The New York Times bestselling author of the Tradd Street novels delivers a tale that spans two generations of sisters and secrets, set in the stunning South Carolina Lowcountry. Eleanor Murray will always remember her childhood on Edisto Island, where her late father, a local shrimper, shared her passion for music. Now her memories of him are all that tempers the guilt she feels over the … she feels over the accident that put her sister in a wheelchair—and the feelings she harbors for her sister’s husband.
To help support her sister, Eleanor works at a Charleston investment firm during the day, but she escapes into her music, playing piano at a neighborhood bar. Until the night her enigmatic boss walks in and offers her a part-time job caring for his elderly aunt, Helena, back on Edisto. For Eleanor, it’s a chance to revisit the place where she was her happiest—and to share her love of music with grieving Helena, whose sister recently died under mysterious circumstances.
An island lush with sweetgrass and salt marshes, Edisto has been a peaceful refuge for Helena, who escaped with her sister from war-torn Hungary in 1944. The sisters were well-known on the island, where they volunteered in their church and community. But now Eleanor will finally learn the truth about their past: secrets that will help heal her relationship with her own sister—and set Eleanor free….
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A beautifully written novel about love and forgiveness. Karen White delivers a story that is unforgettable, she gives the reader everything they want.
Ms. White is a master storyteller who managed to engage this reader throughout. Eleanor, (Ellie) the young woman who’d gotten so far off track with her life, and Helena, the octogenarian, both with bitter secrets and haunted by something in their past, manage to develop an unlikely friendship. The slow build romance between Finn and Eleanor was lovely and they both deserved to find someone they could trust. Fragile Gigi lit up the room with her survivor’s optimism. The theme of the special bond between sisters, Helena with Magda and Bernadette, and especially between Ellie and Eve, was uplifting, and I was glad when Eve spoke truth to Ellie so she could finally move on from her holding pattern. I’m never disappointed when I read a South Carolina set story from Karen White.
Love Karen White’s books
A great author. None of her books disappoint!
The Time Between by Karen White with Jennifer Ikeda (narrator), Barbara Rosenblat (narrator), Angela Goethals (narrator).
I loved this beautiful telling of two generational sets of sisters one whose heyday was before WWII and one who missed their heyday in the present day. Guilt, secrets, love, and betrayal are all themes of this story, though through it all love is the over-riding emotion. A powerful read.
This lovely novel has everything: lyrical prose, passionate descriptions, a windswept Edisto, South Carolina setting, a crotchety, Hungarian matriarchal figure named Helena with a mysterious past, whose prosperous, white-collar nephew hires narrator Elenor Murray to tend to her demands, in a seaside house filled with priceless portraits of unknown origins. And music? The Time Between is filled with classical music, running through the story thematically from the hands of Elenor, who, racked with guilt over her involvement in her sister’s life-altering accident and her father’s death, has foresworn her love of the piano. And yet, the reader learns, Helena’s past in war-torn Hungary incrementally unfolds as the two women learn to trust each other. In Hungary, we learn, Helena’s life was centered upon music, as Helena was one of three sisters regionally famous as a trio before the war tossed their life asunder. It is the piano that draws Elenor and Helena slowly together, and Helena’s nephew, Finn, who ultimately links the two women by loving both. I loved everything about this steady-paced, intriguing story. It is replete with love, history, the complications of family, redemption and growth. I received this novel as a surprise for joining the infamous book club, the Pulpwood Queens, by its book-loving headmistress, Kathy Murphy. Reading this novel has made a Karen White fan of me!
I love all of all of Karen White’s books!
Will read more by this author!
Loved this book so much I chose it for my book club presentation
Even though I have read a few books after I read this one, I find myself thinking about The Time Between. The story stays with you. I definitely recommend it!
I loved this book! I am always amazed at what the human heart and soul can survive and Helena’s tale is yet another example. The same can be said for all of the major characters in this story. Finn has his own struggles, as does Gigi, as does Eleanor.
Another fantastic book by Karen White.
Loved this book about the bonds between sisters. Evie and Ellie know each other so well, one soul shared between the two…..and the ability to hurt each other deeply.
There are two other sisters, Bernadett and Helena…also close, yet keeping secrets from each other that affect their whole lives, even after Bernadett passes away
We all have choices to make, repercussions, anger, love, bitterness, guilt and forgiveness. And we need to recognize that even in the worst events, treasure moments of happiness, no matter how brief.
You meet Finn and Gigi and relive Helena’s past in Hungary during the war. The past choices still affecting people now. And the realization that if a door slams shut, choices must be made on how you deal with that shut door….do you move on, deny it, let bitterness takeover….
I was so involved in their lives, I teared up, i had to put the book down, and at times I just didn’t want to know what really happened….but I finished and this is a book I will reread again.
History, past and present secrets, forgiveness …one heck of a great read. Reminds me of the great Rosamund Pilcher and The Shell Seekers as a book about family and choices.
You can’t go wrong reading a book by Karen White. If you haven’t read Pieces of the Heart, you should definitely put it on your reading list.
I was hooked from the very first sentence “the first time I died was the summer….”. I wanted to read more. I am still reading the book and cannot put it down. This is the first book I have read by Karen White but as soon as I finish The Time Between I will be looking for another book by this author. If you love to read about romance, funny, sad, cute and characters you will feel you know personally, you will want to read this book
Love love Karen White books/she does weave a good tale~
l Love this author and her stories of the Low country. Visiting there is now on my bucket list.
I love anything that Karen White writes. All of her books are amazing and I am a true follower of hers. This one is excellent as all the rest. I usually can’t wait until the new ones come out and read them in a day or two. Love the lowcountry and her characters.
A very well written novel, intertwining two stories seamlessly. Interesting well developed characters, all making for an interesting and entertaining read.
The weaving of the sister relationships is expertly written. A story about family, forgiving, loving, sadness and moving on to live your best life.