More than Words Can Say: A Novel

When Chelsea Enright%E2%80%99s beloved grandmother, Brooke, dies, she inherits her long-forgotten Adirondack cottage and a strange letter telling Chelsea not to sell the cabin until she%E2%80%99s visited and uncovered more instructions%E2%80%94hidden beneath the floorboards%E2%80%94from Brooke. Chelsea finds a set of diaries outlining Brooke%E2%80%99s experiences during WWII, when she stayed at the cottage while her husband Bill was in officer training. According to the late Gram%E2%80%99s missives, Brooke fell in love with next door neighbor Greg, leaving her horribly conflicted. Bill dies unexpectedly when his ship is sunk by a German U-boat, and Brooke finds solace with Greg. However, Brooke is overcome with guilt and abandons Greg and the cottage, vowing never to return to either. Soon after leaving, she realizes she is pregnant, but is never certain if the father of her child is Bill or Greg. While reading through her Gram%E2%80%99s epistolary love story, Chelsea grows closer to her own next door neighbor at the cottage, Brandon, in Barclay%E2%80%99s clumsy but well-meaning attempt to draw a parallel between the grandmother and granddaughter%E2%80%99s stories. Unimaginative prose, dull characters, and a telegraphed and unsurprising plot make this story better left beneath the floorboards. (Jan.)