Wow....what a book! - Rated 
Wow...what a book. I've only recently started reading Alice Hoffman books. I began with Practical Magic (loved it) and bought Seventh Heaven next. I'm so glad I did! Fantastic characters all richly and expertly woven together with love, lust, magic and death. Hoffman's ability to bring characters to life is second to none and when the book ends you will be wanting more. A highly recommended author.
An unpredictable world to become immersed in - Rated
I loved this book. Alice Hoffman has so much sympathy for her characters. If you like your books to be either socio-political novel or magic realism, this isn't for you, because this book is an exciting mix of both. Unpredictable world it is, with shifting point of view narration, you never know who the protagonist is, one minute its Norah, the bewitching divorcee, the next minute its the dog! But characters are lovingly drawn and you just can't help connecting with this novel.
Spellbinding - Rated
I was drawn to the works of Alice Hoffman after having read 'Blue Diary'and I actively looked for more of her books. The story outline on the inside cover of 'Seventh Heaven' appealed to me, I followed my insticts and was definitely not disappointed! Alice Hoffman writes in a style that has a 'smalltown', claustrophobic feel to it and yet, once you begin to read one of her books, you can't put it down! Seventh Heaven tells the story of a small community who all moved in together when the houses were built. Each house is identical and, at first, even the inhabitants couldn't tell their own house from the others. The neighbours call on each other for recipes, practical help and small talk, their children play together and yet no-one really knows each other, as each household shields itself with a veneer of perfection. On the surface, the neighbourhood is perfect - perfect houses, perfect gardens, perfect people - until the cracks appear, following the death of one of the neighbours and the subsequent arrival of a divorced mother and her two children. The author evokes the atmosphere of the late fifties/early sixties, emphasising the straight-laced, hypocritical, stuffy attitudes of the neighbours, then slowly revealing the hidden secrets and the imperfections behind closed doors. The story has a sort of magical feel to it and Alice Hoffman makes it so very believeable. I finished the story with a quiet feeling of satisfaction. A superb book.
Captivating - Rated
This book gives a real insight to the 50's and the cultural change of the 60's. Hoffman's prose is diverse and wry, she gently evokes the complex feelings towards various charcters. Her vivid insightful descriptions of small town american life is excellent and some of the charcter development is truly wonderfdul. I urge people to read Hoffman's work one found she will be a writer you will never forget.
Beautifully written, captivating and page-turning - Rated
Alice Hoffman's novel is a delicate spider's web of characters, subplots, thoughts and emotions revolving around the not-so-normal lives of people in a small American town. Her use of description is stunning, making the reader savour every word, and her characters spring to life from the page. I heartily recommend this book and all others by this author.
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