Swan

In Swan, Georgia, it is humid, and everyone knows one another's business. This perfectly captures the feel of the "Old South" that lingers around what I like to call the "cotton aristocracy." (As a southerner, I am allowed to say this without any hint of condescension toward, and only love for, the people that phrase describes!) The characters are complex people that you feel you are gradually coming to know and like. It is a suspenseful story about a family who was torn apart by their mother's suicide. When someone digs up the mother's body the family is in for a shock, and their healing can begin. The theme of archaeology, both of historical artifacts, and skeletons in the family closet is explored in a unique way. One gets a real show more sense of both the South, and Italy, in this book. show less

Found myself engrossed in the story and charmed by the characters. I fell in love with under the Tuscan sun when I read it many years ago. This book, though sad, was a delight.

This book deserves some more love. I wasn't expecting much based on the reviews here and elsewhere, but it was lovely. Especially the ending. The only time when the discovery of a murder lightens the heart and burdens of the characters in the book. Fascinating and satisfying.

decent book with a bad ending

I was vaguely disappointed at the end. Expected more of something.
***
Booklist Review: Mayes, author of the very popular nonfiction accounts Under the Tuscan Sun (1996) and Bella Tuscan (1999), grounds her first novel in her childhood home of Georgia. The small town of Swan, chartered by John Mason and reigned over by his son, Big Jim, was rocked by the suicide in 1956 of Catherine Mason, wife of Big Jim's doctor son, Wills, and mother of 14-year-old J. J and 12-year-old Ginger, who found her mother's body. When Catherine's grave is desecrated and her body exhumed 19 years later, the event turns from tragic to cathartic when an investigation shows that she was murdered, lifting the pall of shame, anger, guilt, and fear from her family. show more J. J and Ginger had kept a close bond even though their lives had taken different directions; loner J. J., a mostly absent property manager, lives in the family cabin, fishing, hunting, and keeping journals, while Ginger, after a failed marriage and many rootless years, found a love of archaeology. Set during eight days in July 1975, the narrative adroitly flashes back to uncover history (including long-held secrets) and reveal characters--to themselves and each other. With a memorable, full-bodied cast and an evocative sense of place, this is a surefire best-seller.
(Reviewed September 1, 2002) -- Michele Leber show less

Archeologe Ginger Mason werkt in Toscane, waar ze haar leven weer een beetje op de rails probeert te krijgen. Op een dag gaat de telefoon: ze moet halsoverkop naar haar geboortedorp Swan in Georgia, waar het lichaam van haar overleden moeder op mysterieuze wijze is opgegraven.
Samen met haar broer, die net buiten Swan een geïsoleerd bestaan leidt, komt ze erachter, dat haar moeder helemaal geen zelfmoord gepleegd heeft, zoals iedereen altijd geloofde. En dat is niet het enige geheim dat boven komt drijven; langzaam aan wordt zowel Ginger als haar broer geconfronteerd met een ongelooflijke waarheid over hun familie.