A Village Affair

Joanna Trollope never goes for the easy way out. All of her books are full of people that are so real, so full of the layers of "humanhood," if you will, that we can't help but feel we know everybody in her books. This is, of course, her very great talent."A Village Affair" is, on the surface, the story of a marriage grown slightly stale after 3 children and the predictable daily chores that accompany parenthood. Alice and Martin are settled into a comfortable, upwardly mobile, slightly boring lifestyle. Neither is particularly happy, but neither will acknowledge this fact to themselves or each other.When Alice's third child, Charlie, is born, Alice, the quintessential latter-day flower child, falls into a deep depression that she cannot shake. As she tries to regain her equilibrium, we are taken back to her earlier years as a university student whose wretched homelife spurs her to seek the life she imagines she wants. Alice's great flaw then, and later, when we meet her several years into her marriage, is that she has no notion of herself whatsoever, but only sees herself as reflected in the mirror of others' approval or disapproval.Thus, when Alice is a very young woman, the reflected glory of Cecily Jordan, a famous gardener/author, leads Alice to marry Cecily's son Martin, even though she is not in love with him. It is Cecily and her beautiful house that Alice loves--but she doesn't realize it for quite a while. After the marriage, Alice is happy as a young wife, artist (she paints quite well and has a small following to whom she sells her works), and quasi-hippie, her long braid and offbeat clothes advertising her "otherness" to her admiring circle of friends and neighbors.When her first child, Natasha, is born, Alice is able to keep going in this mold. Natasha is an easy baby, Alice is even more admired as the perfect wife and mother, and things are easy. But with the birth of James, a much more difficult little person, Alice begins to unravel. And finally, the birth of Charlie destroys any illustions she may have had of a happy and fulfilled marriage.Enter Clodagh, the youngest and very flamboyant daughter of the "big house" in the village. Clodagh has a secret...but Alice doesn't know it for quite a while. As Clodagh swiftly and surely takes over Alice's life and identity, the two begin a quite unorthodox relationship that shocks the village, destroys Alice's reputation, ruins her marriage, and makes her finally, at long last, take a look at herself as a woman and a human being.The ending is not predictable, the characters are not one-dimensional. There is great pain in this book...and great love. As happens many times with Trollope, I felt that Alice was my dearest friend, as close to me as a sister would be. I could see her in my mind's eye, see her clothes, her beautiful hair, her children--see her paintings, her house, and her garden. I understood completely where she was coming from, even when I despaired of her destructive actions."

A Village Affair takes advantage of all the skilful expertise of its author in unraveling a tale of repressed sexuality , passion and rejection set in a the quintessential English village. Alice, the mother of 3 well defined and lovable children( all children in Joanna Trollope's novels are remarkably fleshed out )moves with her husband Martin to the "Grey House" a symbol of achievement, respectablity and class , the perfect home in the perfect village setting. But Alice appears to be on the verge of a breakdown from the day they arrive... As we meet their respective families and see the lack of emotion on one hand, and overabundance of it on the other, we recognise the gaping holes that have formed in their seemingly "perfect " marriage. The lack of sexual excitement is the final - or most vital - symptom. The crisis comes when Alice meets Clodagh, the youngest daughter up at the"Big House" who has supposedly come home from New York with a broken heart. Though we are already anticipating loopholes, ready to expose the sham of Alice and Martin"s relationship, there is a delightful shock when Clodagh reveals first her preference for women , and amidst domestic bliss in Alice's home, a preference for Alice too. This is true love for both women, made ragged by the inevitable and terrible consequences for the grandparents, Martin, and in a subtle and open ended fashion, the children. Trollope has a huge gift for presenting every facet of these events without bias or critiscm,through the villagers, the vicar, inlaws and family friends. The reader is kept entranced by the unfolding tale of passionate reaction and despair resulting from a declaration of their affair by the two women. I found this one of the most engrossing Trollope novels with a sharp contemporary edge and a bittersweet ending, that left you wanting to know what would happen next in the lives of these characters. ( and ready to pick up another Joanna Trollope novel!)

Even before Alice married Martin, his parents loved her. Alice and Martin share a contented life as she paints and he works as a country solicitor. Over the years they had three children. However, after the birth of their second child, Alice stops painting. By the birth of their third child, Alice seems mentally ill as she sinks into a deep depression.To get her out of her morass, Martin reluctantly buys the Grey House in the small village of Pitcombe. However, Alice remains unhappy and Martin does not know what to do to help her with her funk. Alice meets and falls in love with Clodagh, and the two women have an affair. Will Alice leave with Clodagh, remain with Martin, or leave both of them behind? In any case, what will happen to her children?Best selling author Joanna Trollope is renowned for her complex, modern relationship dramas. A VILLAGE AFFAIR will leave no doubt that the author is one of the leading lights on writing daring, intelligent, and entertaining contemporary tales. The elaborate story line centers on Alice's various relationships (not all happy) with a myriad of people. Each interaction whether it is to her spouse, lover, children, in-laws, or her own biological family, seems genuine and adds to the overall worth of the novel. Fans of an authentic plot will gain much pleasure from Ms. Trollope's modern day relationship novel.Harriet Klausner