Book Review: The Good Daughter By Jane Porter

THE GOOD DAUGHTER
A Brennan Sisters Novel #2

By: Jane Porter

Published: February 5, 2013

****1/2

Love was given to all, except herself . . . Kit Brennan has always been the most grounded of her sisters. A Catholic school English teacher for seventeen years and a constant giver, her decisions have been sound—just not very satisfying. Her fortieth birthday is right around the corner, causing Kit to consider some wilder notions, like skipping right past the love and marriage to raising a child all by herself . . . A girls’ weekend away is just the reprieve Kit needs from school, Mr. Wrongs, and life-changing decisions. It’s there that she meets a man who’s dangerous; a man who challenges who she thought she was, or rather should be. Kit wants to indulge herself this once, but with one of her students in crisis and the weight of her family’s burdens weighing heavy on her heart, Kit isn’t sure if now is the time to let her own desires take flight .

I read this book immediately following the first in the Brennan Sisters series, THE GOOD WOMAN.  You can see my review HERE.  After reading, THE GOOD WOMAN, I was eager to continue on with the lives of the Brennan sisters and see if some of my questions from the end of the previous novel were going to be answered.  Happily they were, but now I have even more questions after finishing this novel.  Unfortunately, I will have to wait until September to read the next book about Brennan sister, Sarah, in THE GOOD WIFE.  

I truly enjoyed getting to know Kit better in this story.   She is incredibly likable and you instantly are rooting for her and continue to want to see only good things happen to her all the way through.  Kit doesn't always have it easy and is constantly wrestling with her emotional ties to her faith and her family and her desires for a husband and family.  I found her to be quite lovely and sincerely wanted her to come out a winner. 

I liked the addition of a new character, Kit's student, Delilah.  Delilah has major problems going on and I wonder if one day there will be a story featuring her.  She definitely has a story to tell.

I think I actually liked this story a little better than THE GOOD WOMAN, but that could just be because I am more invested in their stories after reading the first one.  Readers are also treated to the first chapter of THE GOOD WIFE, which fills you in right from the ending of THE GOOD DAUGHTER and answers some of the initial looming questions.  

As a former Domestic Violence counselor, I would like to praise the author for her portrayals of both the victim and the abuser in this story.  She was really able to get at the heart of how a victim thinks, especially after years of abuse, and how her children no longer are the priority.  The focus, unfortunately, shifts to keeping the husband happy rather than what the child needs.  I saw this happen so many times in my work and it really can open your eyes to the ripple effects of domestic violence.  In this case, the story really showed us how it affected the child, her school, and her neighbors.  Abusers are sneaky and maybe even someone who reads this book will say, "Hey, this sounds like my life" and get help.  

This would be another excellent book club choice as there are many topics to discuss: physical and sexual abuse, cancer, family, faith, and adoption.  Even though this could be a stand alone book, read THE GOOD WOMAN first so you can be sure to know all the sisters in this wonderful Brennan family.

photo courtesy of www.janeporter.com

I think Kit Brennan (in my mind) looks just like Jane Porter.  I wonder if  Porter created the character to look like her? 

Jane Porter is an award-winning novelist with over 5 million books in print.  She grew up in central California, graduated from UCLA and holds an MA in writing from the University of San Francisco.  Porter writes full time and lives in southern California with her family.  Visit her website at www.janeporter.com.

Thanks to Penguin Group to sending me a copy of this book to review.  I was not compensated in any other way for this review.  This review is my honest opinion.