This is one of
those books - as soon as I finished it I seriously considered turning back to the first page and starting again. If you asked me to describe it in one word it would be beautiful - the story, the characters, the descriptions of India are all beautiful and I looked forward to picking it up before bed every evening (sadly the only time I get to read)!
The story is split between the present day and India in the early 20th century, it begins in the present as Mair Ellis clears her father’s house and finds an exquisite shawl amongst his belongings, she decides to trace its history and the journey takes her to India where her great grandparents had been posted as missionaries before and during the first world war. What follows is a tale of love, sadness, happiness and secrets as Mair traces the roots of both the scarf and her own family.
It’s the first Rosie Thomas book I’ve read and was simply one I borrowed from my Mum when at a bit of a loss of what to read next, perhaps the lack of expectations added to my enjoyment of it, but nonetheless I’d highly recommend it. Like I said above, it’s a great read for the beautiful descriptions of 1920s India alone.
