Meridon

"Meridon", the concluding book of the Wideacre series, is vastly different than "Wideacre" and "The Favored Child", and for me, vastly better. This is extremely high praise, considering that I very much enjoyed the first two books in the series. "Meridon" tells the story of Sarah Lacey, the lost Wideacre heir, who was given away to gypsies at birth as a safe-keeping against the evils of the Lacey legacy. A large portion of the story centers on Meridon (Sarah's gypsy name) as she is neglected by her gypsy family and longs for a home she doesn't know nor understand. Eventually, Meridon becomes an equestrian performer in a traveling circus. These deviations from tales of life on Wideacre are a welcome change from the two previous books, which focused almost solely on the day-to-day activites (albeit often depraved and VERY enthralling activities) of rich country land-owners. "Meridon" is rich with the imagery and restless spirit of gypsy life, which allows it to stand out as unique among the trilogy. When the story comes back to Wideacre, it's a completely different story from the two previous books. Meridon has obvious similarities to her mother and grandmother, and these similarities help tie their stories to one another. However, Meridon is a completely different character than Julia or Beatrice. Meridon was not raised on Wideacre in prosperity, surrounded by family and neighbors. She is cold and unloving. And she is selfish about her land, but for different reasons than the previous characters, which is a refreshing change of pace from the previous books. Meridon's desire to control the land is more complex than simply having an innate yearning or a special gift, and this complexity makes Meridon a deeper, and if one can imagine, a darker character than even Julia or Beatrice. In the end, Meridon's life experiences that make her so different from Julia and Beatirce are the very thing that makes her transformation so beautiful and believable. "Meridon" is the only book of the Widacre trilogy that had the power to make me laugh out loud, cry in sadness and frustration, and finally smile through my tears. From start to finish, I loved this book. Read it...you won't be disappointed.

I have read all three books of the Wideacre and trilogy and just absolutly loved each one! In the first book , Wideacre, I was completely fascinated with the evil mind of Beatrice Lacey , in the Favored Child I felt pity for Julia Lacey and in Meridon I found a character to relate to , who is facing real struggles and is someone you want to suceed! This trilogy takes the reader from the intrigueing and intense mind of Beatrice to fulfilling ending. If you are thinking of reading this book you must read Wideacre and The Favored Child first!

Having read the first two novels in this trilogy, I was not quite sure what to expect from this one. While the first two novels emphasize the growth of Beatrice and Julia on Wideacre, Meridon spends the majority of this book away from her land, having grown up without any knowledge of her roots. Yet, despite the fact that Wideacre as a place appears in this book relatively infrequently, Wideacre as a representative of the class struggle comes out much more strongly in this novel than the two previous ones. Meridon herself has lived on both sides of the track, and her unique experience gives her a completely different viewpoint from either of the two previous Laceys. Through the use of interesting side characters who each in their own way are struggling with money (the pursuit of it, why you need it, why you want it, and what to do with it once you have it), the at the time revolutionary ideas of spreading the wealth across the whole population are emphasized. The only thing that I missed and wondered about was that there was no mention of Ralph in this book. Since he was so important in the first two books, I thought that he might make an appearance of some kind in this one... in any case, the character of Will Tyacke does well in illustrating that deep desire to help the poor. All in all, I thought that this was an amazing finish to the trilogy, and a definite must-read.

All three books in the series were great but I felt the charecters in this one were incredible. It was like I felt what she felt, It really inspired me. The girl Meridon was ws just trying to find who she was, like so many of us are. It was fantastic.

This book, the last of the three books about the Laceys of Wideacre, manages to be both very different from its predecessors, and also just as good. Wild gypsy girl Meridon lives hard and keeps her heart well guarded. Her abusive father, indifferent mother, and completely selfish sister make Meridon cynical and very tough. Yet despite the hardness of her life travelling, Meridon has one delight... her dreams of a beautiful home far away called "Wide" - a place where she is rich and loved and warm... do Meridon's longings bring her back to her ancestral home, and lead her into a life of happiness and luxury? You never know with that Lacey family. I would reccommed reading the book to find out...