Book Review - Penelope's Daughter

When you have a blog you don't really know who reads it unless they make a comment or in some way contact you.

It's no secret that I read. I read a lot, in fact. :D So when Laurel Corona asked if I would be willing to read her latest novel, I said sure!

It arrived in the mail yesterday and the cover immediately appealed to me. It is something I would have been drawn to, with it's air of mysteriousness as the young woman peeks through the partially opened door.

Next test - would the first page invite me to turn to the second? Well, yes it did.

I like stories with a rich use of the language, language that evokes a mood, brings an understanding of the characters, their humanity.

I also like the format. Each chapter is introduced with the musings of Xanthe at her loom. Chapter two has this paragraph as part of its introduction:

What was I trying to convince myself of by keeping everything within its allotted space? That events are finite, that stories have endings, that meaning can be constrained to one time or place, one set of circumstances? Now my weaving is as tall as I am and the threads hanging from the top are long enough to unfurl until they spread out on the floor. Memories have barbs with which to sting us again and again.

I am enjoying the story as it unfolds in a thoughtful manner as a young woman examines her past for clues to where her future may lead. As a weaver I'm enjoying the weaving of Xanthe's special textile as well as the story she is telling.

For more info about Laurel Corona, check out her website: http://www.laurelcorona.com/

I may have to find another of her titles The Four Seasons. :)