This is a new-to-me author although I've seen her books at our town library. I finally decided to check this one out. It took me awhile to finish it and it's not super thick....I just became very busy with other things this past month! It was a really good story and I hope to read another one of her books sometime this winter.
STORY SUMMARY
In the summer of 1951, Miranda Schuyler arrives on the elite island called Winthrop Island off the coast of New England. Depending on where you stand on the island, you can see across to Long Island. Miranda is still recovering from the loss of her father in WWII. She is still a schoolgirl and her mother, who is very beautiful, is about to marry Hugh Fisher of the Fisher estate known as Greyfriers on the Winthrop overlook. From the estate, Miranda can see all the way across the bay to the famous lighthouse. Miranda is thrown into a world of high society, the Club dinners, people with pedigrees, evenings of cocktails and swimming. Her new stepsister, Isobel Fisher, is gorgeous but bored with summer island life. She does help Miranda get used to life on the island and draws her into the high society.
But underneath the glamour and glitz of the Island's patrician facade, there lurks many secrets. These secrets involve the two different castes of families: The Summer Families with their steadfast ways, hidden vices, and quiet obsessions and the working class, year round families who are mostly Portuguese fishermen and domestic laborers. These year round folks earn their living on the sea and in the laundries of the grand houses. Miranda often feels uncomfortable around Isobel's very privileged friends. But there is one young man she feels drawn to and that is Joseph Vargas, the son of the lighthouse keeper and his mysterious wife.
As the summer winds down, Joseph and Miranda are caught in a catastrophe that will totally shatter Winthrop Island's peaceful tranquility. It will also banish Miranda from the Island for 18 years and will put Joseph in prison for those 18 years.
Fast forward to the summer of 1969: Miranda comes back to the Island as Mrs Miranda Thomas. She has become a world renowned actress and lives in London with her husband Carroll Goring, a world renowned director who helped make her film career. However, Miranda is running from a major heartbreak and a horrible husband. On the surface, the Island appears to be the same.....determined to keep the the outside world from its shores yet fiercely loyal to those who belong.
The once powerful Fisher family is but a shadow of its former self and Joseph Vargas has escaped from the prison where he's been held on murder charges (allegedly he murdered Hugh Fisher!) and no one seems to know where he really is.
Miranda is no longer a naive teenager and she begins a personal quest for justice for the man she once loved.....and she will do so even if it means exposing every secret that bind the families of Winthrop Island.
MY THOUGHTS
This was definitely a period piece of work. It was set in the following time frames: 1930; 1950; 1969; 1970. It was quite well done although at times I had to go back to the chapter heading to remind myself which era I was in. There are many character but really only 5 main ones (Isobel, Miranda, Bianca/Mrs Vargas; Joseph; Hugh Fisher). I love that the author put at the beginning of each section the year the voice was speaking in because it would have been confusing with out that. Each section had chapters.
The main themes in this mystery/romance/family saga/drama are: family relationships; the privileged vs the working class; religious/Catholic superstitions; marriage and the social complexities of that institution; friendship; love; forgiveness; death; resilience; a touch of the influence of WWI and WWII (yet no mention of the Vietnam War during the sections that focused on 1969 which I found to be odd since it was a huge historic happening). The author does mention President Nixon at the end of the book and we do see the attitudes change on the Island...the past traditions burning out so to speak when the Clubhouse burns down.
This book moved slowly in spots and quickly towards teh end. The end is a predictable sappy ending although with a sense of hope which I appreciated.
The best thing about this book, in my opinion, is the character development over time, particularly that of Isobel and Miranda. I started out not liking Isobel. Towards the end.....Loved her.
Overall, this is a great story if you like family drama and a bit of romance with the elements of mysterious events.
In my opinion, this book is appropriate for ages 14 and older
On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest, I rate this a 9.
3 comments:
I have seen this book and wondered about it, so now I know it is good, I will pick up a copy. Maybe the library has it. Thanks for the review. Have a good week.
I've seen this book around. I'll have to keep an eye out for it at the library.
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