The Lace Makers of Glenmara
A Novel
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4.4 • 67 Ratings
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- $13.99
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
“This hopeful, comforting novel is a testament to the power of taking chances and starting fresh and a reminder that life can bring joy after sorrow." — Miami Herald
From the author of Snow in July comes The Lace Makers of Glenmara: a “charming, moving story, written with a delicate touch” (Joanne Harris), as a struggling young fashion designer journeys to Ireland to mend a broken heart, and helps a group of local lace makers change their lives—and her own.
"You can always start again," Kate Robinson's mother once told her. "All it takes is a new thread." Overwhelmed by heartbreak and loss, Kate follows her mother's advice and flees to Ireland, her ancestral homeland, hoping to reinvent herself. In the seaside hamlet of Glenmara, the struggling twenty six-year-old fashion designer quickly develops a bond with members of the local lace-making society—and soon she and the lace makers are creating a line of exquisite lingerie, their skilled hands bringing flowers, Celtic dragons, nymphs, saints, kings, and queens to life with painterly skill. The circle also offers them something more: the strength to face their desires and fears. But not everyone in this charming, fading Gaelic village welcomes Kate, and a series of unexpected events threatens to unravel everything the women have worked so hard for.
Fans of the strong feminine voices of contemporary Irish literature such as Maeve Binchy and Cecilia Ahern will fall in love with The Lace Makers of Glenmara.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Barbieri (Snow in July) sets her latest in a small Irish town, Glenmara, where a heartbroken American tourist, Kate Robinson, finds her one-night stay extended with the help of some motherly role models. Kate's hostess, chronically grieving widow Bernie, draws the young Seattleite into a gossipy ring of lace makers. Kate, a former fashion designer, takes to them perfectly (one of several head-scratching coincidences), inspiring them to take on an empowering but controversial project. Although the focus is always on the positive, the narrative's strongest when exploring the less charming sides of Glenmara; rich sources of missed potential include the local priest, nicknamed Father Dominic Burn-in-Hell Byrne, and Bernie's irritable best friend Aileen, the only "lace society" member to regard Kate with anything but syrupy goodwill. The result is a sweet novel with few surprises. Even Kate's pivotal, inspirational idea embellishing the ladies' undergarments with lace suffers from murky logic (as do reactions from characters like Father Byrne). Still, Barbieri's world generates convincing warmth and emotion, making it worth a look for Friday Night Knitting Club fans between sequels.
Customer Reviews
Avid reader
Different from what I excepted; very enjoyable; very descriptive of scenery; although fiction, the characters in the book were struggling w/very similar economic & family issues as others anywhere else except, in lesser numbers; but with the unmistakable Irish flare for life. Love it, great read!
Well written book! Highly recommend
Definitely recommend this book. The book is well written and flows very well. At times it brought tears to my eyes. I had a difficult time putting it down. I look forward to reading more books by this author.