Review: The Caretakers by Shauna Nosler

Title: The Caretakers

Author: Shauna Nosler

Release Date:
July 28th, 2011

Source: Author

Buy the Book: Amazon

Jasper could still hear his breath escaping his mouth even though he was certain that his heart had stopped beating. There, a mere fifteen steps in front of him, face down on the hard plank floor, lie the man he had come to kill - the man that was his father’s best friend - the man, he was convinced, that had done the unspeakable to his little sister. Suburban Seattle, 1972, the Roe v. Wade case is still seven months from a decision and an upper middle class family with strong Republican ties and Catholic beliefs is about to be brought out of dysfunction and slammed into varying degrees of lunacy. Flash forward nearly twenty years and it’s Jasper’s own daughter that, along with her best friend, discover a small cross hidden on the river bank where they play - a cross thats very placement bellows a mysterious secret that’s far from forgotten. The Caretakers is not another story of right vs. wrong, or good vs. evil, but one of devotion vs. obligation and protection vs. abandonment. This is the story about the internal struggle that both young and old face when deciding to tell the whole truth and nothing but, regardless of consequence, or holding onto a secret forever in order to spare someone else unnecessary anguish.

 This book was quite different from what I'm used to read, but I'm glad to say that I really enjoyed it. The story can be cruel and sad sometimes,  but it also talks about love, family, death and how decisions can affect not only our life but also the life of the people we love.

The story starts with a breathtaking prologue, really dark, mysterious, and more than realistic that made me think and believe for a moment that I was there and that I was part of the story… That is why I'm not surprised why this book caught my attention and it kept me motivated to continue reading; and one of the reasons was because the author only gives us a little piece of information and we need to continue reading to find out what happened and what is going to happen next.  The way the story is told, with different characters and different times kept the intrigue all the time so it was hard for me to stop reading in several occasions. 

Also the details and the descriptions were awesome. The author doesn't only tells us the story, but she tells us extra details about the life of the characters, so in that way we can know them better and we can understand why they behave in the way they do. 

What I didn't enjoy too much was the ending, and I think that it was principally because the book was over and there were no more to read. I would have liked to read more about Caroline, specially after all what happened to Mitch and also to read more about her aunt Mabel and her dad Jasper... But I think the book is perfect in the way that it's written, and that it ended in the way it should have ended.  

I don't want to spoil too much. Even though you know what the Roe vs Wade case was about, and that can give you a lot of information about the plot, I'm sure all readers will be interested in the story and how it develops. I really enjoyed this book, it's really easy to read and it will give the readers a few important things to think about.
Like me, that I didn't know too much about the case, so after finishing the book I decided to look more information about it. So I'm glad I read it, because this book talks about an important issue in our society without judging anyone.

Highly recommended to adults and older teens who like realistic stories about families and their dark secrets. 

I really like it! 

Shauna Nosler was born in Seattle, Washington and grew up in and around Oregon’s Willamette Valley and just like one of the main characters in The Caretakers, she knows first hand what it’s like to spend carefree summers in and out of friends back doors, swimming holes and relatively minor mischief. Shauna studied economics, although admittedly she only signed up for the major because there was a cute guy in her ECON201 class, at the University of Oregon where she toiled with short story writing on the woes and wonders of sorority life. Eventually, she moved cross country with her husband where she began freelancing for regionally based magazines and newspapers. They now live in Indianapolis with their three children and chocolate lab, Norm (yes, from Cheers- Cliff lives down the street). The Caretakers is her first published novel. Website