The Lace Reader

By: Brunonia Barry

Narrated by: Alyssa Bresnahan

Every gift has a price...

Every piece of lace has a secret...

"My name is Towner Whitney. No, that's not exactly true. My real first name is Sophya. Never believe me. I lie all the time...."

Towner Whitney, the self-confessed unreliable narrator of The Lace Reader, hails from a family of Salem women who can read the future in the patterns in lace and who have guarded a history of secrets going back generations. But the disappearance of two women brings Towner home to Salem and the truth about the death of her twin sister to light.

The Lace Reader is a mesmerizing tale that spirals into a world of secrets, confused identities, lies, and half-truths, in which the reader quickly finds it's nearly impossible to separate fact from fiction. But as Towner Whitney points out early on in the novel, "There are no accidents."

©2006 Brunonia Barry (P)2008 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

"Barry excels at capturing the feel of smalltown life, and balances action with close looks at the characters' inner worlds. Her pacing and use of different perspectives show tremendous skill and will keep readers captivated all the way through." ( Publishers Weekly)

New England history

New England is always a great venue for a tale, this was an interesting read, unfortunately I am one who likes ends tied up and I was left not quite sure about a lot of the story.

Unbelievably Wonderful

The book was wonderful. Listen once, and then listen to it again with a new understanding after "Reading the Lace".

Unexpectedly riveting

I didn't read this book when it first came out because it sounded sort of chick-lit-ish. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the writing and for what outstanding characters Barry created. I wanted to know what had happened to them, was surprised by what did happen and was deeply drawn into the story. Excellent book.

Light but thoughtful chick-lit

A classic plot of troubles and transformation with a cast full of women of all ages and in all stages of life make this a fun read.

Compelling but not addictive

Great performance by Barry--lilting voice but not sing-song. Didn't grate on my nerves. Story was terrific with a bit of a twist. Characters well drawn and sympathetic (even Cal!) I'll look for my by the author and the reader!

Difficult but good

Towner is an example of an unreliable narrator. From the beginning you suspect that her judgments of the events from the past and the present are distorted. The ending was a surprise that I didnt see coming. It was riveting as much as it was hard to stomach. I would recommend this book to anyone familiar with the North Shore and Salem lifestyle and history, but only if you can stand a virulent plot thread of meanness, murder, and the foulest of abuse. The authors genius is the tapestry of images that is woven as a back drop to the story. The Eastern Yacht Club, Hamilton Hall, Derby Street, the witches, the tourists, the common, even the restoring of the ship off Pickering Wharf, it is all there and described so well that I could smell the sea air mixed with street vender sausage and peppers.

enjoyable

A compelling story with a good, surprising ending. The type of book that leaves you mulling it over in your head long after the narrative has ended.

As a crafter, I chose this book because of its apparent topic of lace making. However, I found that the story doesn't particularly pertain to or revolve around the handcrafting, but rather uses the tradition and history of handmade lace as a rich background from which to draw parallels and metaphors. It's artfully done.

The narrator of the audio version does a great job with the voices, including older women, cops, and adolescents. My one complaint: she doesn't pause enough between sentences or paragraphs, so it's a little difficult to find a good stopping point.

Wonderful crazy book!

A beautiful and scary story to see how fragile we can all be. As mother of twins raised in Boston it might have resounded a little louder to me but by the end I was in tears. This is not light reading but one you should consider to detox your heart. The only thing I didn't like was the narration. It seemed like a an English lit professor was reading. But I think this was the directors fault and not the narrator as she seems very talented.

Be brave and roll with it.

This story is difficult to review without spoiling anything so don't mind my tiptoe-type of reviewing. What I find brilliant about this book is that it doesn't follow the rules and thereby makes the reader shake off their expectations and complacency. Acceptance is what will carry you through this fascinating story of characters who feel real. Their inner voices are complex and flawed like, you know, actual humans. This is the type of writing that elevates the author to artist in my (not so) humble opinion. The story may not be easy to experience, but it's rewarding. I recommend reading it twice for reasons that will become clear after you finish the first time.
(My review was originally posted on Goodreads)

engrossing

I found the idea that the intricacies of lace could hold clues to one's future rather intrigueing. The book captured my imagination and did not disappoint. I did not suspect what the end would be until I was almost there; it made me go back to to start so I could understnad everything better. I had forgotten what Towner had said about lying.