Review ~ Nights of Rain and Stars by Maeve Binchy

Nights Of Rain And Stars by Maeve Binchy

 

Summary:

“Four strangers, with nothing in common but a need to escape, meet in a Greek taverna high above the small village of Aghia Anna. From Ireland, America, Germany and England, they have each left their homes and old lives, when a shocking tragedy throws them unexpectedly together.” “Fiona is a young nurse, trying to make her family understand her need to follow her own path. Thomas desperately misses his young son and fears that his ex-wife will come between them. Elsa abruptly left her career as a television presenter, but someone from her past refuses to let her go. And shy, quiet David is determined to make a stand against his overbearing father. With these four is Andreas, the taverna owner, who badly misses the son who left home nine years ago and has never returned.” Nights of Rain and Stars is the story of one summer and four people, each with a life in turmoil. With the help of Vonni, a middle-aged Irish woman who lives in the village and is now a near-native, they find solutions – though not necessarily the ones they anticipated.
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have enjoyed every single one of Maeve’s books so far and this was no exception. Her manner of spinning the tales of so many lives and getting us, the reader, invested in all of their affairs is amazing.

This story takes place on a small Greek island where five people are at a small taverna with the owner and witness a boat explosion. They see the deaths of tourists and locals and each witness is affected in their own way. And that is how Maeve introduces most of the characters of the story.

Somehow, while keeping us enraptured in the happenings of the “now” on the island; she also manages to sweep us into their lives before the island. And then we want to know what happens after. The five friends end up being four as one does not fit in. But, everyone has issues and woes which do not get solved in one day or the weeks they are there but by the end of their time on the island each one is resolved to do “something” to fix their situation.

It was a beautiful tale of looking at relationships through the eyes of each person involved: mother and child, lover and lover, husband and wife, father and son, etc. Each person sees the relationship differently and finds it difficult to see it through the eyes of the other person. It was a great story, I recommend to it anyone that loves self discovery stories with lots of lessons and a little bit of love. 🙂

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