Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Publication
Viking (1997), Hardcover, 256 pages
Description
Fiction. Historical Fiction. HTML: A smart, sharply written novel from a talent whose "fresh and original" works made her one of England's most beloved authors (The New York Times). Abandoned by her mother and betrayed by the men she thought she loved, Juno Marlowe is alone. So alone that when the air raid sirens ring out, she has nowhere to hide until a kind but frail man offers to take her in for the night. Her sad story inspires him to write her a letter of introduction to his family�a caring gesture that will turn out to mean more than she could have imagined. With nowhere to call home, she seeks out the man's father, Robert Copplestone, who lives on a quiet Cornwall estate where Juno is able to earn her keep by helping him tend to his animals. And she soon finds that the strong, handsome widower is more of a friend than she's ever had and more like family than anyone she's ever known. But when Juno's fractured past catches up with her, the fragile and unlikely bond Robert and Juno have formed may be in danger of breaking under the strain. This "heartwarming story of May-December love" is a gentle look at the folly of humanity, weaving a tale of friendship, love, and healing (Publishers Weekly). "An elegant, satisfying entertainment." �Kirkus Reviews.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member cameling
Unloved by her mother, disliked by her aunt, considered a plaything by childhood friends, Juno is not thought of quite so much as a person in her own right but as ...well, just someone who's there.
With WWII escalating, her mother in Canada, now remarried, her aunt trying to bully her into signing
Watching the relationships that develop between Juno, the housekeeper, the country gentleman in whose house she has come to live, the farm manager and the nosy neighbor is part of what makes this a truly delightful read, as does watching Juno learn to enjoy being among people who love and care for her.
With WWII escalating, her mother in Canada, now remarried, her aunt trying to bully her into signing
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up for some war service work, Juno is entrusted with a letter to deliver in the country wherein she finds herself warmly welcomed and seemingly immediately adopted by the inhabitants and neighbors. Watching the relationships that develop between Juno, the housekeeper, the country gentleman in whose house she has come to live, the farm manager and the nosy neighbor is part of what makes this a truly delightful read, as does watching Juno learn to enjoy being among people who love and care for her.
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LibraryThing member Smiler69
Seventeen year-old Juno Marlowe is heartbroken after having seen off her two best friends, bound for their army service during WWII at a London train station. Adding to her sorrow and confusion is the recent memory of a threesome which she hadn't planned for and didn't necessarily consent to, but
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before she has a chance to sort out her thoughts and feelings, she's grabbed by a kindly stranger who pulls her into his house for protection as an air raid is underway. The man is obviously in poor health, and even as he has innocently asked Juno to lie by his side, soon passes away, but not before having first written a letter to his father about the young girl. All these events are covered very quickly at the start of the story however, and the rest unfolds when Juno has made her way to the father's farm out in the English countryside. It's a wartime tale about the sorrow of loss and the hope new beginnings bring with wonderfully colourful characters, and best of all, Wesley's gorgeous prose. I wish I could do this book justice, because it is one that definitely deserves to be read an enjoyed by many. Wesley herself is an interesting character, as it seems she only took up writing in her 70th year after the passing of her husband, and went on to become a bestseling British author in the last 20 years of her life. Definitely an author I'll be reading a lot more from. This audio version was narrated by Samuel West, who could possibly be the love of my life, or at the very least, my very favourite narrator. Show Less
LibraryThing member sylviasotomayor
I like Mary Wesley's novels because they are generally about a misfit finding or making a place where they do fit in. This one is no exception.
It is 1941, and Juno Marlowe, age 17 and not valued by her family or "friends", is on her own. Due to random circumstances she eventually finds herself in
It is 1941, and Juno Marlowe, age 17 and not valued by her family or "friends", is on her own. Due to random circumstances she eventually finds herself in
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Cornwall, living on an estate called Copplestone. Show Less
LibraryThing member Luli81
I don't know why but I had high expectations about this author. I hadn't read any of Wesley's novels before but I felt attracted to her stories, which seemed to be well crafted, accordingly to most of the reviews.
Well, I'm a bit deflated, to tell the truth.
The story: England, the Great World War.
Without nowhere else to go, she decides to hand in the letter and finds such a warm welcome that she is compelled to stay, feeling for the first time that she is not part of the furniture.
I was hooked by the story; easy plot and fast paced, I finished the novel in just a couple of days.
But I have to say that the characters lacked depth, personality and charm.
How could a girl of 17 be so innocent? Juno seemed retarded sometimes, especially when talking about basic sexual aspects. She could be in the dark about the details but not about the whole thing. I think she wasn't developed enough as a character and that's why she seems to be a silly girl in several scenes of the book.
Robert and Ann are just talked about when they fit in the story, we don't know much about them, apart from Robert being an excellent lover who lost his wife and Ann being a not happily married woman who craves for the child she never had.
Moreover, the last chapter didn't help to improve my poor impression of the novel.
What other reviewers have called a "twist" is for me an unfathomable outcome, too unbelievable to be realistic and therefore, only an easy way to shock the reader, with no intention to look for that bittersweet ache left after turning the last page of a really good novel.
So, not an appalling reading, but not an exceeding one neither.
I don't know if I'll be reading more Wesley's in the future, having Jude Morgan's, Susanna Kearsley's and Jenifer Donnelly's books yet to discover...
Well, I'm a bit deflated, to tell the truth.
The story: England, the Great World War.
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Juno is only 17, but already a misfit, appallingly innocent, left alone by her mother, who has remarried and fled to Canada, her father long dead and her cold aunt who doesn't care a bit for her. We meet Juno after leaving her two lovers on the train station, leaving to fight for their country. Abused and mistreated without even knowing it herself, Juno meets a dying young man during a bomb raid who leaves her the address of his family with a letter to be handed to his father, in a farm in Cornwall. Without nowhere else to go, she decides to hand in the letter and finds such a warm welcome that she is compelled to stay, feeling for the first time that she is not part of the furniture.
I was hooked by the story; easy plot and fast paced, I finished the novel in just a couple of days.
But I have to say that the characters lacked depth, personality and charm.
How could a girl of 17 be so innocent? Juno seemed retarded sometimes, especially when talking about basic sexual aspects. She could be in the dark about the details but not about the whole thing. I think she wasn't developed enough as a character and that's why she seems to be a silly girl in several scenes of the book.
Robert and Ann are just talked about when they fit in the story, we don't know much about them, apart from Robert being an excellent lover who lost his wife and Ann being a not happily married woman who craves for the child she never had.
Moreover, the last chapter didn't help to improve my poor impression of the novel.
What other reviewers have called a "twist" is for me an unfathomable outcome, too unbelievable to be realistic and therefore, only an easy way to shock the reader, with no intention to look for that bittersweet ache left after turning the last page of a really good novel.
So, not an appalling reading, but not an exceeding one neither.
I don't know if I'll be reading more Wesley's in the future, having Jude Morgan's, Susanna Kearsley's and Jenifer Donnelly's books yet to discover...
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LibraryThing member ivanfranko
A delightful read.
LibraryThing member spiralsheep
15/2020. Not as well written as some of Wesley's novels but more easily digestible, I suppose.
Quite:
‘These days we eat in the kitchen.’ Violet strode down the hall. ‘I encouraged the maids to join up.’
Juno said, ‘Oh. And did they?’
‘Cook is making Spitfires but Bridget, you remember
‘Yes.’
‘Well, Bridget went back to her family in Cork, said the war had nothing to do with her, that she was a Fenian, if you please.’
Juno laughed. ‘And is she?’
Violet said, ‘How would I know?’
And this made me laugh:
[...] lay sleepless all night worrying as to whether the pattern of the wallpaper in the bedroom of the bombed house opposite Evelyn's was or was not a Morris print.
Quite:
‘These days we eat in the kitchen.’ Violet strode down the hall. ‘I encouraged the maids to join up.’
Juno said, ‘Oh. And did they?’
‘Cook is making Spitfires but Bridget, you remember
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Bridget?’‘Yes.’
‘Well, Bridget went back to her family in Cork, said the war had nothing to do with her, that she was a Fenian, if you please.’
Juno laughed. ‘And is she?’
Violet said, ‘How would I know?’
And this made me laugh:
[...] lay sleepless all night worrying as to whether the pattern of the wallpaper in the bedroom of the bombed house opposite Evelyn's was or was not a Morris print.
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Subjects
Language
Original publication date
1997
Physical description
256 p.; 8.6 inches
ISBN
0670873632 / 9780670873630
Local notes
lr 4/7