Light

December 11, 2006
Elphinstone's inert ninth novel (following Gato) is set in 1831 on Ellan Bride isle, "hardly more
\t\t than a rock with a strip of green, surrounded by the silvery sea," off the more
\t\t populated Isle of Man. Lighthouse keeper Lucy inherited the job—at two-thirds
\t\t salary—when her brother Jim was killed in a storm five years earlier. Jim's
\t\t India-born widow, Diya, has two children, Breesha and Mallay, growing up as
\t\t siblings to Lucy's out-of-wedlock son, Billy. Lucy, scarred by past love, keeps
\t\t the ancient lighthouse lit each night, as her brother and father did before
\t\t her, while the educated Diya tends the garden and gathers puffins from their
\t\t burrows, dreaming of her childhood in India. But when handsome, reserved
\t\t Archibald Buchanan and his kind, assistant, Ben Groat, suddenly arrive to
\t\t survey for a new lighthouse, the women face changes and choices. In alternating
\t\t chapters, Elphinstone renders the solitude of the two women amid the salt air
\t\t and crashing waves, along with the ambitions and fears of Archibald and Ben.
\t\t Aiming for stark, the results are static.

December 1, 2006
In this atmospheric and captivating novel, set in 1831 on the tiny island of Ellan Bride off the Isle of Man, the Geddes family faces an uncertain future. Sisters-in-law Lucy and Diya and their three children have long been the island's only inhabitants and keepers of its lighthouse. Two surveyors have arrived to prepare for the building of a new lighthouse, and the Commissioners of Northern Lights will no longer need the services of the women and children. For Diya, it is an opportunity to escape a confining life, but Lucy's one traumatic experience off the island makes her fear leaving the order and safety she's always known. During their three-day stay, the surveyors become entangled in the Geddes's lives in unexpected ways. All the characters, including the children, are fully realized, with deep flaws and hidden strengths. The conclusion is satisfying if somewhat ambiguous, leaving the reader emotionally invested in the characters' futures. From the author of "Voyageurs"; recommended for public and academic libraries.Christine DeZelar-Tiedman, Univ. of Minnesota Lib., Minneapolis

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