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The Ivy Tree (2001)

The Ivy Tree (2001)

Book Info

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Genre
Rating
3.83 of 5 Votes: 5
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ISBN
0380820749 (ISBN13: 9780380820740)
Language
English
Publisher
harpertorch

About book The Ivy Tree (2001)

Deception and hidden identity are at the heart of this 1961 Mary Stewart novel. Mary Gray travels from Canada to Northumberland in northern England, where she's accosted on Hadrian's wall, in the middle of nowhere, by an extremely handsome but very hostile guy, Con Winslow. Con is certain that she's his long-lost relative, Annabel Winslow, and threatens her. Once she convinces him that she's not Annabel, it gradually occurs to Con that it would be very useful to him to have Mary pretend to be Annabel, who disappeared eight years ago and is believed to be dead, in order to fool Annabel's ailing grandfather into willing the Winslow property and money to the false "Annabel," if not to Con himself. Mary, destitute and at loose ends, agrees to the impersonation plot. And so begins a dangerous deception, soon complicated by the arrival of a neighbor with whom Annabel had fallen in love so many years ago.The ivy tree of the title is an old oak tree on the Winslow property that is covered with ivy:Here a giant oak stood. It had been originally on the inside of the wall, but with the years it had grown and spread, pressing closer and ever closer to the masonry . . . But the power of the oak would be its undoing, for the wall had been clothed in ivy, and the ivy had reached for the tree, crept up it, engulfed it, till now the trunk was one towering mass of the dark gleaming leaves, and only the tree's upper branches managed to thrust the young gold leaves of early summer through the strangling curtain. Eventually the ivy would kill it. . . I looked up at it for a long time.It's an interesting image, reflective of all of the layers of deceit and selfish desires in this book. It's also the place where Annabel and her former love, Adam--who was married at the time--used to leave love letters for each other. Make of that what you will.The romance in this one is a little out of the norm, and not the easiest one in the world to root for(view spoiler)[, where it begins with a (presumably older) married man falling in love with an 18 year old girl. But I will say it's handled in a way that won't offend most people. It's not at all clear that Annabel and Adam ever slept together during their earlier love affair; I think it's most likely they didn't, based on some details in the story.The first time I read this years ago I was totally blindsided when it was revealed near the end that Mary actually is Annabel. I was a lot younger at the time and wasn't really familiar with the concept of unreliable narrators; I think I'd be a lot more suspicious now. But it was fun and interesting to re-read this, knowing what the twist was going to be, and seeing the various clues Mary Stewart gave us in Annabel's thoughts and actions, and how carefully she worded around some of the key issues that would have given it away. (hide spoiler)]

I recently read 'Nine Coaches Waiting' by Mary Stewart and loved it. I thought I'd try another one of her books and 'The Ivy Tree' sounded the most compelling to me. The story revolves around a case of mistaken identity. Annabel Winslow ran away eight years ago. Then one day a woman named Mary Grey comes to the area, Mary and Connor Winslow cross paths. Mary Grey looks so much like Annabel Winslow that her cousin Connor is convinced that they will be able to trick her ailing Grandfather and the rest of her family into believing she is Annabel. He enlists Mary's help in order to get his hands on Annabel's Grandfather's estate. Stewart writes the first half of the story in an intentionally ambiguous way. The characters that Stewart creates are not the most dynamic or sympathetic, remember this is a story of suspense. But once the author lets the reader in on the secret, the story begins to build with tension. The plot line grows more complicated and the events that unfold are exciting and surprising. I enjoyed the ending very much. I did enjoy this book but not as much as 'Nine Coaches Waiting'. Part of my problem was that I didn't care for the unsympathetic characters who were trying to manipulate the elderly Grandfather. In 'Nine Coaches Waiting' I identified with the main character and knew who I was pulling for. Stuart has a knack for making the reader leery to trust her characters. This was an exciting and suspenseful story and I will be reading more of Mary Stuart's work.

Do You like book The Ivy Tree (2001)?

I’ve been kind of putting off writing a review for this. I guess it’s because I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as the other Stewart books I’ve read. There was no exciting car chases or exotic locations. The hero was a real dud for me. I always felt like the author was holding information back, which always sends out lots of flags. You can always see that there is going be a big twist at the end when information is being withheld, especially when it’s in first person.That’s not to say it was bad. As always, Mary Stewart writes wonderfully. The ending was exciting and the book had a nice gothy atmosphere to it.I’m giving The Ivy Tree ***½ stars. After all, most Mary Stewart books are better than your average mystery. I just wasn’t as captivated by any of the characters. I was kind of disappointed. I guess I'm longing for the fifties movie type feel I got with Madam Will You Talk. James Mason wasn't in this and I missed him. :( *sigh*
—Willow

Re-read in January 2015 with the Madam, Want to talk about author Mary Stewart GroupBrooding from a perch on Hadrian's wall, our heroine is surprised by a handsome stranger, who threatens her and calls her Annabel. When she informs him, none too sweetly, that she's a Canadian named Mary Grey, the guy turns friendly, telling her she's a dead ringer for his cousin Annabel, who ran away from home eight years ago--the girl he was going to marry. Con (aptly named, as it turns out) isn't a fellow to let opportunity pass him by, and so he bullies/convinces Mary into passing herself off as Annabel Winslow, so that she (and therefore he) can secure the lands and money when Annabel's ailing grandfather passes. Mary (at loose ends and financial straits) resists, but not too hard. Enter Adam Forest, the neighbour, Annabel's secret lover from long ago (he was married, but has since been widowed) and Mary finds herself trapped in layers of deceit, lying to everyone: the irrasicble grandfather, Annabel's beautiful young cousin, her boyfriend (my favorite character!) Adam, and the mercurial Con. This isn't my favorite Mary Stewart, but I enjoyed it more the second time around. (view spoiler)[ Because I knew from the get go (this time) that Mary really is Annabel Winslow, I appreciated the subtleties of writing and the ambiguities that lead like a trail of breadcrumbs to the truth. (Like at the beginning, when she thinks to herself "Eve dreaming of Adam..." I did not catch that clue the first time, but now, of course it makes perfect sense) However, I have a constitutional dislike of unreliable narrarators, and it is hard for me to get over that. It feels like cheating. Also, there's a few places in the story that are just stretched a little thin for me to believe. Why, WHY wouldn't Mary/Annabel go with the rescuers from Nether Field, or at least ride back to the collapsed building where Adam is lying, waiting to be rescued? Well, the despite the offered excuse (mustn't neglect an expensive horse--really?) the only good reason is that Ms. Stewart has planned a wonderful confrontation between Annabel and Con in the stable, so she just needs to be put there. Unfortunately, this kind of doll house maneuvering pulls away from some pretty gripping suspense. (hide spoiler)]
—Jaima

I have been thinking about this book this morning & my star rating veered all over the place until I finally settled on a four.There is a lot to love about this book, especially the descriptions of scenery & mystery. & it was a page turner, that kept me interested until the end. While I wasn't sure who the heroine really was till near the finish, I also wasn't sure who the love interest was - the romance was sparse, even by Stewart's standards. In fact, two of the secondary characters have a more interesting romance & I was more interested in it's outcome.As always with Stewart there is another character in the book. Fortunately he didn't appear as much later in the book. At one stage I was wondering how Mary/Anabel could even see where she was going through the constant haze of smoke!& (view spoiler)[ another book is referenced. While Brat Farrar is a wonderful book, all of Tey's works are very difficult to get hold of in my country if you don't have an ereader. This book is still very readable but knowledge of Bratt Farrar does enhance it. (hide spoiler)]
—☆ Carol ☆

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