Book Review: Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield

Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received this ebook  free of charge,from Simon and Schuster via netgalley, for review purposes on this blog. No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about it, all opinions are my own.


                       We're stepping across the pond today for Mystery Monday!

From the instant #1 New York Times bestselling author of the “eerie and fascinating” (USA TODAY) The Thirteenth Tale comes a richly imagined, powerful new novel about how we explain the world to ourselves, ourselves to others, and the meaning of our lives in a universe that remains impenetrably mysterious.

Synopsis:

On a dark midwinter’s night in an ancient inn on the river Thames, an extraordinary event takes place. The regulars are telling stories to while away the dark hours, when the door bursts open on a grievously wounded stranger. In his arms is the lifeless body of a small child. Hours later, the girl stirs, takes a breath and returns to life. Is it a miracle? Is it magic? Or can science provide an explanation? These questions have many answers, some of them quite dark indeed.

Those who dwell on the river bank apply all their ingenuity to solving the puzzle of the girl who died and lived again, yet as the days pass the mystery only deepens. The child herself is mute and unable to answer the essential questions: Who is she? Where did she come from? And to whom does she belong? But answers proliferate nonetheless.

Three families are keen to claim her. A wealthy young mother knows the girl is her kidnapped daughter, missing for two years. A farming family reeling from the discovery of their son’s secret liaison, stand ready to welcome their granddaughter. The parson’s housekeeper, humble and isolated, sees in the child the image of her younger sister. But the return of a lost child is not without complications and no matter how heartbreaking the past losses, no matter how precious the child herself, this girl cannot be everyone’s. Each family has mysteries of its own, and many secrets must be revealed before the girl’s identity can be known.

Once Upon a River is a glorious tapestry of a book that combines folklore and science, magic and myth. Suspenseful, romantic, and richly atmospheric, the beginning of this novel will sweep you away on a powerful current of storytelling, transporting you through worlds both real and imagined, to the triumphant conclusion whose depths will continue to give up their treasures long after the last page is turned.

Review:

This book asks us what IS the truth, and what is not what it seems, and what are we willing to believe-at any cost. It's an amazing tale that is so well weaved that you'll find yourself stopping to wonder at how Diane kept it all from unraveling while writing it! Once transported to the 1800s, you won't want to leave, as Diane weaves the reader into the tale so well. As you get to know each of the families that lie claim to the discovered child, you'll be just as confused as to where she belongs. And then when the truth comes out, you won't be surprised, but rather enchanted. Good luck NOT putting this book down, you may want to read it for 24 hours straight!

About the Author:

DIANE SETTERFIELD is the author of The Thirteenth Tale, which was published in thirty-eight countries worldwide and has sold more than three million copies, and Bellman & Black. Before leaving academia to pursue writing, she taught English at the Institut universitaire de technologie and the Ecole nationale supérieure de Chimie, both in Mulhouse, France, and later lectured in French at the University of Central Lancashire in the UK. She lives in Oxford, UK. For mroe info check out her website at DianeSetterfield.com