The Lace Reader
By (Author) Brunonia Barry
HarperCollins Publishers
William Collins
27th April 2010
United Kingdom
General
Fiction
813.6
Paperback
400
Width 129mm, Height 198mm, Spine 25mm
288g
Drawn by family. Driven by fear. Haunted by fate.
Would knowing the future be a gift or a burden Or even a curse
The Whitney women of Salem, Massachusetts are renowned for reading the future in the patterns of lace. But the future doesnt always bring good news as Towner Whitney knows all too well. When she was just fifteen her gift sent her whole world crashing to pieces. She predicted and then witnessed something so horrific that she vowed never to read lace again, and fled her home and family for good. Salem is a place of ghosts for Towner, and she swore she would never return.
Yet family is a powerful tie. So it is that fifteen years later, Towner finds herself back in Salem. Her beloved Great Aunt Eva has suddenly disappeared and when youve lived a life like Evas, that could mean real trouble. But Salem is wreathed in sickly shadows and whispered half-memories. Its fast becoming clear that the ghosts of Towners fractured past have not been brought fully into the light. And with them comes the threat of terrifying new disaster.
A literary page-turner with depth, narrative power and a story that novels like The Thirteenth Tale can only dream of, The Lace Reader is a bewitching and tightly plotted read.
An unusual and beguiling literary thriller about a fascinating family of women. The setting of the tight-knit Salem community, still haunted by a heritage of witchcraft and persecution, is marvellously evoked. Enchanting, whimsical and menacing by turns and with a brightly drawn oddball cast it's an exhilarating and ultimately uplifting read. Rachel Hore, The Memory Garden
Blithe and creepy in equal measure. [Barry] captures [Salem] evocatively and often wittily. What is real in The Lace Reader What is notThere are clues planted everywhere. New York Times
Grippinga marvellously bizarre cast of characters (living and dead) in a uniquely colorful town. Washington Post
A gorgeously written literary novel thats also a doozy of a thriller, capped with a jaw-dropping denouement that will leave even the most careful reader gaspinga major feat. Chicago Tribune
Set in Salem, Brunonia Barry's The Lace Reader is a witty dark story about a family gifted with the art of reading fortunes in lace heirlooms, but whose sinister predictions frighten even themselves. Easy Living
Born and raised in Massachusetts, Brunonia Barry lives in Salem with her husband and their beloved golden retriever, Byzantium.