A mature and sophisticated piece of work and a refreshing change from all the chic-lit material one has to deal with these days. It has a great deal to recommend it not least that it is so very carefully structured. To produce what really amounts to a family saga through such a long time period and manage to hold it all together takes some doing and the author deserves a huge pat on the back. The background and setting are the book's great strengths. The context is excellent. There is a sense in which the book is something of a social history and many people could gain a lot from it almost...