Mercy Road
New England winter may often be romanticized in popular culture, but not in this spare, eloquent first novel. Set in the rural Vermont mountains, it is a compelling tale of a family closely connected to their natural surroundings. Like that landscape, they are mythical, unforgiving, and only partially tamed. Self-destructive though they may be, they have an instinct for survival if not for loving each other. When the mother, Darlene, attempts a brief escape from the harshness of her life on the ridge, the family unravels, and their ultimate reconciliation rests on the separate sacrifices of each of the three children. A wonderfully wrought first novel; highly recommended.?Kay Hogan, Univ. of Alabama at BirminghamCopyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.