And then the author suddenly discards him. You are lead to believe that he may discover the secret. He searches the houses and asks questions, trying to get a clue. Carl is desperate to solve the mystery of his wife's death. Carl plays a major part in the plot for a good majority of the book, there is tension and development there. The only ones that were semi-interesting were Rudy the caretaker and Carl. The characters are unlikable and unmemorable. Some authors truly master the art of going back and forth between characters, narratives and time periods. The author goes back and forth between first and third person, between World War I, War War II and the period before World War I and probably the period between both wars, but I don't remember because the jumping around was so mind-numbingly annoying. Throughout the book we learn of the events that lead to the drowning and what truly happened that night. Amanda takes responsibility for Ruth, raising her as her own, and then cares for Carl when he comes home from the war. Young Ruth, Matilda's daughter, remembers drowning, but doesn't remember the details. She had gone home to rest, get well and to help her sister, Matilda, look after the home while Matilda's hubby, Carl, was stationed in France. The book centers around Amanda, a nurse who travels home to her family homestead in Wisconsin after she suffers several breakdowns while treating wounded soldiers.

My mom told me it was hard to get through. The good thing: neither of us paid for it.

Drowning Ruth by Christina Schwarz