In this tender novel, the bonds among inhabitants of a
British estate transcend the stories, burdens and secrets of their lives.
Prolific author Marcia Willett (Summer on the River, Christmas in
Cornwall) returns to the bucolic English countryside in The Songbird. The old
Georgian estate Brockscombe Farm consists of a house, owned by the aging
Francis Courtney, and three cottages.
In one cottage lives Charlotte, a
32-year-old web designer, her husband, Andy, and their five-month-old. The
second cottage is home to William, Andy's father and Francis's cousin. William
has been separated for several years from Fiona, Andy's mother. She left him to
pursue an affair and a highfalutin architectural career in London, but begins
paying regular visits to bond with her new grandson.
William shares his cottage with his
other cousin, Kat, a retired ballet dancer in her 60s. She is a creative spirit
coming to grips with the death of her Polish lover. And the third cottage is
empty until Tim, on sabbatical, arrives to take a six-month lease. Connected to
the others through Charlotte's sister, Tim is trying to regroup after a painful
break-up. He is also secretly battling a neurological disease in its early
stages. The atmosphere in Brockscombe proves as healing as the warm acceptance
Tim receives from his new neighbors. But will they treat him differently if
they know the truth?
Willett is an elegant writer and an
unhurried storyteller. She understands people and the private burdens they
carry, while empathizing with the consequences of their actions. This moving,
multigenerational saga slowly reveals the essence of her fully realized cast of
characters as the intimate stories of their lives unspool with tender, hopeful
grace.
The Songbird: A Novel by Marcia Willett
Thomas Dunne Books, $27.99 Hardcover, 9781250177414,288 pages
Publication Date: December 4, 2018
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NOTE:
This review is a reprint and is being posted with the permission of Shelf Awareness. To
read this review on Shelf Awareness: Reader's Edition (December 14, 2018), link HERE
