by Wendy Jones
Wilfred Price has reached a point in life when he is beginning to
think about his future. In a small Welsh town in 1924, Wilfred is thoughtfully cultivating
a respectable and prosperous career as a funeral director, and making and
saving enough money to allow a comfortable life for himself and his widowed
father. So, basking in the beauty of a spring day and his burgeoning success,
he impulsively asks Grace (a girl he barely knows) to marry him. The next day,
coming to his senses, he decides to retract his spontaneous proposal. But Grace
is well onto wedding plans and so are her parents. For kind-hearted and timid
Wilfred, he never finds the right moment or seems to gain the proper momentum
to convince Grace that the proposal is off - and plans for a wedding continue
to run well ahead of him. And Wilfred is left trying to figure out how his life
could so suddenly gone off kilter.
The story is a comedy of errors but in between that comedy Wendy
Jones weaves layers of wisdom and insight. This is a carefully crafted study in
human nature as Wilfred wrestles with his sense of responsibility verses desires.
In the end, Wilfred is forced into a marriage that saves Grace from personal
and public humiliation and shame . . . for her and her parents. The shame runs
deeper than a broken engagement. It is a shame, that if uncovered, will tear Graces family
apart.
Optioned for a mini-series by the producers of Downton Abbey, this novel is packed with
wonderful characters, humor, heart and spirit. A quick and very satisfying
read.
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