Comment

Mar 06, 2014GLNovak rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
Vinegar Hill is a very apt name for this story. Maybe Vitriol Hill might be even better. Ellen Grier and her two children exist in an environment of hate, bitterness, violence with little to keep them sane. Set in the 1970's against a backdrop of the strict teachings of the Catholic Church of the time, this story is definitely a grind. Ellen's husband has lost his job and their only hope is to move in with his parents. She gamely deals with the psyche-destroying situation but as her husband gets more distant and unreachable, we know that she has to take action or let them all be drowned in the vinegar. I guess it is well-written as I kept wanting to shake someone, to give someone a smack and say 'Snap out of it!" Thankfully, it is not a long book so the bad taste in your mouth only lasts a little while.