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The Lace Reader: A Novel by Brunonia Barry
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The Lace Reader: A Novel (original 2006; edition 2009)

by Brunonia Barry

Series: Salem (1)

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3,3852813,806 (3.53)528
A young woman descended from a long line of mind readers and fortune tellers has returned to her hometown of Salem, Massachusetts, for rest and relaxation. Any tranquility in her life is short-lived, however, when her aunt drowns under mysterious circumstances.
Member:signrock
Title:The Lace Reader: A Novel
Authors:Brunonia Barry
Info:Harper Paperbacks (2009), Paperback, 416 pages
Collections:Your library
Rating:****
Tags:None

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The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry (2006)

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» See also 528 mentions

English (270)  Italian (5)  Spanish (3)  German (1)  Dutch (1)  Norwegian (1)  All languages (281)
Showing 1-5 of 270 (next | show all)
Listened to on Audiobook downloaded from Audible, this details the story of Towner, who returns to her home town of Salem Mass., after her great aunt goes missing. She has spent years away on the other side of the country and her return makes her start to confront many secrets that have been buried, including the domestic abuse of her aunt, and the sexual abuse of her twin sister and her subsequent suicide. [return]Towner is an unreliable narrator (she says so right at the beginning), and the time she has spent in the hospital ( )
  nordie | Oct 14, 2023 |
I was really into this and then at a certain point was totally confused by where it ended up. I loved the lace reading and the Salem location but something got lost for me. ( )
  Andy5185 | Jul 9, 2023 |
Let me start with the positives...the descriptions of the town and houses, the atmosphere of Salem...hmm...I'm really trying hard to dig up something. Because ultimately, I didn't really like the book. I was not a fan of how convoluted the story was but I understand the author's idea for writing the story this way. Being in the mind of person with mental health issues means you are also only getting what they know and see and think. I did not really like the main character but she did have a lot going on in her life.

I wanted to love it...the story is right up my alley of stories I enjoy...but overall I just didn't enjoy it. I did finish the whole book though, so that's saying something. ( )
  Chanicole | Jul 6, 2023 |
Sophya aka Towner has returned home to Salem, Massachusetts after finding out her Aunt Eva was reported missing. The women in the family have a special gift of reading lace, something Towner avoided. As she deals with the disappearance of her Aunt, she begins to deal with the ghosts of her past. Will she be able to pick up the pieces when all is revealed?

This was a fascinating story of Salem and those considered witches. That stood as the bäckdrop to Towner's story, which had many twists right until the very end to keep you engrossed. There are also many emotional moments, so keep a box of tissues handy. ( )
  sunshine9573 | Dec 19, 2022 |
My opinion of this varied the deeper I got in. I had a hard time keeping straight the relationship of the adults Eva, Emma, & May tho I can see that was deliberate on the author's part as Towner also had them confused. At one point I felt I couldn't imagine any people so messed up as to create & accept the Calvinist cult, and that made me feel like lace reading was also an aspect without basis in reality, and the dysfunction of Emma & May. Like some of Alice Hoffman's books, Barry seemed to be stretching what readers will accept just to create a saleable tale. This was well written, though, and the ending was not what I expected but very redemptive.
The main male characters were pretty dysfunctional also. Although we never learn much about Rafferty's past, he at least is doing his best to help others.
I liked the setting on the ocean/bay, the mix of tourist boats and lobster boats, and that Towner was proficient with boats--perhaps as a midwesterner I am enamoured of the sea. ( )
  juniperSun | Aug 10, 2022 |
Showing 1-5 of 270 (next | show all)
For 15 år siden, da Towner Whitneys liv ble lagt i grus, sverget hun på to ting: At hun aldri skulle sette sine ben i hjembyen Salem igjen. Og at hun aldri mer ville lese i kniplinger. For Towner har arvet denne sjette sansen, den mange av Whitney-klanens kvinner er utstyrt med, den som gjør dem i stand til å spå andres skjebne.
Det er bare ett eneste menneske som kan få Towner tilbake til Salem: Grandtante Eva - den beste kniplingleseren av dem alle. Nå er den gamle kvinnen sporløst borte. Kan Towner finne sannheten om familiens dypt bevarte hemmeligheter i Evas forlatte hus?

"Kniplingenes hemmelighet" foregår i fargerike Salem, byen som er berømt for fortidens utallige heksebål. Historien om Towner favner vidt og er spenningsroman, slektskrønike, historisk skildring og magisk fortelling - men først og fremst er det en sterk og varm beretning som fanger leseren fra Towners første, skjebnesvangre ord: Mitt navn er Towner Whitney. Nei, det er ikke helt sant. I virkeligheten er fornavnet mitt Sophya. Tro aldri på det jeg sier. Jeg lyver i ett sett. Jeg er en gal kvinne - dette siste er san
added by kirstenlund | edithttp://www.aschehoug.no (Feb 26, 2011)
 

» Add other authors (6 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Brunonia Barryprimary authorall editionscalculated
Bresnahan, AlyssaNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Sandberg, AnnaTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed

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Salem (1)
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Epigraph
The Lace Reader must stare at the piece of lace until the pattern blurs and the face of the Seeker disappears completely behind the veil. When the eyes begin to fill with tears and the patience is long exhausted, there will appear a glimpse of something not quite seen. In this moment an image will begin to form . . . in the space between what is real and what is only imagined. --The Lace Reader's Guide
Dedication
To my wonderful husband, Gary, and to my sister-in-law Joanne's magical red hair
First words
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.
Quotations
He was worse than a Starbucks snob, but he didn't tell her that. He didn't even drink Starbucks coffee. Used to. Then, last year, his daughter had saved up her allowance and bought him a French press for Christmas, and now he couldn't drink his coffee any other way.
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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
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Wikipedia in English (1)

A young woman descended from a long line of mind readers and fortune tellers has returned to her hometown of Salem, Massachusetts, for rest and relaxation. Any tranquility in her life is short-lived, however, when her aunt drowns under mysterious circumstances.

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Book description
Towner Whitney, descended from a line of mind readers and fortune tellers, returns to Salem, Massachusetts to recover from several traumas and discovers that her great-aunt Eva has suspiciously drowned, and local cop John Rafferty looks into the mystery while falling for Towner.
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