The Ashford Affair. Lauren Willig. St. Martin’s Press. April 2013.
368 pp. hbk. ISBN #: 9781250014498
Addie
Gillicote’s life has evolved into a series of dramatic changes, some of which
fall upon her and some of which she inadvertently causes. Her granddaughter,
Clementine (Clemmie), seems to be following the same journey. It all begins with the sudden, accidental
death of Addie’s parents when she is sent to live with her cousin, Bea’s
family. Addie is really unwanted, the daughter of “bohemian” parents who really
doesn’t fit into the aristocratic family she is now expected to call her
own. WWI looms almost immediately upon
her arrival, but Bea and Addie promise from the very first day to be like “sisters.”
What is to follow is far from sisterly behavior!
The
story goes back and forth between the late 1920’s in England to New York in the
year 2000. Addie is old and frail but we
are treated to the story of her life, which includes falling in love with what
she believes is the wrong man; Bea marries the wrong man, divorces, and then is
forced to marry another man, Frederick; they quickly tire of each other and
even come to loathe each other. Bea
believes she saved Addie from the likes of Frederick but the story shows
otherwise with a shocking series of events that doesn’t come to light until
Clemmie, years later finds out the truth that is really about lie after lie
after lie.
Frederick
is a stereotypical character marred by the awful memories he carries from his
time of service in WWI. He is so shocked
and marred that he is incapable of following his heart instead of reasoning
what could possibly destroy the woman he truly loves! He will change but not until he is so in love
with a daughter that he fears to choose a lifestyle that might mean losing her
and later his wife, Bea.
In
a time when couples married for social standing, love arrangements seem to be
satirized, especially when they are reached through rebellion and from selfish
interests. Clemmie, after losing a
senior associate lawyer’s position in which she hoped to become partner after
seven grueling years of work and sacrifice, is circumspect about the possibility
of love and finding where to fit in for one’s own worth, a position contrary to
everything she was raised to believe would guarantee happiness. Changing times often leave behind
personalities who either refuse to change or who choose the most contrary
opposite of lifestyles. It’s all about
finding one’s identity as one loses the old ways; for some it works, for others
it’s tragic!
The Ashford Affair is a gripping story of love and hate
gone awry and reaching out for a satisfactory union that will heal a mass of
wounds almost worse than war itself!
Lauren Willig has crafted a stunning read that is quite reflective of
the eighty year span of history that shaped and jettisoned generations into the
twenty-first century. Great Read!
Awesome!
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