In a matter of days, Peter McDowell loses everything he has worked so hard for - his wealth, his property, his livelihood as an investment banker. As the stress takes its toll, it causes a rift in his marriage that he cannot repair. Stripped of everything, he has only one place he can retreat: a lakeside cottage he inherited from his parents twenty years ago.
A beloved small-town doctor, a devoted family man and a pillar of his community, Michael McDowell serves others selflessly. Only Peter knows how he manipulated their parents when the boys were young, driving Peter away. At first, Peter dreads seeing Michael again. But to his surpise their reunion is tender and real. Only later, as Peter mulls over his late mother's journals, does he begin to question what lies beneath Michael's perfect surface.
In a race for time, Peter throws caution to the wind to find the truth. What he discovers will change their lives, the lives of their children and an entire town for ever.
It's been a few years since I last read a Danielle Steel book, despite being a voracious reader of her books when I was younger, so I gratefully accepted a copy of Prodigal Son when I was offered a review copy by Sarah at Transworld Books.
Once again Danielle Steel has delivered an easy to read book but instead of being your typical upper/middle class love story that I've come to expect from her, we have a story that focuses on two brothers who have been at odds with each other all their lives despite being twins.
When he was younger Peter was labelled as the 'bad' son who was forever in trouble creating constant heartache for his parents whilst Michael was the 'good' son who could do no wrong in his parents eyes. And the roles continued on in later years with Michael as the perfect son staying behind and continuing the family legacy by taking over his father's medical practice whilst Peter was the wayward son who left to seek his fortune and rarely returned home to see the family.
But Peter's world collapses around him when he loses his job due to the banking crisis and his wife decides to leave him and return home to California with their sons. Struggling to find a new job and with everything he owns up for sale to fund his divorce payout, he decides to return home to the holiday cottage left to him by his parents but there's definitely one person who won't be pleased to see him coming home...
But Peter's world collapses around him when he loses his job due to the banking crisis and his wife decides to leave him and return home to California with their sons. Struggling to find a new job and with everything he owns up for sale to fund his divorce payout, he decides to return home to the holiday cottage left to him by his parents but there's definitely one person who won't be pleased to see him coming home...
In Peter and Michael Danielle Steel has created two contrasting characters, you have the 'good son' who on paper seemed the perfect citizen but in fact there was a lot more going on than meets the eye, and the 'bad son' who in fact was the good guy who is trying to pick himself up to start again and sets out to seek the truth as to what is going on with his brother.
Although I did find the book fairly predictable as I could see where the story was heading with Michael, overall it was still an enjoyable read.
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