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Book Review By Debbie
The Kilternan Legacy by Anne McCaffrey

Irene "Rene" Teasey is still trying to recover from her bitter divorce when she learns that her great aunt Irene, whom she never met, has left her some property in Ireland. Rene is unsure if she wants to go, but her teenage twins, Simon and Snow, are determined to go. Before she knows it, Rene finds herself in a quaint Irish hotel with some sleazy real estate agent trying to buy the land cheap. The twins talk her out of it and hustle her to Irene's property where Rene forces a bulldozer off of her road with a shotgun. Rene isn't at all sure that she wants to get involved in a battle with some land developers, but she falls in love with her new house and feels that she needs to honor her great aunt's wishes of keeping on the old tenants in the cottages out back.

In no time at all, Rene is developing a backbone and a real personality and really has the opportunity to come into her own far away from her ex-husband and her family. She even finds a new love interest, Shay Kerrigan, whom her great aunt Irene hated for reasons unknown to Rene. Shay seems to genuinely care for her and her twins, but is he really interested in her or in her property? And why do her new tenants hate Shay? As Rene becomes more involved in the lives of those around her, she finds that she had a lot more in common with her great aunt Irene than she ever knew.

This is a charming little romance/mystery novel that most readers will enjoy. It is a little dated as it was originally published some time ago (this is a reprint edition), but in a quaint sort of way. The main characters were quite well developed and the reader will find herself rooting for Rene and urging her to stand up for herself for once. But the supporting characters were absolutely delightful: Irene's twins Snow and Simon were hilarious and so much like teenagers now, sometimes so very grown up and other times so very not and the lovely Ladies Brandel, two very elderly noblewomen who were so very sweet. The tenants were also quite fascinating. This book is also a very clean romance - no swearing, no sex scenes, although there are some references to domestic violence. All in all, a very well written nice little find by Anne McCaffrey.


Plot & Themes
Time/era of story
Inner struggle subplot Yes
Struggle with...
Hidden Identity/Secret Motive Yes
Is really... - trying to carry out business objective
If one lover chases another... - he chases after her

Main Male Character
Profession/status:
Age/status: - 20's-30's

Main Female Character - 20's-30's
Profession/status:

Setting
Europe Yes
European country: - England/UK
Small town? Yes
Small town people: - nice, like Andy/Opie/Aunt Bee

Writing Style
Accounts of torture and death? - no torture/death
What % of story is romance related? - 60%
Focus of story - many multiple characters
How much dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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