Woes and Wonders: The Triptych Book 2
by H.M. Holten
Reviewed by S. S. Bazinet

DESCRIPTION
Hans wants family and stability, but the Great War tears him away from home and propels him to China and a Japanese POW camp. Ellie dreams of love and fairies but must face disappointment and a finishing school. The Great War is far away. Still, beneath her secure world hide secrets and lies. When they meet, their love of music brings them together. Can Hans overcome the scars he brought back from Japan? Will Ellie find happiness, or will Hans’ demons crush her dreams? Is it possible to create a family in the depression between two world wars?

REVIEW: A wonderful second book in this captivating series!

I read HM Holten’s first book, “Snares and Delusions,” and found the story to be so engrossing that I had to read book two. In the first book of the series, our heroine’s name is Hedda. Her story begins in Sweden, in the late nineteenth century. Hedda is a very strong woman who has to overcome great adversity. With perseverance, she achieves a measure of independence. After what she’s had to live through, she’s determined that her daughter, Eliie, won’t have to face the same kind of hardships.

The second book, “Woes and Wonders,” is an intriguing follow-up to “Snares and Delusions.” Hedda succeeds in providing a much easier life for her child, Ellie. But what I found fascinating about the two stories is that adversity helped to mold Hedda into a very strong woman. While Ellie, who has a much gentler, undemanding life, grows up not knowing how to be a capable adult. Instead, she fantasizes constantly about everything from fairies to romance. After falling in love and marrying, she’s unable to assert herself. She allows her desires to be overruled by a dominating mother and a husband who’s convinced he knows better than Ellie.

“Woes and Wonders” provides wonderful portraits of people’s lives, and how they are shaped by circumstance, by historical events, by social norms, and by family dynamics. The writing is crisp and flowing, and the characters feel real and relatable. Played out against a historical backdrop that includes the aftermath of World War I, including the depression, World War II and the years leading up to the 1970s, the story pulled me into the characters’ minds. After I finished the book, I couldn’t help but reflect on the woes and wonders that each character experienced. Their reactions to and their thoughts about the outer world were largely responsible for how they processed life. Some characters like Hedda chose a very active response, while her daughter. Ellie, became much more of a passive participate. I’m looking forward to book three! This is a captivating series that I highly recommend.

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