Mum & Dad

May 18, 2020
Sudden illness impacts three generations of a family in Trollope’s rewarding latest (after An Unsuitable Match). British expats Gus and Monica Beacham have run a successful vineyard in southern Spain since 1993. When a stroke leaves Gus temporarily mute and incapacitated, the couple’s three adult children, all of whom live in England, must help Monica keep the business functioning. Jake, 38, the youngest of the three, decides to move his reluctant wife, Bella, and their infant daughter to Spain while masterminding a risky new vineyard expansion. Though his siblings Sebastian and Katie are puzzled by Jake’s eagerness to leave England behind, they’re too overwhelmed by their own lives not to be grateful for his initiative. Sebastian feels insecure and unimportant compared to his overachieving wife, and Katie struggles to balance a demanding legal career with care for a daughter who self-harms. As Gus confronts his new limits, Monica discovers that his frustration makes him even more stubborn and irritable than before, while Gus himself is angered by Jake’s high-handed decisions. Trollope’s warmhearted but unsentimental storytelling reveals her characters’ flaws but also their capacity to change. This insightful look at the family tensions that develop as parents age will please the author’s fans and resonate with a wide variety of readers.