I received an advanced digital copy of this book from the author, publisher and Netgalley.com. Thanks to all for the opportunity to read and review. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

The story set in two timelines, with a mysterious beginning moves at a pace so slow it makes for confusing reading.

1 out of 5 stars.

A Strange Kind of Comfort by Gaylene Dutchyshen is a new book by a new novelist and I hope there will be more to come. This is the story of Caroline Webb and Sarah Bilyk, two women living in 1950s Ross Prairie, Manitoba, whose relationship over the decades has disintegrated, until their paths cross at a senior residence. The first few chapters divulge information about a feud between the Webbs and Bilyks, but never informs the reader of the cause. The plot evolves like the slow peeling of a ripe fruit, each layer revealing more and more about the families. The prose is such that each well-placed word makes it a pure pleasure to read this novel. I could have spent more time with these characters. This is my favorite 2020 novel to date. If you like relationship fiction, I strongly recommend this book. Thank you to Dundurn Press and Net Galley for the e-Arc in exchange for an honest review.

It was so great to read a book set in the Prairie Provinces of Canada! Dundurn Press (the publisher) is amazing at representing Canadian authors and showing different voices in Canada. I really appreciated the author, Gaylene Dutchyshen for taking a place--usually joked about at being 'boring'--and creating an intriguing tale of two women with not much in common except for a single event that caused a great catalyst between their families. I enjoyed reading the chapters that focused on both women: Sarah and Caroline. I felt like I really got to know them both well .

What I found very confusing and it really affected my overall likeness of the book was the confusing time jumps within a characters chapter. It would start off in the present and before I knew it I was somewhere in the past again and it just confused me. I found myself going back and rereading to see where the jump had been made. This is a personal preference of course, I prefer more distinguished time jumps in my novels. This also could possibly be just the e-book format. I have not seen a hard-copy yet and so perhaps the styling issues were worked out before print.

Thank you to Netgalley and Dundurn Press for this ARC.

I really enjoyed this story, but it does have its downsides. I could absolutely relate to the timeframe of the 1950’s and 1970’s. Sarah’s mother reminded me so much of my mother, driving the truck to the field, taking lunches and the calendar entries brought tears to my eyes. That is exactly what my mom did.
BUT I had a hard time keeping track of the timeline and who was who, what family they were in and how old they were. It took me forever to figure out Caroline was not Sarah’s age but was like a mother figure. Sometimes in the middle of the chapter we would switch between past and present timeframes and it would take me a minute to figure out where we were. I finally jotted down the family trees and that did help quite a bit.
Despite that inconvenience, I still loved this book. There is so much depth to the characters, I could so relate to Sarah with her disappointments and her love for Jack. I came to care for Caroline and actually knew girls like Becca. The entire story is well worth the read. If you enjoy a family saga with great depth of characters and a well told story, this is it. It has it all, love, loss, desire, mystery, intrigue and a surprise ending. I was given an advance copy from Dundurn Press through Net Galley for my honest review, this one gets 5 stars.

Thank you to Dundurn Press and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great read in the family dynamics genre, with some very heavy issues at its heart . The author did a wonderful job of weaving past and present timelines, and giving POVs of the two main female characters. It was beautifully written, with the spare, sparse atmosphere of time and place coming through so clearly it hurt. And yet, after the hardship, I loved the way the author ended on a conciliatory note.

I could not get into this book. The first few chapters were confusing and the story never pulled me in.

This story started out strong and interesting, but then got a bit muddled by the different time periods and the numerous characters. I found it hard to keep them straight. A family tree diagram as well as a map of the farmlands would've helped.

I found this book very interesting. The story kept my interest and I really didn't know how the story was going to end. A little confusing at times as it went back and forth in time; I wasn't always sure whether I was reading in the present or the past. And were there still outhouses in the 1950s?

I thoroughly enjoyed reading “A Strange Kind of Comfort.” Gaylene Dutchyshen is an author to keep on your radar. The book is well constructed, written beautifully, with characters distinctively defined. Thank you Netgalley and Dunburn Press for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

This was a good family drama that explores how death shapes a families dynamics.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book

I enjoyed this historical novel about relationships over time. Well constructed and executed. This feels like a ringer for Heather’s list. (Chapters)

This book is a good story about women and their struggles in a 1950's farming community in Canada.
Highlighting how a death can change the course of one's life. There were too many characters and names to keep track of which had me going back and forth to try and connect the different characters to the story line.

A Strange Kind of Comfort by author Gaylene Dutchyshen is a great feels of a book! It’s got the domestic/drama but it also has so much HEART! This book is not one to be missed, it truly is written so well and comfortably. Absolutely recommend it!
Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an arc copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.