North of Here by Laurel Saville

Posted first to Blog Critics as Book Review: 'North of Here,' A Novel by Laurel Saville.

In the blink of an eye tragedy can end all that seems important. In North of Here by Laurel Saville, we meet Miranda who grew up in privilege, but sheltered as well. At the death of her beloved father she finds herself at a loss. In her need she is drawn to their handyman, ready to cling to something familiar. Dix is kind and dependable, but understands that need is not the same as love.

Nevertheless, he finds himself falling for her, knowing that what they have can either bring happiness of further despair. He is willing to be there but finds that her need is much deeper then he suspected. When a man from her distant past shows up, he offers her a chance to do meaningful work at a secluded property with a similar group of his followers. Darius is an idealist, and very charismatic. She feels that he has the key to helping her re-make her life. His draw is powerful and she ends up leaving Dix to move to the compound and become someone else.

Dix, in his grief does not understand, and while her tries in a variety of ways to win her back, his persistence only pushes her further. Darius uses his persuasion to convince her that Dix only wants to control her, and she doesn’t realize that Darius is the actual controller.

Saville does a great job at getting into the psyche of her characters and bringing out the pain and sadness, as well as the confusion. She gives us a story of hope and redemption that doesn’t seem to have an answer. Both hope and redemption descend into tragedy taking you on a journey of despair.In her desperation to find herself, both Miranda and Dix pay a price that neither of them ever imagined.

If you enjoy literary fiction, this is a great work. This would be a solid book for your library. This would also be a great book for a reading and discussion group, a great deal of contradictions and questions that would be eminently discussable.

Rating 3/5