What do readers think of Letters from Skye by Jessica Brockmole? Write your own review.

I enjoyed about 3/4s of this book, but had to struggle to get to the end. However, I did want to know how it turned out, so it couldn't have been too bad. The premise initially intrigued me, but it went on too long, and (though it may have been intended) the 'secret' of the protagonist's father did not last very long.

I took this book away with me for a weekend by the water and it was perfect to read while laying in the sun. The book is entirely made up of correspondence between different family members and different sets of lovers during the two time periods surrounding World War I and World War II. For me, the fact that the whole story was made up of letters allowed me to be immediately invested in the story because I felt that I was in the character's heads and understanding their motivations. I really enjoyed the love story that developed between two of the characters, focusing as it did on the question of what the "right" choice is when it comes to love: to follow your heart, even if it means hurting someone, or if it is to remain faithful to those who you have made commitments to. As a fan of the post office and someone who fervently hopes that people will recognize the importance of letters, I hope that this book may inspire some readers to write love letters of their own. Another positive about this book was the very atmospheric descriptions of Isle of Skye in Scotland. The language the author used to describe the peat bogs, rolling hills and reliance on the sea was really wonderful.The only portions of the book that I was a bit disappointed with were some of the historical aspects. At times it seemed that certain historical facts or situations were raised when it was convenient to move the love story forward, but were not adequately explored to ground the story in a sense of reality.

I choose to review this book because I like historical novels. The concept that the novel is based on is interesting, yet I never felt the characters were fully developed. I also wanted to know more about living in wartime and the similarities between the mother and daughter. I would have liked more descriptions of the war stresses. The positive aspect of this novel is the focus on the lost art of letter writing. It does show how people would take the time to think about what they are communicating, and create a story for the reader. I would recommend this book as an enjoyable read, although it lacked the depth that I crave.

I recommend this book to anyone who loves historical romance and wants a light read. It is too heavy on the romance for my taste, but it is a quick easy read. The story revolves around Elspeth and Davey's (I literally cringed at reading this grown man's name) developing relationship. While I knew the story would be based upon letters, I didn't expect the whole of it to be letters. The storyline seems too familiar and the characters aren't all that interesting, in my opinion.

Letters from Skye by Jessica Brockmole is an epistolary generational novel, set in both WWI and WWII. We learn about the lives of Elspeth Dunn and her long distant suitor, Davey – and later, Elspeth's daughter, Margaret, through their letters, as Margaret tries to uncover the secrets of her mother's past. I never felt any attachment to any of the characters. The letters seemed to be far too modern in language to be written at the earlier part of the 20th century. As chapters shifted between time periods – there was no distinct "voice" to differentiate between the letters – if it weren't for the chapter headings, one wouldn't know if it was Elspeth or Margaret "writing" the prose. The plot was thin, and the ending contrived and predictable.

This book is sure to be a hit with book clubs - so many ethical issues to debate. I found myself changing my mind more than once about certain characters during the course of the book. The letter exchange format is something I find enjoyable, and also enjoyed the author's many plot twists (a bit too many, perhaps, at the end of the book). I wish we could use half stars in our reviews - I'd up my review to 3 1/2 stars. Unfortunately, I found the characters, themselves, not at all interesting, and the language the author used also lacked any poetry - just straight reportage, in my opinion. I did find the book rather enjoyable, nonetheless, as I'm sure many others will also.