The Cliffs: Reese’s Book Club: A novel
REESE’S BOOK CLUB PICK A novel of family, secrets, ghosts, and homecoming set on the seaside cliffs of Maine, by the New York Times best-selling author of Friends and Strangers
“A stunning achievement, and J. Courtney Sullivan’s best book yet. Sullivan weaves a narrative that’s fascinating and thought-provoking. I literally could not put this book down.”
—Ann Napolitano, New York Times best-selling author of Hello Beautiful
On a secluded bluff overlooking the ocean sits a Victorian house, lavender with gingerbread trim, a home that contains a century’s worth of secrets. By the time Jane Flanagan discovers the house as a teenager, it has long been abandoned. The place is an irresistible mystery to Jane. There are still clothes in the closets, marbles rolling across the floors, and dishes in the cupboards, even though no one has set foot there in decades. The house becomes a hideaway for Jane, a place to escape her volatile mother.
Twenty years later, now a Harvard archivist, she returns home to Maine following a terrible mistake that threatens both her career and her marriage. Jane is horrified to find the Victorian is now barely recognizable. The new owner, Genevieve, a summer person from Beacon Hill, has gutted it, transforming the house into a glossy white monstrosity straight out of a shelter magazine. Strangely, Genevieve is convinced that the house is haunted—perhaps the product of something troubling Genevieve herself has done. She hires Jane to research the history of the place and the women who lived there. The story Jane uncovers—of lovers lost at sea, romantic longing, shattering loss, artistic awakening, historical artifacts stolen and sold, and the long shadow of colonialism—is even older than Maine itself.
Enthralling, richly imagined, filled with psychic mediums and charlatans, spirits and past lives, mothers, marriage, and the legacy of alcoholism, this is a deeply moving novel about the land we inhabit, the women who came before us, and the ways in which none of us will ever truly leave this earth.
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Amazon Customer –
A good look at what’s important in life.
A great read.
William de Rham –
A house with a complicated history.
For the most part, I enjoyed “The Cliffs,” a woman-centric novel set on the rocky Maine coast that includes more than a few haunting, but not scary, ghost stories.Summaries of the plot can be found in the blurb and other customer reviews so I won’t duplicate their work here. Suffice it to say that the novel centers on an old Victorian house overlooking the ocean and the women who have lived there going as far back as pre-colonial times.The story is interesting, if somewhat disjointed at times and meandering and digressive at others. There were times when I felt lost, thinking: Wait, where are we now? What does this new character or place or event have to do with what I’ve read before?Nevertheless, I found the characters often compelling, especially main character Jane who has returned to the town she grew up in at a crisis point in her life and now must deal with the alcoholism that has run through her family for generations.I’ve never before read any of J. Courtney Sullivan’s work. I found her prose and dialogue well-executed, her settings well-described, and her research extensive. While it’s clear the story is fictional, Ms. Sullivan’s knowledge and command of the subjects she tackled seemed first-rate.Ms. Sullivan writes from a decidedly progressive point of view. Topics covered by this novel include feminism, alcoholism and recovery, mother-daughter-sister relationships, Native American history and culture, colonial history and genocide, cultural appropriation, spiritualism, mediums, reincarnation, past-lives regression, same-sex relationships, and life in a small town, to name just a few.While this novel is not one I would normally gravitate towards, I enjoyed most of it and thought I learned something.
Joli –
Too many topics
Alcoholism, Native American exploitation, psychic abilities. Each of these topics is delved into deeply, which was distracting. I liked the concept of the story, but kept being dragged off track for a “lecture” on one of these themes. I love reading a novel that hints at concepts that inspire me to do further research. This book tried to do the research for me. Historical fiction is often blown away by an actual biography – I would have liked to smoothly read the book, then decide what biographies I would like to read for more on the subjects. I thought the dismissal of Genevieve from Jane’s life was very hypocritical – Jane has not earned a good behavior star.So the book started out good, but I was bogged down by segues into topics taken too deep. I don’t think I’d recommend it. But I may recommend a non-fiction book on one of the important topics brought up.
Sandra Fielder –
Indigenous History
Jane goes home to a small town in Maine. Her mother has recently passed away. She has been given the job of cleaning out the family home so it can be sold. She recently went to a work party and she drank entirely too much. She blacked out, but she does remember kissing a younger male coworker. She has been placed on administrative leave. Her husband is just sick to find out about her indiscretions.Jane is bored and decides to do some research on her hometown. Originally the town had been home to an indigenous people. Jane is an historian. She is fascinated with the history of the tribe.Jane is also fascinated by the possibility that there are ghosts that live in some of the older homes. She and her friend go to a medium convention. They hear about past life regression and are intrigued by the stories.This is an interesting book with fun and fascinating stories.
Roberta Austin –
Is The Past Really Past?
Jane Flanagan discovers an old Victorian house that is on a bluff. It has been abandoned for a long time. There are still remnants of the past such as clothes and dishes. She becomes fascinated with this house and uses it to hide from her difficult mother.Twenty years later Jane is an archivist for Harvard. She is on suspension from her job and separated from her husband after an alcohol fueled episode made her persona non grata. When Jane returns home she is employed by Genevieve, the new owner of the house. Genevieve has totally transformed the place so it’s almost unrecognizable. Genevieve is convinced the house is haunted and she wants Jane to research the house and the women who lived there over time. Jane uncovers a long history that goes back several hundred years.The novel meanders at times. To me it was well worth the effort to become enmeshed in the background that included spirits, mediums, past lives and Native American history. In recent years I’ve become fascinated with learning more about Indigenous people, even though it makes me extremely sad.The author captured Jane’s legacy of alcoholism and how the past so often affects the present and future. The women who came before from the house are fascinating in their own ways. Reese’s Book Club has picked out a thought provoking read with THE CLIFFS. I recommend this book to all who enjoy a compelling tale.
Lisa Laz –
Very Well Written
This is a story which dives into so many issues and ideas…alcoholism, American Indian history, exposure of American history beyond the textbooks, friendships, love, family all woven into a story that unfolds brilliantly.
Joanne Petersen –
Disappointed in the book
I was disappointed with this book. I was expecting more about the Indingenous side, shaker side; and current side relating to each other in the end. Why did Clementine predict a pregnancy which never occurred? Way too much about why Jane was an alcoholic. It wasn’t necessary to spend so much time on that frankly I skipped over a lot of that part. Why did sister Eliza only appear once to the child? Why was Marilyn Martin son already on her deathbed before Jane tells her about the premonition? Too disjointed.
Aisling –
This is a lovely read. I have recommended to all my reader friends. Tells the story of different women at different times in history and the current day. Some good twists too. I read 2 or 3 books a week but this has been my favourite in ages.
Dawn Nickel –
Wow! I loved, loved, loved ‘The Cliffs.’ As a woman with three degrees related to women’s studies, and someone who has been sober for 37 years and also works closely with Indigenous partners on reconciliation – I just related to every page of the book. I’m excited to have discovered this amazing author and am looking forward to reading everything she wrote. Oh – and I also love and have visited Maine so that makes this book even more special.
Emilie –
I loved everything about this book. The historical details, the intrigue, the writing. It is definitely my favorite read this year!
Maria Cristina –
Sorry didn’t like it,it was really hard for me reading the book. The characters were opaque. Just discipline made me finish it
Tracy Ferreira –
This was a confusing book with pointless side stories. I couldn’t get into it easily. Wasn’t sure if I was reading fiction or non fiction