Family Blessings
Fern Michaels
Atria, Oct 2004, $18.00, 240 pp.
ISBN: 0743477472

In Larkspur, Pennsylvania, newlywed sisters Hannah and Sara believe their spouses are cheating on them as they work late every night. Actually colleagues Dr. Zack Kelly and Dr. Joel Wineberg are working together on a surprise to take a year off and sail with their beloved respective spouses Hannah and Sara; they just have not told them for fear of their reactions.

Meanwhile, the third of the Cisco triplets (brother to Hannah and Sara), Sam is stunned when his beloved wife Sonia leaves him. He is shocked because he thought their loving relationship was going great; he is unaware that Sonia left him because she is accidentally pregnant and he just told her adamantly that he is not ready for a family.

A tornado wrecks the home of the triplet's grandmother; all the neighbors pitch in to help with the rebuilding of the structure. Will this opportunity enable the three married younger generation couples to take the time to talk or will the Cisco siblings join the statistics of failed marriages? If a sweet-toothed grandmother has a say, these three marriages will turn to bliss by Christmas.

Though whimsical and starring delightful characters, many of whom performed in NO PLACE LIKE HOME, the triple marital woes of FAMILY BLESSINGS seem ridiculous. All three couples could resolve their troubles in one page or less by communicating with each other for five minutes. Still, the cast is likable and spending the holidays with Fern Michaels is always fun even when the despair appears so unnecessary.

Harriet Klausner