While the storyline is not what one would at first call uplifting – involving a happily married, thirty-something mother of two in the deadly grip of an aggressive form of cancer – this quick read certainly contains a plethora of endearing moments to warm readers’ hearts.
As the lead character navigates the isolating and frightening path carved out by terminal illness, the book begs for us all, no matter the state of our health, to ponder how we might grapple with the question of how to best spend our last dying days, if indeed we had reason to believe our time might soon be up. In the course of reconciling with a life well spent, if at far too young an age to have to do such a thing, lead character Jennifer Benson takes readers on a roller coaster ride of sentiment–from backwards looks to past loves and nostalgic young-life memories, to present grasps for some, any, kind of feeling with her new best friend, constant companion and co-cancer patient Ralph, to the tender good-byes she plans out as she puts together her own farewell party; or, as one might call it, funeral with a still-living person…complete with fancy invitations.
IN THE MIRROR is highly readable with its a breezy plot where things that fall in line as you expect them to. That is to say, the story is never jolting but rather it hums along smoothly in a pleasant if predictable manner and the characters feel comfortable and familiar if lacking in a certain darker, uglier depth (Jennifer’s life is picture-perfect: adoring daddy, dutiful husband, precious kids, stylish clothing store she owns; her mother is the distant, couture-wearing emotional no-show; her sister, the jealous, younger replica of queen mother.)
IN THE MIRROR’s strongest asset is its implicit reminder that at any time, and at any place, any one of our lives could begin to unravel due to an unsuspected, cruel intruder of an illness, forcing us to ponder how we might best fill our last days, and suddenly urgent heart’s whims and desires.
Reviewed by Julie D. Andrews for IndieReader