A Legacy Of Love

The Secret Life Of CeeCee Wilkes by Diane Chamberlain is a contemporary novel which I thoroughly enjoyed. I had heard nothing but good reports about Diane Chamberlain’s novels and this was my first delve into her writings – and wow what a story it was! I shall certainly be reading more by her.

There are many themes within the novel and a major one is regret. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. None of us can change the past but we can learn from it. “You can use your past to fuel your future.”

Linked to regret is the theme of forgiveness. If someone has hurt us, we may have the desire to ‘make them pay.’ Forgiving is not easy but living with hurt and bitterness that eats you up is worse.

Throughout the story there is the theme of love. Sometimes in the search for love, one will do desperate things. “She was being swept along by a current she no longer had the will to stop.” We all need love. Love is what helps us get through life. Love needs to be freely given and received.

Tied in to love is the theme of fear. We can end up smothering the person we love out of fear of losing them which is not good for either party.

There is also the theme of belonging. We all want to feel we belong and to be loved.

Within the book there is loss and grief. Bereavement is a terrible thing to have to face but even worse when one is only twelve years old.

There is the dual theme of truth and lies. It is always best to tell the truth. Living a lie can be so draining and it can suck the life out of you.

The Secret Life Of CeeCee Wilkes had an incredibly intricate plot that spanned several decades. It was an epic novel. The main character of CeeCee was very likeable and easy to empathise with. I thoroughly enjoyed it, finding it engrossing and hard to put down. I can highly recommend it.

JULIA WILSON