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kdurham2's review against another edition
3.0
Check out the full review at Kritters Ramblings
Ellie Hogan has been living in America for quite some time and now she is a single mom of two boys and trying to raise them in the best way. One of her boys has been thinking about a life in LA as an actor and decides to up and leave boarding school and head there on his own. Ellie isn't happy with his decision and follows him there where they set up a home and help him follow this dream.
While the LA dream was the main storyline, I loved how the author weaved in other historical moments that were occurring at the same time and same place - the moments of Pearl Harbor and the effects from this time to the Japanese Americans. I also loved the inclusion of the workings of early Hollywood and the invent of the actor's agent and how the studios were formed and their early workings.
Ellie Hogan has been living in America for quite some time and now she is a single mom of two boys and trying to raise them in the best way. One of her boys has been thinking about a life in LA as an actor and decides to up and leave boarding school and head there on his own. Ellie isn't happy with his decision and follows him there where they set up a home and help him follow this dream.
While the LA dream was the main storyline, I loved how the author weaved in other historical moments that were occurring at the same time and same place - the moments of Pearl Harbor and the effects from this time to the Japanese Americans. I also loved the inclusion of the workings of early Hollywood and the invent of the actor's agent and how the studios were formed and their early workings.
eunicegm's review against another edition
3.0
It was a slow plot for me but I love how the characters grew with each chapter.
beckylej's review against another edition
3.0
It's 1942 and the now twice-widowed Ellie Hogan has carved out a nice niche for herself in New York. She's raising two adopted sons and is an up-and-comer in the art scene as well. When her eldest boy, Leo, decides to take off for Hollywood in pursuit of fame and glory, Ellie has no choice but to follow. Initially, her plan is to retrieve her son and return to New York, but when it looks as though stardom might be a reality for Leo, Ellie's plans change.
But Hollywood is a far cry from New York or even Ireland.
I was so anxious to get to get back to Ellie's story with Land of Dreams. It's been on my must have list since I turned the final page on City of Hope last year. Seriously, I even considered ordering it from the UK so that I wouldn't have to wait!
That said, I was surprised that the first third of the book is basically backstory to get us up to 1942. It glossed over Ellie's years with Charles and Leo all in order to catch us up on what happened after the last book and get us to the point where the story actually begins. It was disappointing and dragged the momentum of the first part of the book quite significantly.
This start was doubly disappointing because I'd found City of Hope particularly easy to get into even if you hadn't already read Ellis Island and I felt that Land of Dreams didn't have that same approachability. I've so adored each part of Ellie's story that it's become one of my favorite things to recommend to readers. But where readers could start easily with either City or the actual first installment, Ellis, I don't think Land would serve well at all as a diving off point.
Now that that's out of the way, I will tell you that I still greatly enjoyed returning to Ellie. She's a character readers can't help but fall in love with! Her struggles in this book are centered around her kids and her identity. She worries about stifling Leo's dreams but Los Angeles proves to be less than inspiring for her own art and that's something that scares her.
I was glad Bridie traveled to LA in Land! Ellie's friends have always played a big role in her story and while she does make friends in California, Bridie is a favorite from the previous installments. She's feisty and funny and I would have missed her and the way she supports Ellie and her family.
Land of Dreams is a nice close to Ellie's tale but I do recommend reading at least City of Hope beforehand.
But Hollywood is a far cry from New York or even Ireland.
I was so anxious to get to get back to Ellie's story with Land of Dreams. It's been on my must have list since I turned the final page on City of Hope last year. Seriously, I even considered ordering it from the UK so that I wouldn't have to wait!
That said, I was surprised that the first third of the book is basically backstory to get us up to 1942. It glossed over Ellie's years with Charles and Leo all in order to catch us up on what happened after the last book and get us to the point where the story actually begins. It was disappointing and dragged the momentum of the first part of the book quite significantly.
This start was doubly disappointing because I'd found City of Hope particularly easy to get into even if you hadn't already read Ellis Island and I felt that Land of Dreams didn't have that same approachability. I've so adored each part of Ellie's story that it's become one of my favorite things to recommend to readers. But where readers could start easily with either City or the actual first installment, Ellis, I don't think Land would serve well at all as a diving off point.
Now that that's out of the way, I will tell you that I still greatly enjoyed returning to Ellie. She's a character readers can't help but fall in love with! Her struggles in this book are centered around her kids and her identity. She worries about stifling Leo's dreams but Los Angeles proves to be less than inspiring for her own art and that's something that scares her.
I was glad Bridie traveled to LA in Land! Ellie's friends have always played a big role in her story and while she does make friends in California, Bridie is a favorite from the previous installments. She's feisty and funny and I would have missed her and the way she supports Ellie and her family.
Land of Dreams is a nice close to Ellie's tale but I do recommend reading at least City of Hope beforehand.
sbeckett24's review
2.0
I really enjoyed the first two books but I really didn't like this one. I didn't finish it and stopped just under halfway through. I felt the story was very repetitive of the other books and I really didn't like the characters in it either. Overall not great.
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