Sunday 12 April 2015

A Review of The Faerie Tree by Jane Cable - Three **

A Review of The Faerie Tree by Jane Cable - Three **

Blurb:

How can a memory so vivid be wrong? 

I tried to remember the first time I’d been here and to see the tree through Izzie’s eyes. The oak stood on a rise just above the path; not too tall or wide but graceful and straight, its trunk covered in what I can only describe as offerings – pieces of ribbon, daisy chains, a shell necklace, a tiny doll or two and even an old cuckoo clock. 
"Why do people do this?" Izzie asked. 
I winked at her. "To say thank you to the fairies." 

In the summer of 1986 Robin and Izzie hold hands under The Faerie Tree and wish for a future together. Within hours tragedy rips their dreams apart. 

In the winter of 2006, each carrying their own burden of grief, they stumble back into each other’s lives and try to create a second chance. But why are their memories of 1986 so different? And which one of them is right? 

With strong themes of paganism, love and grief, The Faerie Tree is a novel as gripping and unputdownable as Jane Cable’s first book, The Cheesemaker’s House, which won the Suspense & Crime category of The Alan Titchmarsh Show’s People’s Novelist competition. It is a story that will resonate with fans of romance, suspense, and folklore.




Review: 

This is the story of Izzie and Robin. How they met, split and re-met years later. It is a very emotional book and describes depression very well - particularly from the point of how people have come to have more tolerance and understanding of it as an illness.

Izzie has been recently widowed and when shopping with her daughter Claire,she bumps into a tramp and recognises him as her former lover, Robin. They meet again and restart their relationship. The interesting part is that they have completely different memories of their relationship at the beginning and this is not explained until fairly near the end.

I was, however, disappointed in the lack of magic/paganism in the novel, despite the promise of the blurb. It also seemed very long-winded in places and overly long as a whole.

Claire is a wonderful character - older than her years and a loyal supporter of both Izzie and Robin. Robin is also beautifully written and I felt so sorry for him as the depression overtook him time and time again.

But Izzie, who should have induced sympathy as well, just irritated me in the end. Her lack of understanding of other peoples' points of view didn't fit with the rest of her character. Her mental crisis is well written but the alcohol dependency was skimmed over.

Overall I was disappointed.

Amazon UK: The Faerie Tree
Amazon US: The Faerie Tree

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