Olivia Grayson is approaching her 70th birthday. Olivia
has inherited the hardware store, "The Factory", owned by
her mother and is an icon in business. She is a forceto be
dealt with. In
exchange, her mother and husband have taken over the duty of
raising her 4 children as she travels worldwide to grow the
business into 100 stores throughout the world. Two sons
work at The Factory office in Bedford, Phillip as CFO and
John as head of design. Her daughter Liz is struggling to
be an acclaimed author and her youngest child, Cass, is
independent and a successful agent for a rock star abroad.
Cass is angry at her mother for not being there and keeps
her distance.
Olivia is totally devoted to her grandchildren, unlike
the relationship she had with her own children. Widowed at
55, she is still burdened with the realization that she
wasn't there for her children when they needed her. Each
year her birthday is celebrated by an exotic trip to include
all of her children. As Olivia's own 10 year affair is
discovered, personal issues also unfold of various members
of her family. A better grandmother than a mother, she
devotes the love and support needed to bring her family
closer to her in forgiveness of their loss during childhood.
Being tremendously rich is not Olivia's priority. Striving
for the love of her children and grandchildren, she stands
her ground in her beliefs and is ever present in support of
her children's problems.
THE SINS OF THE MOTHER reveals much soul searching along
with the
pain and misunderstanding of children learning to survive
without the presence of their mother. While building a
dynasty for her children and grandchildren, the most
important part has been overlooked. Sadness and hurt is
overcome by the eventual love and caring given when Olivia
finally realizes all she has lost in being an absentee
parent. The past comes full circle in healing this family.
As always, Danielle Steel has created an exceptional story
of the rights and wrongs within a family and the road to
healing. THE SINS OF THE MOTHER is an unforgettable novel
that pulls at the
heartstrings!
Every woman makes choices. And no one has made more
difficult choices than Olivia Grayson. The enormously
successful businesswoman missed out on much of her
children’s lives while she built her legendary
home-furnishings empire. In Danielle Steel’s character-rich
new novel, Olivia faces the past, tries to balance the
present, and makes amends where due, while still running her
vastly successful business.
THE SINS OF
THE MOTHER As a way of making up
to them for time lost, Olivia spends months every year
planning a lavish holiday that everyone in her family will
enjoy. This summer she has arranged a dream trip in the
Mediterranean on a luxurious yacht, which she hopes will be
the most memorable vacation of all. Her lavish gesture every
year expresses her love for them, and regret at all the
important times she missed during her children’s younger
years. Her younger daughter, Cassie, a hip London music
producer, refuses the invitation altogether, as she does
every year. Her older daughter, Liz, lives in her mother’s
shadow, with a terror of failure as she tries to recapture
her dream of being a writer. And her sons, John and Phillip,
work for Olivia, for better or worse, with wives who wish
they didn’t. In the splendor of the Riviera, this should be
a summer to remember, with Olivia’s children, grandchildren,
and daughters-in-law on board. But as with any family
gathering, there are always surprises, and no matter how
glamorous the setting things don’t always turn out as ones
hopes.
Family dynamics are complicated, old
disappointments die hard, and as forgiveness and surprising
revelations enter into it, new bonds are formed, and the
future takes on a brighter hue. And one by one, with life’s
irony, Olivia’s children find themselves committing the same
“sins” for which they blamed their mother for so many years.
It is a summer of compassion, important lessons, and
truth.
The Sins of the Mother captures
the many sides of family love: complex, challenging, funny,
passionate, and hopefully enduring. Along the way, we are
enthralled by an unforgettable heroine, a mother strong
enough to take more than her fair share of the blame, wise
enough to respect her children for who they really are, and
forgiving enough to love them unconditionally.