Lovers and Newcomers

October 15, 2016

Thomas (Iris and Ruby; The Kashmir Shawl), whose previous two novels took place in Egypt and India, stays close to home with an English village setting for her latest multigenerational story. A group of old university friends uneasily reunite to try a semicommunal existence on the inherited estate of still-glamorous former actress Miranda, who is now widowed. Her dramatic vision for the group hits a rocky patch when a wealthier couple's new house excavation unearths archaeological treasure and a less-financially successful couple's single-handed renovation of an old barn becomes all-consuming. Rekindled and newly discovered passions, shifting mother-daughter relationships, and conflicts between the newcomers and the longtime village residents add drama. VERDICT With its ensemble cast of old friends and frenemies in an English country house as the seasons change, this comfortably familiar story of aging couples and widows weathering change will appeal to fans of British Aga sagas (think Joanna Trollope and Rosamunde Pilcher) and Deborah Moggach's The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.--Laurie Cavanaugh, Thayer P.L., Braintree, MA

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 1, 2016
When Miranda Meadowe inherits Mead from her late husband, she invites five college friends to come and live, fulfilling a decades-old promise to grow old together. Colin is still reeling over the murder of his boyfriend and having trouble making a commitment to Mead. Selwyn and Polly jump right into fixing up an old barn while their three kids deal with adulthood in London. Meanwhile, Amos and Katherine impatiently watch their modern mansion being built on land they bought from Miranda. But there is a delay when a skeleton is discovered, that of a late Iron Age warrior princess, buried with invaluable treasure. When the treasure is stolen, tensions rise between locals and the commune at Mead, and soon relationships are shaken up. Selwyn's post-college passion for Miranda hasn't died; Polly feels unmoored, even when Selwyn gets the plumbing working in their new place; and Katherine feels a kinship with the warrior princess that leads her to question everything. An engaging, emotionally rich story of best friends reconciling the past while the present marches irrevocably forward and of an unexpected shape of family.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)