Publishers Weekly
š 02/22/2016
In this outstanding standalone from Edgar-finalist McPherson (The Child Garden), Lowell Glenfs house cum bookstore, Lowland Glen Books, in Wigtown, Scotland, becomes a haven first for Jude, a librarian who has run away from her personal problems in London; and then for pregnant 19-year-old Eddy Preston, who shows up from Ireland and claims that Lowell is her dad from a casual affair. Nosy, dotty Marion Hewston, who lives in the bungalow at the bottom of Lowellfs garden, tells of the period 20 years earlier when Lowell kept an open house for frequent visitors, as background to her version of Eddyfs birth. Meanwhile, Jude moves into the cottage of the late Todd Jolly, whose library contains books with insightful jottings hinting at a darker mystery and suspicious deaths in Wigtownfs past. Judefs probing questions lead to threats, then actions that will change all their lives. McPhersonfs literary observations are delightful, her quirky collection of characters intriguing, and the unfolding mystery highly satisfying. Agent: Lisa Moylett, Coombs Moylett Literary Agency. (Apr.)