The Sweater Curse reviewed

I found it very difficult to put this book down once I started it, because the voice of lovely Gwen Bjarnson, already dead at the start of the book, drew me in immediately, and of course I needed to know how and why she had suffered such an unfortunate death. The plot moves along at a good clip as we learn about Gwen's early childhood. Her relationship with her father is especially touching, and we can fully believe that his death sends Gwen into a tailspin of grief and self-destruction. Eventually she falls into the arms of her seemingly too-perfect lover, Jay, a novelist who leads Gwen toward her true calling as a sweater designer. My only complaint about the story was that sometimes it moved too quickly--I wanted to linger in places, especially on Gwen's relationship with her parents, on her knitting, and on the unique elements of Gwen's Icelandic heritage. Overall, though, the book is so smoothly written that I just kept moving along with Gwen, wishing for a less tragic ending but compelled to follow her there just the same!

Reviewed by Holly C.