The Tapestry of Love by Rosy Thornton

The Tapestry of Love by Rosy Thornton

Summary

A warm and uplifting story of how a woman falls in love with a place and its people: a landscape, a community and a fragile way of life.

A rural idyll: that's what Catherine is seeking when she sells her house in England and moves to a tiny hamlet in the Cévennes mountains. With her divorce in the past and her children grown, she is free to make a new start, and her dream is to set up in business as a seamstress. But this is a harsh and lonely place when you're no longer just here on holiday. There is French bureaucracy to contend with, not to mention the mountain weather, and the reserve of her neighbors, including the intriguing Patrick Castagnol. And that's before the arrival of Catherine's sister, Bryony.

My Thoughts

This is a nice, quiet and thoughtful read. Catherine is trying to find herself in a new environment, the beautiful Cévennes mountains after raising her children. I enjoyed the time I spent with Catherine in France as I have never been there. It was not hard for me to imagine what the surroundings were like though as Rosy Thornton does a fantastic job describing the area in detail. I felt like I was right there in France. I can't stress enough how wonderful Rosy's descriptions are! The story is not fast moving but life in the community was not fast paced either. The story moves along at a nice, relaxing pace. The characters are well developed and it was nice to take the time to get to know each of them. Catherine's neighbors are quite unique. At one point a neighbor brings Catherine bees for her empty bee hives. I loved Catherine's spunk at dealing with the bees. Not so sure I would have been thrilled to be given bees. It showed me how determined Catherine was to make her new life in France work. There is a romance in the story but it is light and respectful. The descriptions of the tapestries were very interesting to me as I am not familiar with all that goes into that type of needlework. There is a bit of everything in the story..family, love, business and community. This is a charming, heartwarming read. I enjoyed my little escape to France and would highly recommend this book. It would make a nice summer read!

I received a copy of this book from the author for my honest review. Thank you Rosy Thornton! I thoroughly enjoyed the book!