Home Fires

July 15, 2013
In modern-day England, Elsa Weston is 98, debilitated by a stroke, and furious at not being able to express herself or make her body follow orders. In 1920, she is a child trying to cope with a father she barely recalls, back from the war that has left him depressed, angry, and abusive. In between she is the elegant, contained, upper-class woman who intimidates her daughter-in-law, Caroline. In her U.S. debut, Day is excellent at showing the complexities of human relationships, making us sympathize with Elsa when we’re with her, while pulling no punches about how inflexible and imperious she is when seen from Caroline’s vantage point. The problem is that this subtlety is serving a larger story that isn’t particularly interesting: Caroline and Andrew’s son, Max, by all accounts exactly the kind of man one would want in the army, enlists and is killed during his first posting in Africa. Devastated by grief, Caroline turns away from her husband and develops a Xanax habit, and when Elsa’s decline necessitates a move to Caroline and Andrew’s house, everyone’s isolation and anger is compounded. Day is given to telling us things we could figure out for ourselves, but the real problem is the lack of events or emotional variety in this well-intentioned but flat story.

December 4, 1995
Law (Reckless Angel) exercises an ardent eye for detail and a fine poetic voice in her fourth historical. The story opens with 19th-century New Yorker Amanda Sellington on the run from an abusive husband with her nine-year-old stepson, Daniel. Their only possessions are the clothes on their backs and the precious Sellington diamonds. Heading west on the train, Amy meets Helga von Leigh, who is returning home to New Ulm, Minn. Helga considers it her purpose in life to make a home for German brewery owner Jakob Hall and his mischievous nephew, Nicolaus, whose family was lost during the Sioux uprising. With matchmaking in mind, Helga invites Amy to move into the guest house and sets about pushing Amy and Jakob toward the altar. But Amy cannot tolerate the touch of a man's hand, and Jakob has dreams of a world outside New Ulm. This gentle romance tugs at the heartstrings while offering readers a bird's-eye view of the rich history of Minnesota and the tragedy now known as the Dakota Conflict. Fans of historical romances by Jill Marie Landis and LaVyrle Spencer will find Law's latest their cup of escapist tea.