Three Good Things by Wendy Francis

• Title:  Three Good Things
• Author:  Wendy Francis
• Genre:  Contemporary Fiction
• Published:  January 2013 – Simon & Schuster – 256 pages
• Source:  Review copy from the publisher via Edelweiss

Synopsis (publisher): Ellen McClarety, a recent divorcée, has opened a new bake shop in her small Midwestern town, hoping to turn her life around by dedicating herself to the traditional Danish pastry called kringle. She is no longer saddled by her ne’er-do-well husband, but the past still haunts her—sometimes by showing up on her doorstep. Her younger sister, Lanie, is a successful divorce attorney with a baby at home. But Lanie is beginning to feel that her perfect life is not as perfect as it seems. Both women long for the guidance of their mother, who died years ago but left them with lasting memories of her love and a wonderful piece of advice: “At the end of every day, you can always think of three good things that happened.”

Ellen and Lanie are as close as two sisters can be, until one begins keeping a secret that could forever change both their lives. Wearing her big Midwestern heart proudly on her sleeve, Wendy Francis skillfully illuminates the emotional lives of two women with humor and compassion, weaving a story destined to be shared with a friend, a mother, or a sister.

My take:  I found Three Good Things to be a quiet novel about finding out and remembering what’s most important in life.

I think many readers will be able to relate to Ellen and Lanie and their circumstances but, that said, I wish each sister would have been even more fleshed out. At 256 pages it seemed there was room to do so.

There’s a little drama toward the end of the book that wrapped up a bit too conveniently but I still enjoyed the book. I liked the Midwest setting and I’m now craving some of Ellen’s kringle. There’s even a recipe at the end of the novel.