I have no more words left to express the beautiful and tenderness of a Viola Shipman novel. Constantly giving homage to his grandmothers, this magnificent story is about loss, sadness, trust and finding out who you are and where you came from. Set during the time of Covid with an empathetic feel we can all relate to, the tale is about the value of life, forgiveness, letting go with a bit of a mystery thrown in. Delightful!
When Sutton Douglas loses her mother to Covid, she also loses her only relative, and her unknown history of where she came from and who is her family. Her mother, Miss Mable was a hardworking seamstress whose family died in a tragic fire. Miss Mable refused to talk to Sutton about what happened or give her any information as to who her father was, or even where she came from. The only observation Miss Mable passed down to Sutton were don’t trust anybody but yourself. She also passed down her passion for sewing and her love of buttons.
When Sutton gets a letter from her mother after her death, basically telling her to let go of the past, and just move on, Sutton is heartbroken. But when she finds a hidden picture of a man in her mother’s belongings, she realizes she must try and find the answers to the questions. She feels she at least deserves this closure to become free.
So, she packs up and heads to a resort town in Michigan which has her last name, Douglas. She begins to fall in love with this wonderful community of people and the peacefulness of the landscape all the while trying to somehow piece her, or Miss Mable’s history, together. There she meets the matriarch of the community, Bonnie Lyson, who seems to take a liking? to her. Bonnie sells her a collection buttons Sutton sees, which are the exact type her mother cherished for all these years. The same buttons Sutton has continued to use in her own designs.
As she begins to let her guard down, she discovers a strength in herself she thought she never had. A trust in in those around her, and a faith in her own decisions. As she begins to put the sketchy pieces of her history together, a stronger Sutton wonders what in the world Miss Mable did not want her to find out.
And the ending is the wonderful pinnacle of a delightful and strong story of forgiveness and coming out of the dark whole on the other side.
Thank you #NetGalley #GraydonHouse #TheEdgeofSummer #ViolaShipman for the advanced copy.
Lisa's Cubby 