"The Bridegrooms" by Allison Pittman

When I picked up The Bridegrooms, I was expecting something totally different than what I ended up with.  I'm still not sure, a few days later, if I liked this book or not.  Something about it intrigues me, yet, I can't say that I want to read it again.  Maybe if I'd read the back cover, the story wouldn't have taken me by surprise...

From the back cover: Tragedy hit the Allenhouse family on a hot summer night in Ohio when a mother of four vanished. Eight-year-old Vada virtually grew up overnight and raised her three younger sisters while her father lost himself in his medical practice in the basement of their home.

Now Vada is a grown woman, still making her home with her father and sisters. Her days are spent serving as an errand girl for the Cleveland's fledgling amateur orchestra; her evenings with Garrison Walker, her devoted, if seemingly passionless, beau.

Dizzying change occurs the day the Brooklyn Bridegrooms come to town to play the Cleveland Spiders and a line drive wallops the head of a spectator. The fan is whisked to the Allenhouse parlor, and questions swirl about the anonymous, unconscious man.

Suddenly, the subdued house is filled with visitors, from a flirtatious would-be sportswriter to the Bridegrooms' handsome star hitter to the guilt-ridden ballplayer who should have caught the stray shot. The medical case brings Dr. Allenhouse a frustration and helplessness he hasn't felt since his wife's disappearance. Vada's sisters are giddy at the bevy of possible suitors. And Vada's life is awakened amid the super-charged atmosphere of romantic opportunity.

Maybe next time, I'll read the synopsis on the back to get a better feel for the story, rather than assuming a storyline from the title alone!

Thanks to Multnomah Publishers for providing a copy of this book for review.