Review by Kibetious -- The Reel Sisters

Postby Kibet Hillary »

[Following is a volunteer review of "The Reel Sisters" by Michelle Cummings.]
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4 out of 4 stars
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Rose, Sophie, Amanda, and Veronica are meeting at Rose’s cabin up in the mountains where they normally stay during their private retreats and fly fishing expeditions. Rose and her husband built the cabin in their first year of marriage. The four women are excited since they are meeting after a long time. Even though their trips typically entail catching fish, they are mainly centered on building their friendships. The four longtime friends rescue a naked girl who was being swept downstream one day as they were resting after fishing. The girl’s name is Melody. She was capturing photos of herself on a rock in the river when she lost balance and was instantly swept by the fast-flowing waters.

Why was Melody alone? What is the use of the explicit photographs she was taking? What does her rescue mean to the four friends? Will she immensely enjoy fly fishing as they do and become part of them? You have to read this book to obtain satisfactory answers to these and many more questions.

[I]The Reel Sisters[/I] was authored by Michelle Cummings. It is a novel about a group of women fly fishers and falls in the genre of other fiction. The book is 429 pages long. The story is narrated from the points of view of the different characters. The shifts in the points of view allow the reader to see things from the eyes of all the five women. This technique also helped to generate and maintain the breathless suspense that was prevalent throughout the book. Consequently, one will keep turning one page after another to know what happens next.

Michelle Cummings has written an extremely remarkable and informative book on fly fishing as a sport. There are ten short sections relaying varying information on fly fishing that are evenly spread in the book. These sections also in a subtle way introduce readers to the primary contents of the succeeding chapters. I found them very interesting as I was learning while at the same time devouring an enthralling story. All fly fishers will be equally thrilled.

There are many things that I liked in the book. I have to confess that having read many reviews of this book; I approached it with a preconceived mind. The various twists and turns made me want to read the story without stopping. The wide-ranging conversations were lively as well. Every so often they provoked hearty laughter while others were mind-boggling. It was great learning about the history of the first woman who wrote a book on fly fishing at a time when writing was mainly reserved for men. I was also startled to learn that fly fishing involves a lot of science and stands in need of a lot of sacrifice and patience. The characters were also endearing and well-developed. There is nothing I did not like about the book.

The language employed in the book was straightforward. Editing was professionally done. The themes handled included friendship, family, self-discovery, loss, romance, and adventure. All of them were carefully interwoven to produce this easy to read and unforgettable story. Therefore, I rate this book [B]4 out of 4 stars[/B]. I heartily recommend it to all fly fishers, especially women. It will also appeal to ardent fans of adventure stories.

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The Reel Sisters
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