Her experience opens up a can of worms, silk or otherwise but it certainly kicks off Rose Tremain's Trespass with a bang and pulled me into it. I read it in two sessions owing to its unputdownable qualities - superbly written, fast-paced and full of drama and conflict. It's always a joy to read plots that are new and original and this is one of them and the flavour of France is an extra bonus for me. The spattering of ellipses all over the place was the only irritating thing I could find to moan about. The action switches from London, where Anthony Verey, famed antique dealer has his shop in Chelsea to his older sister Veronica, a garden designer who lives with her lover Kitty, a wannabe watercolourist in Les Glaniques, a village in the Gard. Poor Anthony's brown furniture has fallen out of fashion and he's minded to sell up and move nearer to Veronica, much to Kitty's disgust.
Brothers, sisters, love, hate and change are ongoing themes in this book. Contrasting with Veronica's fierce loyalty towards her younger brother, we find a whirlpool of emotions running through the hatred between Audrun Lunel and her older brother Aramon who delighted in telling her in their younger days how she was really the daughter of a village woman and her Nazi lover during the war. Now neighbours on land they have inherited in La Callune, a village in Cevennes, Aramon wants to sell up to foreigners and can't because of Audrun's unsightly home marring his view.
Their lives become entwined with the Vereys when Anthony decides to view Aramon's farm. The story flows like a Grecian tide, carrying fascinating and bitter flotsam in its wake. Things will never be the same again for any of the characters by the end of Trespass.
1 comment:
This title is already on my wishlist and reading your review has confirmed for me that it should be, thanks Diane.
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