Book Review: Picture Perfect Autumn by Shelley Noble

Rating:⭐⭐⭐

Up-and-coming Manhattan-based photographer, twenty-eight-year-old Dani Campbell, though happy with the success of her latest showing feels that she is losing her grip on her profession of choice. When she finds an envelope of old photographs in an antique shop, she is instantly taken with the photographer's talent and sets out to find him. Lawrence Sinclair, now in his eighties, lives a reclusive life in an old beach house in Rhode Island. She manages to convince him to help her recover her inspiration and mentor her in exchange for a live-in arrangement wherein she is responsible for studying up the place and running miscellaneous errands- an arrangement that has Lawrence’s family, namely his daughter-in-law, suspicious of Dani’s motives prompting her to send Peter, Lawrence’s grandson, to find out more. Peter, once close to his grandfather, is drawn to Dani and finds the opportunity to rekindle his bond with Lawrence, who understands Peter’s unhappiness and regrets not being able to help him deal with familial pressure regarding his life and career. The narrative follows them as they work together to save the art program run by a local convent, which is about to shut down, from being discontinued.

Picture Perfect Autumn by Shelley Noble is a well-written novel that revolves around themes of friendship, love, found family and community. The characterizations were well thought out and I enjoyed the dynamic between Dani , Lawrence, and the residents of the small town. I was glad we got to see the relationship between Dani and Peter slowly evolve ( I'm not a fan of the instalove trope). Lawrence was surely my favorite character, and I did like how the author chose to end the story. I did feel, however, that Peter’s character development lacked conviction. Stories such as these are always predictable but what makes the read pleasurable is the journey to the end. Unfortunately, the narrative did not grab my attention despite the interesting premise. Firstly, the novel was unnecessarily lengthy. It could have been at least 100 pages shorter. The pace dragged in parts, and I found myself losing interest along the way. Secondly, the title is misleading. I had hoped for an autumn-themed story and autumn (which happens to be my favorite time of the year) does not play much of a role in the story except for a Harvest Festival toward the end of the story. I do love the cover art though.

Overall, while I did not dislike this novel, I cannot say I enjoyed it as much as I had hoped.
Many thanks to Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley for the digital review copy. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.