Saturday 21 April 2012

Book Review: A Sound Among the Trees


Book Title: A Sound Among the Trees
Author: Susan Meissner
Publisher: WaterBrook Press
Cost: $14.99
Pages:324
How I got it: Blogging For Books Program
My Rating: ★★★★☆
Synopsis:
A house shrouded in time.
A line of women with a heritage of loss.As a young bride, Susannah Page was rumored to be a Civil War spy for the North, a traitor to her Virginian roots. Her great-granddaughter Adelaide, the current matriarch of Holly Oak, doesn’t believe that Susannah’s ghost haunts the antebellum mansion looking for a pardon, but rather the house itself bears a grudge toward its tragic past.When Marielle Bishop marries into the family and is transplanted from the arid west to her husband’s home, it isn’t long before she is led to believe that the house she just settled into brings misfortune to the women who live there.With Adelaide’s richly peppered superstitions and deep family roots at stake, Marielle must sort out the truth about Susannah Page and Holly Oak— and make peace with the sacrifices she has made for love. (from goodreads)

My Review:
How does the spirit survive when we have been subject to many levels of loss?? One of the main characters in this novel has faced loss on many levels throughout her ninety years, including the loss that started it all when she was eight.  Living a house that has seen the worst of humanity as well as the hope that remain within even in the face of the worst of the Civil War has shaped this house into a place that many fear and also admire.

Holly Oak is one of the few homes to remain standing after the Battle of Fredricksburg and the women of Holly Oak are left to piece together their lives after the war has moved on. Perception has shaped the women, hidden truths and mental illness has lead to many of the tragedies which they have had to face.

I loved reading this novel, it was engaging and sweet, this story really focused on thw women and their understanding of love, and the sacrifices they made for love.  Personally I couldn't and wouldn't have done what Marielle did, no way was I moving into the home that was your ex-wife's childhood home. Carson even though he intellectually knew he should move on truly wasn't ready but instead of moving on simply inserted his new wife in the empty slot in his life.

He would have spent many years there in that mode simply because Marielle refused to push for a new home.  I'm sure there is something there that made Marielle love him, but as he was written in the book, not much to endear him to the reader.

The book however was about the women, and what love is for them, how they view and shape their lives based on their perceptions of love. And it all started with the Civil War, and the forced sacrifices Susannah had to make for her love not of country but of family and her hearts desire.  Reading her letters was an insight that no amount of story telling by family members would have been able to convey, her personal take on the war raging around her made it more than an ideology it made it real.

I truly enjoyed this novel and look forward to reading more from Susan.

** I'm required to say that I received this book  from WaterBrook Press's Blogging for Books Program in exchange for an honest review**

Happy Reading

1 comment:

  1. This sounds like a great book. Thanks for your thoughts and the review. Have a great weekend! :O)

    ReplyDelete

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