One of my current favorite series to read is the Women’s Murder Club, by James Patterson. I love the grit, and trying to solve the murders, but more than that, I love the relationships. In fact, that’s what hooks me on any series, and why I still love writing the AMI Series. It’s the feeling that I know the people I’m reading or writing about that brings me back for more.
So, imagine my surprise when I thought I was checking out the next Women’s Murder Club book only to find out the book I brought home was by Richard North Patterson, titled Loss Of Innocence. It was too late in the day to return to the library, and I needed something to read so I tried it, and guess what? It was really good.
The majority of the book takes place in 1968, and that was what drew me in. I was a junior in high school and vividly remember Bobby Kennedy being shot, and the turmoil of the Vietnam war, and segregation. My dad had business in Atlanta the weekend of Martin Luther King, Jr’s funeral, and took me and a friend of mine with him. Just being there at the same time as so many distinguished people was daunting.
Whitney Dane, the book’s main character, had recently graduated from Wheaton College and was spending the summer on Martha’s Vineyard with her family, while she plans her upcoming wedding to Peter Brooks. Peter had lost his own father when he was young, and very quickly became the son that Whitney’s father never had.
Whitney’s family was considered well off, and still very much a traditional 1968 family, where the father went off to work and the mother raised the children. The problem was that Whitney was beginning to question those values, much to the displeasure of her family, and even somewhat, her fiancé.
Enter Benjamin Blaine; an ambitious college dropout who had been an aide for Bobby Kennedy. A friendship blooms between he and Whitney, despite her parent’s concern over his importance in her life.
What happens next? You need to read the book to find out! There are several plot changes in Loss Of Innocence, so don’t be jumping to conclusions just yet. I haven’t even told you about Whitney’s sister, or best friend Clarice, and they both have important parts in the storyline.
I hope that you’ll look into Loss Of Innocence, and that you’ll enjoy it as much as I did. I grew up in a family very much like the Danes, which made me feel Whitney’s angst all the more. There have been a lot of changes in society since 1968, some great and some not so good, but it was a special time in our nation’s history, and one I’ll never forget.
Until we read again…📚
Blessings,
Dana L.❤️
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