THE BRUSHSTROKE LEGACY
by Lauraine Snelling
As the book opens we find Ragni’s life is a mess. She’s going to be late for work if she doesn’t hurry and when she gets there she finds that someone has changed an ad layout that her team had worked so hard to perfect. She’d saved the original so she could show her boss what had happened. But who changed the ad? Who was trying to sabotage her work? As she reflects on her life she can’t understand how it’s gotten to this point. Where was the joy she used to feel? Hopefully her week at a spa and two week vacation afterwards will give her the time she needs to get her life back in order. If only it were that simple.
She’s called to her parent’s home by her sister. There she’s dealing with the fact that her father has Alzheimer’s and will never be the father she once knew. Her mother is trying to take care of him on her own. And now her sister is acting strange. Ragni’s next hurdle is she’s going to have to give up her vacation to go see the condition of the old family homestead. Her mother can’t stand the thought of losing it, but could it be saved since at the last report it was falling apart? And, on top of it, she’s going to have to take her niece Erika with her. Her sister Susan wouldn’t explain why. So starts an adventure that will not only change Ragni, but her whole family.
If this plot line was the only one the author dealt with, the book would have been excellent. But she weaves another story into the book. The homestead belonged to Ragni’s great grandmother, Nilda and her husband. She had headed out west with her ailing daughter to take a position at a ranch. She hoped that the new environment would help her daughter feel better. What she hadn’t counted on was the gruff exterior of her new boss. Was this move the right one?
As Ragni works on the house and uncovers information about her great grandmother, the author switches back to Nilda and fills the reader in on her life.
The author did an excellent job of weaving both stories seamlessly together. She also shows what an important part faith has in the lives of the entire family.
I’ve read many Lauraine Snelling books before. Each one I read seems better than the last. I highly recommend this book for readers of all ages!
Reviewed by Lynn Worley
chbookshelf January 24, 2007
Title: THE BRUSHSTROKE LEGACY
Author: Lauraine Snelling
Publisher: WaterBrook Press
September 2006
ISBN: 1-57856-789-0
Genre: Inspirational/women’s fiction
Ragni Clauson’s life seems to be falling apart. Someone is sabotaging her projects at work. Her boyfriend, who’s afraid of committing to a relationship, has just announced his engagement—to someone else. Her father needs around the clock care. And now, her great-grandmother’s cabin is demanding attention—and Ragni’s mother insists that she make the trip. Ragni had planned a trip to the spa instead, but she agrees to her mother’s demands and heads to North Dakota, her rebellious teen-age niece, Erika, with her.
The cabin is in worse shape than Ragni remembers from her childhood. The “privy†is barely standing, and rats have taken residence in all the buildings. As Erika and Ragni clean, the begin to learn about their ancestor, and what they have in common. Will Ragni’s great-great grandmother’s past hold the secret to Ragni’s future?
THE BRUSHSTROKE LEGACY is an interesting mix of historical and contemporary fiction. Both Ragni’s story and her great-great grandmother’s stories are told, and both are well-written and engaging. Ragni is real, and her niece is a loveable, if impossible, teenager, trying to find herself. The faith message is not intrusive.
THE BRUSHSTROKE LEGACY is a winner for both fans of contemporary fiction and historical fiction. A family saga, it is sure to delight Snelling’s fans. Don’t miss THE BRUSHSTROKE LEGACY. $13.99. 386 pages.
Laura V. Hilton