The Lace Reader

The Lace Reader
By Brunonia Barry
William Morrow, 2006. 390 pgs. Fiction

When Towner Whitney’s great aunt disappears from her mansion in Salem, Massachusetts, Towner reluctantly returns to her childhood home. Going home means opening old wounds and Towner quickly learns she cannot run from who she is and where she comes from. In an area with a history of witches and mysticism, this story is filled with ideas of destiny, faith, and the survival of people and ideas which veer from the mainstream.

It took me about 100 pages to really enjoy this book and even after that I wasn’t always sure what I thought of it. The narration was a little disjointed, though I believe that was intentional to a point, so I shouldn’t be too critical. The story was slow but well thought out and by the end I was very eager to reach the conclusion. Overall I would recommend this book, especially to people who liked “The Secret Life of Bees” or maybe “The History of Love”.

CZ