Wednesday, June 4, 2008

The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry


Salem, Massachusetts is an unusual town. And the Whitneys are the most unusual family in Salem. Their family roots in Salem go back hundreds of years. They fit right in with the eccentric witches, most of the Whitney women have the ability to sense bits of people's thoughts and see glimpses of the future when they look through a piece of lace.


Towner Whitney is in her early thirties and she has just returned to Salem from her self imposed exile in California because her beloved Great Aunt Eva has disappeared. Towner fled to the west coast fifteen years before, running from the violence and grief that was part of her life as a teenager when she lost her twin sister, Lyndley. She is a damaged soul and Salem is the last place she wants to be. Her memories of her life in Salem are sketchy and she struggles to put the pieces of her childhood together while dealing with people from the past that she is not prepared to see.


Eva was in her eighties but still swam in the ocean every day. When her body is found out in the water it's hard to believe that she drowned on her own. The police suspect her estranged son-in-law, Cal. While married to Emma, Eva's daughter, Cal beat her so badly that Emma was left blind and mentally impaired. Somehow he managed to escape any legal penalty and now he is an Evangelist with a very warped following. Towner's return and Eva's death rip open the past and send everyone concerned reeling.


This is a book about the damage that people do to each other and the incredible lengths that the human soul will go to in order to survive. At times haunting, heartbreaking, mystical and magical, it has an ending that will surprise you and show you the healing power of love.


The Lace Reader will be published by William Morrow on July 29, 2008

6 comments:

Jacquie L Reaville said...

This sounds very interesting to me. I think I'll keep a look out for it.

The Tome Traveller said...

It was a really good read with an unusual story and an unexpected ending. Well worth the time!

Zibilee said...

Your review makes this sound as though I would really like this book. I am planning on putting it on my wishlist. Great review!

Marie Cloutier said...

I can't wait for this book to come out so everyone can finally read it! :-) Great review!

teabird said...

I won this book pre-pub and devoured it. I'm a knitter/spinner, and I'm always interesting to read about new (to me) textile crafts -- and I did love the supernatural element.

Great review!

tashiana said...

this looks very good! i still haven't run across a review of yours on a book i've read yet!
but i'd love to read about her catching that coward of a man and giving HIM some mental damage


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New Hampshire, United States
Bibliophile, Anglophile, Traveller... I have been an avid reader all of my life, since I took the Dr. Seuss Dictionary away from my Mom when I was less than a year old because I wanted to read it myself. In college, where I earned my degree in English Literature, I was often asked "What are you going to do with it?" Now I finally have the answer to that question!!! Being employed as a Flight Attendant for twenty years has given me a lot of life experience and, better still, a lot of time to read. I love to travel for fun, too.