Maximum entertainment. That's my quickie summary of Sidney Sheldon's Morning, Noon & Night. It is non-stop fun, from the first page to the last. Truly one of those books that I could not put down, even though it was well past my bedtime. But I had to see what would happen next!

It's not that this book is perfect. Not by a long shot. But it was just so darned fun!

Billionaire Harry Stanford takes a fatal plunge from his luxury yacht. This brings his three adult children to town for the reading of the will. The kids hated their father, and he was none too fond of them. Thus they're surprised to hear that Harry's estate will be shared equally among all of his children. One-third of a huge estate is nothing to sneeze at. Thus the kids are practically drooling, awaiting the official reading, when they will find out exactly how much they will inherit.

Thus we meet Woody, Tyler, and Kendall. Very quickly, we come to find out that each is hiding a huge secret from the others, a secret that can be very damaging, if it gets out.

Then there's the little matter of Harry's illegitimate daughter. It seems that Harry got the nanny pregnant when the kids were little. Now Julia's all grown up, and entitled to her piece of the pie, if she should happen to come forward. Naturally, the other kids would prefer Julie to remain hidden, but how far will they go to ensure it?

Reading this book was so much fun! The secrets the kids are hiding are deliciously wicked. Some are pure evil, others are victims of circumstance, but all are hiding things that are delightful to read about. There are also plenty of twists, some of which really "got" me.

Sheldon gives us very small chapters, constantly bouncing around the various main characters, and all of their stories. Along with way, the characters are developed nicely, so that we feel that we come to "know" them. Whether we like them, or not, is a different matter. In fact, all of the characters are flawed, some more so than others.

But in this book, it doesn't really matter if we like the characters or not. The fun is in their secrets, and the lengths they'll go, in order to keep their reputations intact, and their wallets full. In fact, you sort of hope they get what's coming to them, rather than a windfall of cash.

Except for Julia, of course. She's been wronged her entire life, so it's easy to root for her.

So what's not to love about this book?

Well, there's the ridiculous romance that occurs between two of the characters. Authors seem to believe that all books require romances, whether they fit into the rest of the story or not. This book is no exception - the romance is completely superfluous.

Something else that should have landed on the cutting room floor is the description of a slew of blind dates Julia goes on. One flop after another! I realize this was included in order to add a bit of comedy to the story. I mean the dates were not just bad, they were disasters. Still, the dates added nothing to the overall story, and just felt out of place.

My only other complaint about this book is the complete lack of realism. The characters' flaws are so exaggerated, they come off like caricatures. But you know what... I really didn't care. This novel is not to be read for realism, nor to learn an important life lesson. It's there to be enjoyed.

Also by Sidney Sheldon:
Tell Me Your Dreams
The Naked Face
The Sky Is Falling

Recommended: Yes