4 out of 4 stars
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The Reel Sisters by Michelle Cummings is a fun book about friendships and as the title suggests fishing. Fly fishing to be exact. Don’t let the title scare you away from this one.
The story is about five women from different walks of life that have become the best of friends. Four of them have been friends for a while when circumstances bring the fifth member into the group. Rose is the matriarch of the group. She is a bit older than the rest and a widower. Sophie becomes friends with Rose when they both are shopping for fly gear in the same shop. They instantly connect and become best of friends even though Rose is old enough to be her mother. Veronica is the next one to join the group. Sophie sat next to Veronica on an airplane. They connect, and Sophie convinces her to give fly fishing a try. Veronica takes her up on the offer and falls in love with the sport and became quick best friends with Sophie and Rose. Amanda makes four as she and her family meet Sophie while visiting Sophie’s pumpkin patch. Sophie convinces Amanda to join the group for a weekend of fishing and she is soon one of the girls and is also now hooked on fly fishing too. The last member, Melody, just happens to meet the others most unconventionally when she is “fished out” of the river by the others. Melody is the youngest and most colorful of the group.
The story is also about overcoming fears and being open to new experiences. Fear can take on many shapes, like the fear of the unknown, or the fear of getting hurt, or maybe even the fear that we aren’t good enough. Each of the friends have something they fear, and each were open to at least one new experience. They faced each of these as good friends should, together.
The author does a great job of character development. The story is written with each chapter being from one of the friend’s perspectives. You get to really know the characters and feel as though you are one of the group. It was easy to read and took me on an emotional journey. I laughed out loud in some places and cried A LOT at others. She also describes the scenes so well, you can almost see the ladies fishing in the river. I am not familiar with fly fishing but did read that the author has experience with the sport, so I am sure that information is accurate.
I really don’t have a negative thing to say about this book. I believe the one surprise near the end is sad and I was not a fan of that part, but I can understand how it works with the story. Along with the sad part of the story, the author describes how each of the ladies represent one of the five main components of the fly rod. I promise that will make sense when you read the book.
I rate the book 4 out of 4 stars. The book appears to have been professionally edited as I only found one error. I truly enjoyed this book and I recommend this to women of all ages. I feel that every reader will be able to identify with at least one of the characters or at least some of the stories of these characters.
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The Reel Sisters
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