy's Full Review: Jeanne Ray - Julie and Romeo Books |
Julie and Romeo is the ultimate feel-good book. I read it yesterday in one sitting and was charmed and delighted by the characters and the story.
The title suggests that the story is related in some way to that famous Shakespearean tragedy, Romeo and Juliet, and in a way it is. The lovers must fight against their very stubborn families to be together and things look bleak. However, Romeo and Juliet ends tragically, and Julie and Romeo ends....well, you just have to read the book.
Julie and Romeo is a character driven book. Nothing much happens, but many lives are changed.
The story is told from the first person point of view of Julie Roseman, owner of a small flower shop in a suburb of Boston. She has always known that the Rosemans hate the Cacciamani family, but she doesn't know why. Her husband left her for a much younger woman, and he was very angry when her parents left the shop to Julie instead of to him. Romeo Cacciamani, a widower with many grown children, owns the other small flower shop in her town.
Romeo and Julie are now about 60 years old. They have hated the other family all of their lives. They meet at a small business seminar in Boston, and are instantly charmed by each other. They have an instant attraction, and simply don't care about the old family hatreds. They want to be together, but their families are horrified by the very thought and do everything they can to keep the two lovers apart.
Julie's daughter was once in love with Romeo's son, when they were very young. The families came together to make sure the young couple was kept apart. That added to the friction between the families. Now, when the daughter finds out that Julie is seeing Romeo, she is horrified and hurt.
Julie's other daughter is simply angry, and makes her mother promise never to see Romeo again.
Romeo's sons overreact a bit in trying to keep their dad away from their enemy. Still, none of them knows why...they just know that Roseman's are evil...
Romeo's mother is still living with him, and is approaching her 90th birthday. She once poured salt on Julie's mother's roses, and played other tricks on the Roseman family. She refuses to say what caused all this hatred between the two otherwise quite normal families.
The relationship of Romeo and Julie is full of passion and longing. It's a lovely portrayal of love between older people. The reader can't help but cheer for the star-crossed lovers, but things look mighty bleek when Julie's ex-husband appears to talk some sense into Julie. Nevertheless, the ending comes as a bit of a surprise as the reason for the family feud is revealed, and several happy endings occur.
The story moves fairly quickly, and never left me bored. Lots of interesting dialogue helps us to know the characters. It's a short book and an easy read. Although I was a bit worried about the fate of Romeo and Julie, the ending was satisfying and realistic.
Julie and Romeo is a truly funny book. I found myself laughing out loud many times. The humour comes from author Jeanne Ray's unique way of looking at life and it's surprises.
The Today Show calls Julie and Romeo one of the "Six best summer reads", and it was a New York Times bestseller. I can understand why!
Julie and Romeo
Jeanne Ray
ISBN 0-451-40997-3
Mass Market paperback
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
tuggy
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Location: Edmonton, Alberta
Reviews written: 64
Trusted by: 64 members
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