Susan Isaacs - Shining Through

It's 1940 and Linda Voss, legal secretary extraordinaire, has a secret. She's head over heels in love with her boss, John Berringer, the pride of the Ivy League. Not that she even has a chance--he'd never take a second look at a German-Jewish girl from Queens who spends her time taking care of her faded beauty of a mother and following bulletins on the war in Europe. For Linda, though, the war will soon become all too real. Engulfing her nation and her life, it will offer opportunities she's never dreamed of. A chance to win the man she wants...a chance to find the love she deserves. Made into the movie of the same name starring Melanie Griffith, Michael Douglas, and Liam Neeson, Shining Through is a novel of honor, sacrifice, passion, and humor. This is vintage Susan Isaacs, a tale of a spirited woman who wisecracks her way into heroism and history--and into your heart.

Comment: This was the book picked this month for the buddy read I share with my friend H. I'm no longer certain why I felt like adding this to my TBR and suggesting H. we should try it but it probably had something to do with mixing romance and a work place, something not all authors do well, and the fact there was a movie adaptation none of us has seen.

In this story we meet Linda Voss, a secretary who works for a very handsome boss in the 40s, when Europe is facing Hitler and the US is debating the tactic of getting secretly involved or not.

Linda is a fascinating narrator who comes from a humble family of German origins and that helps her in her job too, since her boss and the company they work for has some business with German contacts or such and her translations skills are a good bonus.

Linda wasn't able to pursue her studies and she comes from a socially poor family but she isn't stupid and she does fear what Hitler is doing and what it means. In the process of dealing with some personal situations and how that affects her job as well, Linda will have the opportunity to become someone special indeed. Will she take that chance with both hands?

I started this book with no notion whatsoever of what the story would actually be about. I knew there was a movie from the 80s or beginning of the 90s based on this novel published originally in 1988, but I never saw it nor did I felt interested in doing so. 

I thought this would more contemporary but the plot takes place in the 1940s and focuses on Linda, a 35 years old if I remember well, who works as a secretary to a very sophisticated man and who she secretly likes. Linda dreams about him but since he is married, she doesn't let her daydreams go past reality and that includes her mother and the humble house they live in and all the worries she has. I liked Linda. She does seem to have a very simple way of behaving but I admired her will to go ahead, to look for positive things and to describe everything around her.

Of course this means she can be a little too dedicated to descriptions and I confess some parts were more boring than they had to and editing some passages wouldn't have changed how the reader is supposed to look at Linda.

This story, for me, could be divided into two segments. The first regarding Linda's life as a secretary and the second about her work trying to fight the Nazis the way she saw possible. In the middle of all this we also have to think about her personal life and the choices she makes. Her relationship with her boss John is key for her development especially after his wife demands a divorce. Despite this meeting Linda's dreams the reader always has this sense of something not quite right and what happens does shape a lot of Linda's future decisions.

I really liked reading this after a certain point. I didn't like Linda got involved with her (separated) boss and I disliked several scenes where the descriptions made it confusing what she was doing and why.

However, Linda is a resilient character and all the less than good situations she faces are obviously a way for her to improve and evolve. There were a few passages ahead, after she discovers a negative situation for herself and her replies in a conversation are incredible, some of those replies one can re-read often. I got fond of Linda as time goes by and she must deal with new things all the time.

This is the first book by this author I read and seeing comments on her other books, I kind of dread having to try them but in this case I can't fault the eye for detail, the way Linda expresses herself in such a way one can't help but wish her well. I saw some critics saying Linda took too long to grasp some things but that's part of the interest, how she dealt with what she always wanted and reality and who she is. There's some light and bubbly behavior from Linda though the book and that can clash with the war theme but on one hand that's great, it gives the reader the possibility to adjust light and dark in what is happening.

The book ends with a situation that wasn't totally unexpected because there were some clues here and there but it was really amazing! Too bad there's no epilogue so I could dream myself about how Linda's life would be. Despite that, the end did get engraved in my mind and I felt so proud of Linda because she finally chose right and saw her values and beliefs rewarded. 

I do recommend this novel despite its boring parts. The end certainly compensates for it, in my opinion. 

I also confess I don't feel like watching the movie, though, considering it focuses on just some elements and I can see by the synopsis alone they didn't include a lot of what made this book special.

Grade: 8/10