Where the Rivers Merge by Mary Alice Monroe brings us into the lowcountry where rivers meander thrun brush and riverbed as it moves to the ocean. The weather is HOT and people live in either shacks or mansions. The story is told in two different timelines with our main character growing up and again in her late 80s. The early years are told by Eliza to her young relatives based on the mural on the dining room wall after an acrimonious meeting with her son and the shareholders.
Eliza grew up at Mayfield, a huge estate that her family had owned for years. She has been able to explore the land and the animals. She had been able to spend a lot of time with the horses. However, societal norms expect her to be properly dressed and learned. Her mother was very hard on her expecting her to conform, when Eliza wanted to be out and about on the farm. Forced into Charlestown and going to school, Eliza lived for the times she was allowed to leave the city and go home. Finding the time with her friends and family outside and riding the horses was her passion. Then World War I happened and her life drastically changed. It is how Eliza handles the change that makes her so strong as a character.
This novel is part one of a two part series. I was genuinely disappointed when the book ended and wanted to know what happened next. Clearly the book showed the disparities of the early 1900s between rich and poor, black and white, male and female. The book also highlighted the land and animals and being a good steward of the land.
I love Mary Alice Monroe and her writing. I love the stories she tells. Where the Rivers Merge by Mary Alice Monroe is a great read!
This book is being published this week – May 13.
