A Summer in the Country - Softcover

"Very much for Rosamunde Pilcher fans." -- Bookseller

Marcia Willett's previous novel, A Week in Winter, her first to be published in the United States, received a rousing welcome from readers and reviewers alike. Her new novel, A Summer in the Country, introduces an equally beguiling cast of characters whose lives become intricately entwined at Foxhole, a charming and cozy country house on the wild edges of the Devon moors.

Brigid Foster has inherited Foxhole from her father, and has created two guest cottages, which she rents during the holidays to tourists. Brigid's delight at welcoming Louise Parry, one of her regular summer visitors, is tempered by the irritating presence of Brigid's monumentally judgmental mother, Frummie. Having abandoned Foxhole (and Brigid) forty years earlier, Frummie makes no secret of her disdain for the gloroiuos natural splendor of her surroundings, nor of her preference for Brigid's flighty but fabulous half-sister, Jemima. Jemima, meanwhile, has problems of her own.

When a stranger begins lurking in the isolated byways of the lonely countryside, Brigid turns to her oddly elusive father-in-law for comfort and protection. But both Brigid and Louise Parry are hiding certain essential facts, and each woman's fragile sense of haven and security is threatened by disclosure. A Summer in the Country is the story of the enduring, but often painful, love between mothers and daughters, fathers and sons, and husbands and wives. It describes with exquisite sensitivity and tenderness the precarious journey each of us undertakes as one generation makes way for the next, as each indelible and priceless relationship grows, changes, blossoms, or dies. Marcia Willett writes novels that will last.

Delighted reviewers praise Marcia Willett’s previous novel, A Week in Winter

“Readers will be charmed by Willett’s style---highly recommended for public libraries everywhere.” ---Library Journal

“Captivating...will evoke for readers Rosamunde Pilcher’s The Shell Seekers...also has its Trollopian moments (Joanna, that is). Willett’s a true discovery and manages to bring together the special pleasures of both these wonderful writers.” ---Michelle Slung, Victoria Magazine

“Like Rosamunde Pilcher and Maeve Binchy, Willett creates such fully dimensional characters that readers feel as if they should phone or e-mail them to keep in touch.” ---Rocky Mountain News [Denver, CO]

“Thoroughly engrossing, with richly drawn characters, a mysterious locale, a beautifully crafted plot, and a happy ending (but with plenty of tears in between)...the perfect addition to your summer beach tote.” ---The Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel