I have read a few Barbara Delinsky- and in the few I have read, admire her for taking on wounded women. Let me amend that and say: wounded but strong women. In this book, Rachel is in a coma. Her best friend Katherine is a breast cancer survivor. In other books, one was in a wheelchair from a snow mobile accident. Another had a near paralyzing stutter. A third escaped an abusive relationship to start anew. The men are realistic, too. It's refreshing to read "romance" or "women's fiction" where the heroine isn't 19 and perfectly formed, with a "fiery heart no man could tame" and the hero is not bronzed and sculpted- with searing kisses and penetrating blue eyes.The real star of this book though, was Big Sur- an absolutely breathtakingly beautiful area of the country. There were several other things I especially liked about the book. Samantha, Rachel and Jack's 15 year old daughter carries with her a feeling of guilt, because of an argument she and her mom had just before her mother left and was in the accident. She keeps thinking that if she hadn't fought with her mom, she would have left on time and not been where she was when the accident occurred. I can't tell you how many times I've had a similar thought when driving down the road and seeing an accident or hearing about one later. (Except in my case it's "thank goodness I went back to do such and such! If I hadn't, I'd have been in that intersection when the semi lost control" or whatever.)Another thing I loved was the description of Jack and the Girls at Samantha's special place, hiding in the redwoods to take shelter from a rainstorm. I liked the way the author used Guinevere, Duncan's Faith, and the pains of adolescence to help the characters grow. Finally, the use of art and spirit was a good metaphor. Rachel's art blossomed in Big Sur where her spirit healed and grew. Jack's art, and his architecture grew stale as he moved from what originally drew him to the field and away from the expression his soul craved. The collaboration in their art, and how Jack could learn of Rachel's thoughts through her drawings, when she was comatose...And the subject of Rachel's paintings...I don't blame her for wanting to paint sea otters!
Rachel Keats lives in Big Sur which is far from San Francisco she has built a life for her and her daughters, Samantha and Hope. She spends her time painting and being involved with a 7 member female book club group. On her way to her group she is in a horrible car accident and is rushed to the hospital, her Katherine calls Jack McGill Rachel's ex husband and father to her children. He drops everything and runs back to Rachel. He spends the next 16 days doting on his ex-wife, getting to know her friends the voice of Rachel who's lays coma ridden with a broken leg, and badly bruised up. As he learns about how Rachel felt, he realizes he hasn't stopped caring about her. This book was the best so far, really showed that sometimes people try to get up the corporate ladder and forget about the smaller things, family, friends. While he travelled a long road to get back to Rachel it was definitely worth it.
What do You think about Coast Road (2003)?
Haven't read a Delinsky book yet that I didn't enjoy."Jack McGill chose his architectural career over his family, and returned home from yet another business trip to find that his wife, Rachel, had left him. But now, six years later, a car accident has left Rachel clinging to life, and she and their two daughters desperately need him. Putting his work on hold for the first time in his life, Jack decides to sit by his ex-wife's bedside. As he meets Rachel's many new friends, and is trying to cope with two teenage daughters and their problems, he learns about a woman he never really knew, her expressive art, and the secret that made her leave. Much to his astonishment, Jack begins to see Rachel, his daughters, and the story of his marriage with new eyes."
—Louise
Rachel and her ex-husband Jack live far away from each other; the only thing that still links them is their 2 daughters.However, that all changes when Rachel gets in a car crash and goes into a coma.Jack is forced to go care for his daughters and keep an eye on his ex-wife in the hospital.He leaves behind his girlfriend and his booming business. Will he want to go back to his new life or will he find that he was never meant to leave his wife & 2 kids? Will Rachel ever come out of her coma?This is a good book and I really like this author.
—Jen
Michael and Rachel have been divorced seven years when she is in an automobile accident which leaves her in a coma. Although a neighbor would have taken care of their daughters, Michael comes to live with the girls, and visits Rachel in the hospital every day. As he meets Rachel’s friends as they come to visit her-- all members of her book club -- he learns much about her and has plenty of time to reflect upon their marriage and the causes of their divorce. There are several subplots that are interesting. Rachel is an artist and had been preparing for an important art show; Michael grows more and more dissatisfied with his job as he tries to carry it on long distance; the girls have school activities which involve Michael’s permission and role as a volunteer parent. As I got closer to the end of the book, I could see only two trite possibilities as endings; she would wake up and reject him, or wake up and remarry him. I won’t give away the ending, but it is satisfying and right for the bookP. S. October 2012.It was just pointed out to me that Michael's name was really Jack. Don't know why I made that mistake.
—Linda
