Lea is lost and searching for home and safety. She doesn’t know she’ll have to lose everything to find them. Her fiancé, Dr. Matthew Howell, is searching for the lost Lea. When his search seems fruitless, it threatens to derail his ability as a Chicago surgeon. Dr. Eric Lloyd and his mother, Margaret, try to pick up the pieces of Lea’s life and help her find herself. They give her all the love … the love and security she’s always wanted. But they fail to help her make sense of her life when Matthew discovers her whereabouts.
When Lea and Matthew are reunited, both are shocked by what they find out about each other. But the couple is now a part of a bigger picture, and their actions affect the lives of those around them.
Matthew and Lea, the Lloyds, Lea’s parents and a psychiatrist, Dr. Paul Glass, are all thrown together in the mansion where Lea grew up. As it reveals its dark secrets, each person is also forced to face their unwanted past. But once those unwanted memories are resurrected, no one can escape the destruction that follows. No one, especially the practical and cautious Matthew, is prepared for the possibility that destruction can also lead one back to his forgotten dreams.
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‘Traces of Home’ by S.S. Bazinet is a character driven plot, focusing on the fears and insecurities that most people have to struggle with. Here we have Lea, Eric and Matthew who have to deal with their demons, which continue to haunt them till they slash the walls that they had built around themselves. The book begins well but soon degenerates into inconsequential chitchat till they get together at Lea’s childhood home to address the real issues. It’s not that easy, as each character’s perspective is different and the author steps in to describe every detail, thereby complicating it further.
The pace of the story is painfully slow, boring at places, too dramatic and repetitive. This book needs incisive editing as real and meaningful messages are muddled in unnecessary descriptions. Bazinet’s characters know that love and relationships are as essential as living but they take time to understand that they could never be perfect. Imperfections have to be accepted; escapism has never solved any problems and self-discovery is a journey that could be initiated if we delve deeper into the past that has been buried or denied.
Eric’s story makes me ponder how easily do children pass judgment on their parents, without understanding the circumstances they lived in and the choices they had to make in that era. This book makes a good study into relationships, which need to be nurtured without any hypocrisy.
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This is one story I didn’t rush through, I wanted to savor every bit of it. The beautiful writing smoothly guides the reader into the minds of the characters to discover their secrets. I’ve always been intrigued by what makes a person who they are, whether they are angry, lashing out at every little thing, or calm, sweet, and kind…what happened in their life to make them so? Well, this was the perfect book for me, because it delved deep into characters’ psyches to examine their pasts and motivations to give a full picture of who they are.
And who they are may not be who they want to be. So how do they change the parts of themselves they wish to dispose of? Sometimes the answer is thrust upon us, as with Lea, who loses the memory of who she was. Fighting her way back to her old life or even who she was, is a journey unto itself. And once she finds it, does she even still want that life?
Secrets haunt the past of each of the characters, which makes me wonder, are we all living with something so monumental that it has affected us to the core? I think the answer is a resounding, yes! This is one of the reasons this story resonates, because we see ourselves in so many of its aspects.
I highly recommend this 5-star novel for its beauty and depth in examining human emotions and its excellent writing that flows magnificently.
Lea Ferguson is a troubled soul who increasingly is lashing out at those who are close to her. Memories of a cruel past and abuse are pushing her to the brink of sanity. She decides to leave her family and fiancé, surgeon Matthew Howell, in a desperate attempt to start anew, believing their lives would be better off without her. Fate deals an unexpected hand and Lea’s plans are changed forever when she is hit by a car, causing her to lose all memories of her past life. Dr. Eric Lloyd is horror struck when he accidently runs over Lea, and is determined to see to her recovery when no one contacts the hospital about her. He and his kind hearted mother take Lea into their home, showing her a peaceful way of living that is free of the dark visions that once consumed her.
As the seasons pass–Lea thrives with Eric and his mother. Her fiancé Matthew struggles with her disappearance, and is shocked to learn a private investigator has finally located her. Their initial reunion does not go as expected, and leaves everyone upset and dejected. Lea decides to return home and confront her family and fiancé to see why they are so disturbed with her, and also to learn the details of her past life, which has obviously caused those who love her much pain and anguish.
Psychiatrist Paul Glass is called in to the Ferguson home, with Lea’s parents, fiancé Matthew, and Eric and his mother in attendance in a bid to get the past exposed so that Lea can heal once and for all. When the emotions start flowing, everyone in attendance is impacted as their own secrets and fears are also revealed. Will this group ever be able to heal the wounds of the past and move on with their lives and loves? Author Bazinet takes us on a psychological journey that both chills and moves you as the tangled webs of emotions and life experiences are unraveled. A thought provoking, suspense filled read, highly recommended!
Lea is running from her past, leaving the man she loves, because she’s afraid of hurting him. Unable to speak of the terrible things that happened to her as a child Lea knows she is a horrid person. Isn’t that what she’s been told countless times! She was wicked… too wicked to find happiness. Through the driving rain she fleas the torment that her past creates in her mind, right into the oncoming car of Dr Eric Lloyd.
When Lea wakes in the hospital her past has gone, and so has her memories. Known only as Jane, and with the help of the Lloyds, Lea finds the strength to overcome her fears, to find love and happiness.
But not everything with the kind and thoughtful Lloyds is as they seem. Margaret Lloyd in hope of protecting her son holds a secret which she hopes her husband has taken to his grave. However, some secrets are too big not to be spoken.
Eric has his own nightmares which torture him and prevents him from moving forward with his life.
This is an incredible story of strength, secrets, lies, family, love and friendship. S.S. Bazinet does a fabulous job of entwining lives into a truly remarkable story. This book is more than a story of love, it is a story of belief in yourself and in others. And the best part is this is book one, so for those of us that yearn for more, we can be satisfied that S.S. Bazinet will provide us with the ongoing saga of these remarkable characters.