When I decided to read "The Ivy Tree" by Mary Stewart, I was hoping for an engrossing mystery that would keep me captivated. Unfortunately, this book just never managed to grip me, and I found myself struggling to finish it. I'm aware that my opinion is in the minority here, so I guess it comes down to the fact that Mary Stewart's writing just isn't my cup of tea.

The story revolves around Mary Grey, a woman who has recently come to England from Canada, and who looks amazingly similar to glamorous missing heiress Annabel Winslow. "The Ivy Tree" starts out with a great first chapter as Conor, a distant relation of Annabel's who now runs the farm at Whitescar, verbally attacks Mary believing her to be Annabel. But once the misunderstanding is straightened out, Conor begins to see what an asset Mary could be.

Conor is convinced that Annabel's ailing grandfather is not planning to leave him any part of Whitescar when he dies despite all the long years that Conor has worked there. So, he hires Mary Grey to come back claiming that she's Annabel, so that she will receive most of Whitescar in the old man's will and then can give it to Conor. The only thing that could present a problem is Annabel's cousin Julie, who will almost certainly be in the will as well, but Conor is confident that she won't get in the way. After convincing a reluctant Mary to go along with his scheme, they put their plan in motion.

But things don't run as smoothly as they should. Tensions run high at Whitescar when Julie arrives for a visit. Conor begins to show a violent and unsettling side to himself that makes Mary wonder what kind of man he really is. And Mary herself is hiding a shocking secret that could put her in serious danger if anyone, especially Conor, were to find out!

The ending of "The Ivy Tree" really picks up, but for me, the majority of the book just dragged on and on without enough action to keep me genuinely interested. Though the quality of writing is good and the characters are well developed, this story just didn't hold my attention. But even though I found this book a bit hard to get through, I did still enjoy it, and I would recommend you form an opinion on "The Ivy Tree" for yourself.

For those of you who enjoy straight-out romance, or the Nora Roberts brand of a little suspense thrown in with a lot of romance, Mary Stewart is not the author for you. Stewart requires indepth reading, her plots are intricate, her characterizations strong. She is incomparable; her words are literature. Although descriptions abound, there is not any graphically detailed sex, so if this is not your cup of tea, read no further and look for another selection.
This particular book does not fit into any of the usual Stewart categories----the great chase as in 'Madam Will You Talk?', the closed room police procedural as in 'Wildfire at Midnight' or the Evil Relative with Nefarious Intentions as in 'Nine Coaches Waiting'----rather, it is a story of impersonation. . . and one of Stewart's best offerings in terms of just about everything: plot, tone, description, dialogue, characterization etc.
Mary Grey accepts a 'job',posing as Annabel Winslow, the long-lost cousin and heiress to Whitescar, a lucrative North England working farm---her employer, her 'cousin' Con has much to gain once Annabel's cantankerous old grandfather passes on. At first, after careful schooling by Con and his half-sister, Lisa, Mary takes to her new position smoothly, easily edging her way into life on the farm with a barrage of lies that seem to be second nature to her. No one doubts her identity until she discovers the presence of an unknown lover that may blow her cover. The real reason Annabel Winslow left Whitescar eight years earlier hits the reader with tour de force revelation which Stewart masterfully manipulates.
I won't spoil the story any further. It must be read slowly and savored like a good $100+ bottle of wine. The language is glorious,meant to be read aloud. The words paint wonderfully lush and powerful images of life in the north country. The characters likewise are finely drawn, flesh and blood human beings whose emotions thunder off the pages with the same potent electric charge of lightning that finally splits the old ivy tree in two towards the end of the story. Even the secondary characters are not to be missed. Mrs. Bates with her nosy northerner's distrust of anything 'London', Julie, the pettish young adult who is Annabel's mirror image, and Donald Seton, the stuffy, but warm-hearted Scot archaeologist with a soft spot for the greedy cat Tommy and his litter of kittens. Even the colt, Rowan, has a personality all his own; Stewart knows and loves her animals and this like all her other novels is a tribute to the creatures and places she loves best.
I have read and listened to this book over and over again. Each time, even though I know the ending, I find new techniques to ponder and wonder over. Stewart is simply fantastic; shame on anyone who prefers lesser works to her masterpieces.

Among Mary Stewart's books, and I have read most of them, this would probably be known as a "sleeper." However, having read it through three times plus scanning it several other times, I feel it is one of her best! The first time I read it I was aghast at first because Mary Stewart's heroines were always very moral women--the stuff good role models ate made of. Mary Grey doesn't seem to fit the role! After the first time I read it I had to go to England and see the area where the book was set. However, my husband wasn't as eager as I was to search out the setting and I came home disappointed.

Seven years later, after having my husband read it and reading it twice more myself, we returned to England, and this time found Crag Lough by Hadrian's Wall, where the book opens. We tried to imagine which of the farms we could see from there was Whitescar and where Forrest Hall would have been.

I have searched the book several times for looking for flaws, but it is perfectly executed. Like all good mysteries she does include an important clue in the very first chapter. Yet, I read the chapter four times before I found it!

This book still "haunts" me even today as I gaze at the pictures we took of Crag Lough and Hadrian's Wall. Originally published in 1961, it is as exciting today as it was when it was first published, and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good suspensful romantic mystery.

"A haunting novel of suspense and romance that mingles pungent description and vivid terror as only Mary Stewart can ... builds to a rousing finish" -Best Sellers (from back of book)

"...rich in excitement and sheer narrative flow" - Anthony Boucher, The New York Times (from back of book)

"Terror in the Hitchcock manner...a novel that terrifies as it entertains." -Columbus Dispatch (from cover of book)

Lovely and overworked Gianetta has buried her emotional pain and heartbreak to such a degree that after a few years she longs to get "somewhere away from everything". Upon the advice of her mother, she takes her week or so at a hotel in Skye at the "back of beyond".

In the midst of the timeless beauty, quiet and peace of this mountain haven come murder and evil rituals rooted in ancient beliefs. And so, too, does love come back into her life.

Gianetta Brook has had a rough go of it. Lovely, red-haired and seemingly a London jet-setter, she is actually a vulnerable young woman with a sterling set of ethics and lingering loyalties. Her romantic history, however, is disappointing. As a younger model, awash with the glow of new-found fame, she meets writer Nicholas Drury, 10 years her senior. Sardonic and handsome, he sweeps her away in a whirlwind courtship that ends in a swift marriage doomed to fail as she believes he only sees her slick model's veneer and not the innocent girl beneath the gloss. Four years later, Gianetta finds herself divorced, still modeling and utterly exhausted by her seemingly sophisticated life. A vacation to the isle of Skye in the Hebrides is recommended by her well-meaning parents. Especially as she wants to avoid the coronation throngs crowding London in May of 1953, Gianetta quickly accepts their advise. Within days she finds herself at the small Camas Fhionnaridh Hotel at the foot of the Cuillin where fishing and climbing is the order of the day and the fast pace of London is left far behind her. Or so she thinks. Instead of peace and quiet, she is first assaulted by the advent of her ex-husband, then by the fact that all of the company staying in the hotel are actually suspected of being a killer who has murdered a local girl in a bizarre ritualistic way involving the Old Religion's tradition of setting wildfire in honor of the Beltane. In the styple of a classic Agatha Christie drawing room police procedural, Gianetta's values are put to the test as the local police enlist her aid in creating their dragnet and the clues begin to point unerringly towards identifying Nicholas as the unknown murderer.
Ever present in this well-written story is Mary Stewart's evident love of nature and her uncanny ability to impose on the reader's mind's eye the majesty of the Scottish Hebrides--the towering mountains, the misty bogs and the glittering lochs. Her expert juxtaposition of the modern day coronation ceremony with the Highland lore of old is scintillating in that it evokes an intelligent Hitchcockian anticipation and delightfully squeamish dread of what is to come as one turns to the next page. Most of the romance takes place outside the bounds of the novel; the reader must conjur up his/her own imagery of the couples relationship before and after the actual storyline. For those who liked Du Maurier's Jamaica Inn, I think Wildfire at Midnight will equally enthrall.

This is my favourite Mary Stewart Novel. Gianetta is getting away from a bad marriage. He thought her the perfect, mature spouse, instead she was a young, insecure woman in love and he betrays her. Getting away from it all, she takes a vacation to the Isle of Skye, in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. There she finds a mix of fellow guests, but her peaceful vacation meant to repair her soul is shattered when her ex husband arrives.

It is as moody and atmospheric as the Isle itself, and grows darker as they soon discover there is a madman aloose in the group, killing people in ancient pagan fashion. As they near the Pagan Holiday of Beltaine (May Day) where bonfires were lit high in the hills, she fears that madman may be her exhusand.

A super timeless read that you will never forget.

A collection of fourteen Jilly Cooper short stories. They are so much fun, written and published in the 60's and 70's they might sound a bit dated as far as romances go - the women don't usually have careers except the occassional secretary or assistant - but these are written with such charm and sparkling dialogue that they are enormously enjoyable.

The 'Red Angora Dress' is one of my very favourites - about a girl whose boyfriend Andrew is going off her but takes her to a party where she makes the mistake of wearing a red angora dress. A Pressing Engagement takes a refreshingly fun look at a false engagement Cooper writes in her introduction that 'Square Peg' is one of her favourites, and it does rate as one of the funniest - its about a slightly ditsy secretary who can never quite get things right.

Lots of fun.

This book is good bedtime or beach reading. It's a collection of feel-good short stories about the beginnings of romances. Cooper's language is humorous and ironic, the characters quite charming. The only thing that bothered me a bit was the fact that there were too many secretaries falling in love with successful men. In the modern world it would be nice if the women could be successful as well.

Don't expect deep emotional insights or earth-moving intellectual revelations but in the entertainment genre it's very enjoyable. Reminds me of O.Henry or L.M. Montgomery short stories.

Dickens returns to her home patch with the story of a lonely young man and his search for a purpose in life.

Goggle-eyes is a great book if your having problems with your life.It is not only a book but it tells you a story that is so true sometimes.I think it's great and i love the writer Anne Fine!

Cordelia Gray, the brave and endearing young private investigator who made her debut in P.D. James' AN UNSUITABLE JOB FOR A WOMAN, returns in the author's eighth whodunit, THE SKULL BENEATH THE SKIN. The title's from Webster, and it's a fitting one; the story literally reeks of the theater. Clarissa Lisle is a bitchy, fading actress determined to salvage her career as the star of an amateur production of Webster's "The Duchess of Malfi," staged in a restored Victorian theater on Courcy Island, just off the coast of Dorset. Lisle has been receiving mysterious poison-pen letters, death notes in the form of quotations from Shakespeare and Webster, and has hired Cordelia to discover their source. The castle on Courcy Island becomes the stage for a tense gathering of Clarissa's friends, relatives, and guests--each of whom, we learn, has excellent motive for killing the actress. When the death does inevitably occur, Cordelia finds herself left with a case of murder that she fully intends to--and does--unravel.

THE SKULL BENEATH THE SKIN may be the most stylish, lavishly mounted novel that James has written. It's an overflowing mixture of the elements of the detective/horror tale at its most clichéd--the closed circle of suspects in a Victorian castle on a small island serviced by a spooky, tight-lipped butler and his wife, a crypt filled with skulls, a collection of memorabilia from past murders, frightening knick-knacks in the shapes of human appendages...it's all gloriously entertaining, never for a minute even coming close to realism. And therein lies the fatal flaw of the novel.

P.D. James' novels are seldom been anything but realistic, but she seems to have broken the rule in THE SKULL BENEATH THE SKIN. The Gothic horror, portrayed in a darkly comic manner, clashes painfully with her finely drawn, introspective characters (except Clarissa Lisle, one of the few two-dimensional stereotypes who pop up in James' fiction) and flawlessly crafted prose. It's as if she's written two completely different novels, one a brilliant character study, the other a conventional ghost story, and meshed them together with little regard for the coherence of the result. Until now, James has done a marvelous job proving that the English mystery can make an extraordinarily fine mainstream novel; unfortunately, she's also shown that the magic combination can work only when her settings are serious and controlled. THE SKULL BENEATH THE SKIN is not serious. It's not too far from out-and-out comedy, and James' admirable but vain attempts to weave her fantastic set pieces and excessively necrophilic atmosphere into a profound work of fiction makes it even more funny.

Not that most readers will care. This is still an absorbing entertainment--substantial, cunningly plotted, and beautifully written. More discriminating readers will conclude that either THE SKULL BENEATH THE SKIN is a parody written by a skilled impersonator, or P.D. James has seen one Dracula movie too many.

To the best of my knowledge, P.D. James only wrote two books about her young female detective Cordelia Gray. That's unfortunate, because I enjoyed both of them very much, especially this one. It has all of the "classic" elements of the British murder mystery: the castle, an island, an oddly assorted company, a butler, an interesting wealthy man, assorted relatives, and a grisly murder. Cordelia must sort out everything in the end, and even though the ultiumate outcome is somewhat in doubt, there's rarely a dull moment throughout this book. You follow Ms. Gray's progress avidly, and try to keep up with what's going on around her to gather your own clues about the murder. I'll admit that I was shocked at the resolution of the mystery, and that's one of the reasons I enjoyed the book so much. If you haven't read Ms. James, start with "An Unsuitable Job For A Woman", the first Cordelia Gray mystery, and then progress to this work. You won't be disappointed!

I've recently read a good deal of Baroness James' work, and found much to admire if not a lot to like. While clearly and intelligently written, her works all too often come perilously close to sinking under their own High Moral Weight, and, I am afraid, are very nearly humorless. Adam Dalgliesh's gloom can get rather oppressive, and I was often moved to suggest that he get some Prozac.

The Skull Beneath The Skin, however, is the exception to the rule. Dalgliesh is nowhere in sight. James brings her other creation to the forefront, a woman named Cordelia Gray, last seen in James' An Unsuitable Job For A Woman. Cordelia runs her own detective agency, and at the start of the novel is hired to protect a neurotic actress from a series of poison-pen letters during an upcoming amateur theatrical production to take place on a secluded island.

James seems to be taking on the classic murder mystery, complete with despicable victim, exotic locale, small number of suspects each equipped with a motive, and finally, a rather bizarre murder weapon. The story moves swiftly and entertainingly, the characters live on the page, and if the denouement is rather unsatisfying, well, I think that is very much the point that James is making. Those classic whodunits are not about life, they are more about creating a puzzle for the reader to solve. James, however, wants to make us think about the realities of her situations, and to see her characters as living people, not just as cardboard types. In this book she James takes the genre out for a ride, and manages to have some good mean fun with it.