was drawn to this mostly because of Jane Aiken Hodge's sister Joan Aiken, who is an author I love. unfortunately this book wasn't for me; it didn't make much of an impact.

I wasn't sure what to expect with this book but having read other books by the same author I was happy to give it a go.
Set in the 1930's it is the story of a woman who moves from Britain to America to study then falls in love with her professor.
It deals with lonliness, love, heartache and the morals and how society saw and dealt with life.

It was good but to me didn't have much depth. I also would have lived more about the differences in the ways of life between the two countries and the people in general.

All in all it was enjoyable to read but not my favourite Jane Aiken Hodge book.

I received a copy of the book from Netgalley to review. Thank you for the opportunity.
An interesting idea behind this book but it sadly didn't deliver. The MC is quite dull and has an irredeemable character which causes a lack of relationship with the reader and so lack of engagement with the book. The story is quite vague and lacks direct action.
An OK read.

Susan in America
A great read, with some surprising twists. Looking forward to reading more by this author.

This was a good book, but it was difficult to get into. I tried a number of times, but it was slow. It was set in the 1930s America, I think, and was a rewrite of a book that was written then too. It is about Susan, a shy girl from Britain who goes to college in the US. She comes of age in this novel, becoming a much better person in the end than she was in the beginning.

Urgh, I really could not like Susan. She is weak and insipid and, when I grow to dislike the protagonist so much, there’s little that a book can do to redeem itself. This is such an example.

I have now read a few of Hodge’s novels. My enjoyment is never guaranteed. I thought the blurb would mean there is more exploration of 1930s America and society, but I did not really get the feel of this. Whilst Susan is living in a shared house with an elder lady, the values of the time were not conveyed enough to me, apart from the fact that a lot of sherry was consumed!

On reflection, I am surprised at how weak Susan is portrayed. Considering she has left home, left the country to study in America is such a strong act. To then lose her head over her professor was acceptable. Yet, it was her quick willingness to give up her identity to David, that I found considerably irritating. Her behaviour did not seem to fit the society of the time and I hated how suffocating David was towards her. Indeed, when Susan falls ill over her love for David, I was completely unsympathetic towards her, desiring Susan to “man up” and see reality.

Unsurprisingly, I did not like David either. Actually, I thought he was too good for Susan; she deserves so much better. Consequently, when David’s secret is revealed, I was secretly pleased: would this mean Susan would grow her own identity again? Alas, this was not the case. Her insipid, weak behaviour continued.

There were few characters that I really liked. I think I was so distracted by Susan’s relationship with David, that I did not pay enough attention to the remainder of the cast. Expecting a big moment to revitalise my interest in the story, this did not occur. As such, I spent most of the narrative either frustrated by Susan, or bored by the plot development.

With lengthy chapters, this book does demand your attention. It is just under 300 pages – of which I am glad it was no longer. There is a satisfying ending, but I do wish Hodge had introduced this strength of character a lot earlier in the novel. Consequently, I did not find this book to be my cup of tea… or should I say, my glass of sherry?

With thanks to Agora books and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book could not keep me interested at all. I struggled through it but found the chars tees much like the story- bland and uninteresting.