Dan Porter believes his life is near perfect as he has a wonderful job with a dot com firm, married to a loving wife for twenty years, and three precocious children. However, when his company hits bad times, the policy of last in first out leaves Dan unemployed. Meanwhile his wife Jackie is managing director of Rebecca Talworth Design Limited, but makes little money as profits are returned to the company.
Dan fails to get a new job, which leads to a tear in his relationship with Jackie because she feels he has become complacent while their lifestyle slips. When he reads an article in Women's Weekly about a small Scottish firm Vagabonds needing help to expand, he races north while Jackie is on the continent on business. Though the makers of the popular “Vaggas” is not what Dan expected, he finds his life changes perhaps even more than when he lost his dot com job, but Jackie's resentment grows.
This is an engaging character study of a person who once was riding the crest, but since has lost his self esteem. He begins to regain his confidence with his trip to Scotland, but the cost may prove too high. The cast is a delightful ensemble, especially Dan, his family, and the Turnbows (owners of Vagabonds). Robin Pilcher provides a deep look at what really counts as Dan reassess his values and how he has lived.
Harriet Klausner
"
Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
Click above for the new Obama Girl Parody video!
Review Analysis of A Risk Worth Taking
Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book?
- thoughtful
Time/era of story
- present (2000-2010)
Romance/Romance Problems
Yes
Kind of romance:
- marriage/relationship going to pieces
Internal struggle/realization?
Yes
Struggle over
- midlife crisis
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- unemployed
Age:
- 40's-50's
Ethnicity/Nationality
- British
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Female
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- business executive
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Setting
Europe
Yes
European country:
- England/UK
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- no torture/death
Unusual Style:
- a lot of stream of consciousness
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
