Lighthearted without being too silly. A quick and fun read. ( )

A fun read. Simple story. Seven women ranging from twenties to seventies meet each week for dessert and a confession of one of the members. It?s about people mot judging you and caring about you. Kirkus: This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. Learn moreGot it!Kirkus logo SIGN IN Profile Picturekirkus nav logo Book Reviews News & Features Kirkus Prize Magazine Writers' Center More Profile Picture search THE CONFESSION CLUB bookshelfAll the bucolic pacifism of an episode of Prairie Home Companion without the seething undercurrents.READ REVIEW Like Counts 0 Share via Facebook Share via Twitter Share via Email PrintTHE CONFESSION CLUBby Elizabeth Berg RELEASE DATE: Nov. 19, 2019The denizens of Mason, Missouri, are at it again, dispensing just deserts with unearned optimism on the side.The premise for this book, a sequel to two other novels set in Mason (Night of Miracles, 2018; The Story of Arthur Truluv, 2017), is the Confession Club, a group of mostly middle-aged women who meet regularly at each other?s homes to exchange secrets over wine and treats. For the most part, though, the Confession Club operates independently and irrelevantly of the novel?s main concern�the ongoing sagas of the late Arthur Truluv?s surviving friends. Iris, baking teacher extraordinaire, is about to turn 50, and 20-something Maddy has just returned from New York City with her 7-year-old daughter, Nola, leaving her new husband behind. A major character is introduced: John, a 66-year-old, handsome, homeless Vietnam vet, has made his way from Chicago to Mason, taking up residence in an abandoned farmhouse. Berg does not delve deeply into either the details of John?s homeless existence or his Vietnam combat experience. However, the competence and resourcefulness John displays as a homeless person are strangely at odds with his PTSD. This contradiction might give readers pause, since PTSD (for which he refused counseling) led to John's wife?s departure, which resulted in his homelessness. Iris is immediately attracted to John, albeit leery of him¥and it?s unclear how leery she should be. The Confession Club seems to exist mostly to explore themes like infidelity, loneliness, independence, and longing, which are too generic to relate to the principal players? predicaments. As usual, Mason is a refuge unruffled by the country?s political turmoil, and conflict, if any, is mostly avoided before it can generate any excitement. Some readers may wish to return to Mason again and again, to relax with the literary equivalent of well-worn slippers, a glass of wine, and no wellness diets in sight. But readers seeking insight into modern American life, leavened with humor, might be better challenged by Richard Russo or Anne Tyler.All the bucolic pacifism of an episode of Prairie Home Companion without the seething undercurrents.

DNF ( )

I've read all three books in this series and enjoyed them all, but this one less than the other two. I enjoy Berg's writing and the setting, the characters, and all. However, it seems to jump around among too many people. The women in the club each confess to something, Iris has things going on, John is working things out, Mattie is trying to figure her life out, etc. It was pleasant and sweet. ( )

Elizabeth Berg never fails to write a book that makes you feel better about the world once you’ve finished it. I want to join The Confession Club. ( )