WISH COME TRUE by Eileen Goudge
Eileen Goudge is one of the better writers on the scene today. She has proven this with novels such as GARDEN OF LIES, ONE LAST DANCE and the "Carson Springs" series of books. Her latest novel WISH COME TRUE is the last in the "Carson Springs" trilogy.
In this latest story Goudge tells the story of Anna Vincenzi. She is the sister of famed film star Monica Vincent. These two ladies have been minor characters in the other "Carson Springs" stories but in this one they come to the forefront.
Monica is paralyzed from the waist down as a result of a boating accident, so Anna works for her as an assistant of sorts. Anna hates her life for Monica is a tyrant. She metes out funds to Anna to keep her indebted, and even uses their mothers' age and illnesses as a sword over Anna's head. Anna yearns for the day when she can tell Monica that enough is enough.
Anna's life takes a harrowing turn when Monica is found dead at her estate and she is arrested and charged with the murder. Though her friends rally to her defense, Anna is terrified of what the outcome will be.
This is enough plot to fill several stories but in this book it is not enough. Goudge piles on side tales of other inhabitants of the town. Primarily she brings back the character of Finch. Finch was a prominent character in the last book and her story continues in this one. She is a teenage runaway who has settled into her life as the adopted daughter of Laura and Hector, but she still yearns for something more.
Diluting Anna's story to make room for Finch's is the main weakness of this book. It splits the reader's attention and minimizes the impact of either tale. Finch should be either the side character or the main character, but if she is the lead then Anna's story should have been scaled back to make room for a fuller story about Finch. And vice versa.
Eileen Goudge is a genius at creating characters who seem totally real. And it is a pleasure to get glimpses of some of her earlier ones in this book. But you can't have a menagerie of players in a story without making it weak. Carson Springs is a town with a plethora of inviting and intriguing characters. If it takes several books to get their stories told, then so be it. With WISH COME TRUE we get too many stories at one time.
WISH COME TRUE is published by the Viking Press. It contains 365 pages and sells for $24.95.