Sara
Monteith is a young woman who lost her fiancé, Ivo, in WWII. Years later she
moves to the village where he grew up to try to bring some closure. She gets to
know the townspeople and writes about her experiences to Ivo's brother, Hugo.
I enjoyed
the lovely writing and the vignettes of small-town life in 1950s England. Of
course, any book with casual nods to the Bible, Rime of the Ancient Mariner,
Gunga Din, Kubla Khan, Cranford, Sir Walter Scott, the Brontës, Louisa Mae
Alcott, and The Book of Common Prayer would be sure to make my literature-loving
heart sing for joy.
Because of
the reviews, I braced myself for the ending, but, honestly, I didn't
mind how it all played out. Sara lives an unimpressive life as far as book
heroines go, but I loved it that her quiet steadiness couldn't help but have an
impact on her community.
Yoked with a Lamb was my fourth Clavering novel. It was much more adult than the other novels in terms of language (mild swearing) and subject (adultery), but still very chaste by modern standards.
Lucy and Andrew are trying to put their marriage back together after his dalliance with another woman. They do not love each other, but various motives propel them to try again. Their relationship is the background for much of what happens in the novel, but the story is peopled with many other strong characters such as Kate Heron, Robin Anstruther, and Robin’s formidable Aunt Jean. The ending was not quite as tidy as I had hoped it would be. But Clavering had her own way of resolving the Lucy and Andrew's situation that was satisfying enough. I wasn’t expecting to like the book as much as I did.
I'm glad my library has four more Clavering titles!
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