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The Lace Reader

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 In the tradition of The Thirteenth Tale, Brunonia Barry’s bewitching gothic novel, The Lace Reader, is a phenomenon. Called “[a] richly imagined saga of passion, suspense, and magic” by Time Magazine, it is a haunting and remarkable tale told by an unforgettable, if strangely unreliable narrator—a woman from an enigmatic Salem family who can foretell the future in patterns of lace. The Lace Reader was a runaway New York Times bestseller—hitting the top lists in major cities across the country, from Boston to Chicago to Los Angeles—and has immediately established debut author Brunonia Barry as a major force in contemporary American fiction. Detective Fantasy Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Mystery Psychological Women's Fiction Exciting Paranormal Suspense
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This is a well written and vividly told story. Much of it is compelling and it is mostly well paced. I personally found its twists and turns a little predictable which was somewhat disappointing but perhaps this is a reflection of me having read books with similar emotional themes.

Enjoyable but not excellent

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I entirely agree with the reviewer who found this book "enjoyable although a little boring". The first half of the novel was an interesting introduction to the town of Salem with it's history of witches and witch hunts but the second didn't keep me and I was listening reluctantly.

The lead character of Towner Whitney was endearing, if a little loopy. She has a complicated history, some of which even she does not know. She has left the Salem of her childhood because of a premonition that she had from the lace, and events that took place in her past. Her entwined family still lives there, in amongst the islands. They are all strong swimmers and confident with boats. As we gradually get to know these people and their history it becomes apparent that all is not as it first seems.
When one of them goes missing, Towner is forced to return and face her demons.
In some parts the story became a bit confusing, what was real and what dreamed, and the phrase "shape-shifted" was well overused.

I found the lace reading a bit unbelievable and the excerpts from the book penned by Towner's Aunt Eva that opened each chapter were far fetched in places. This was one of the disadvantages of the audiobook, the narrator insisted on reading these excerpts at each new chapter, where I would have skipped them.
Although events come to a head towards the end, this is not a thriller. Nor would I describe it as an historical novel, In my opinion it is a romantic mystery with supernatural overtones.

Review for the unabridged Audiobook.

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I entierly agree with the Amazon reviewer who found this book "enjoyable although a little boring". The first half of the novel was an interesting introduction to the town of Salem with it's history of witches and witch hunts but the second didn't keep my attention and I was listening reluctantly.

The lead character of Towner Whitney was endearing, if a little loopy. She has a complicated history, some of which even she does not know. She has left the Salem of her childhood because of a premonition that she had from the lace, and events that took place in her past. Her entwined family still lives there, in amongst the islands. They are all strong swimmers and confident with boats, they also have strong powers of fortune telling. As we gradually get to know these people and their history it becomes apparent that all is not as it first seems.
When one of them goes missing, Towner is forced to return and face her demons.
In some parts the story became a bit confusing, what was real and what dreamed, and the phrase "shape-shifted" was well overused.

I found the lace reading a bit unbelievable and the exerpts from the book penned by Towner's Aunt Eva that opened each chapter were far fetched in places. This was one of the disadvantages of the audiobook, the narrator insisted on reading these exerpts at each new chapter, where I would have skipped them.
Although events come to a head towards the end, this is not a thriller. Nor would I describe it as an historical novel, In my opinion it is a romantic mystery with supernatural overtones.
Well read by the narrator.

Disappointing

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Listened to on Audiobook downloaded from Audible, this details the story of Towner, who returns to her home town of Salem Mass., after her great aunt goes missing. She has spent years away on the other side of the country and her return makes her start to confront many secrets that have been buried, including the domestic abuse of her aunt, and the sexual abuse of her twin sister and her subsequent suicide.
Towner is an unreliable narrator (she says so right at the beginning), and the time she has spent in the hospital – including the Electric shock therapy - has made her memories go missing or flaky. She also is prone to hallucinations, believing she sees and talks to her aunt despite her being dead. All the women in her family have been “lace readers” – using lace to seek out signs and give advice to those who come seeking it.

The narrator is good, having a nice drawl and able to keep the listener interested. This should not be underestimated when listening to them for 10 hours!

The book is a fine mystery, certainly not a police procedural and definitely different. There are enough different “voices” to keep it from getting stale – Towner, her medical notes, her journals, the snippits from “The lace Reader” that has been written by her great aunt. There is also a good sub story of how the people of Salem are coping with their history of being a “witch town” and how it attracts both the tourist and the “crazies”.

Nothing is ever as it seems

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