Cornwall, 1947. Marvellous Ways is a ninety-year-old woman who’s lived alone in a remote creek for nearly all her life. Recently she’s taken to spending her days sitting on a mooring stone by the river with a telescope. She’s waiting for something – she’s not sure what, but she’ll know it when she sees it.
Drake is a young soldier left reeling by the war. He’s agreed to fulfil a dying man’s last wish and hand-deliver a letter to the man’s father in Cornwall. But Drake’s journey doesn’t go to plan, and sees him literally wash up in Marvellous’ creek, broken in body and spirit. When Marvellous comes to his aid, an unlikely friendship grows between the two. Can Drake give Marvellous what she needs to say goodbye to the world, and can she give him what he needs to go on?
(P)2015 Headline Digital
Drake is a young soldier left reeling by the war. He’s agreed to fulfil a dying man’s last wish and hand-deliver a letter to the man’s father in Cornwall. But Drake’s journey doesn’t go to plan, and sees him literally wash up in Marvellous’ creek, broken in body and spirit. When Marvellous comes to his aid, an unlikely friendship grows between the two. Can Drake give Marvellous what she needs to say goodbye to the world, and can she give him what he needs to go on?
(P)2015 Headline Digital
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Reviews
A Year of Marvellous Ways is like Dylan Thomas given a sexy rewrite by Angela Carter
A glorious poem of a novel - a story to read slowly and to marvel at the beauty of it
The sense of magic infused through the novel casts a spell over the reader that makes you not want to put the book down until you've turned the final page
A book to savour, to read in wonderful, rich little bits like dark chocolate. Winman's prose is poetry, with a rhythm, a heartbeat, that carries you through like music
Yet again Sarah Winman has written a beautiful, beautiful novel. A Year of Marvellous Ways will hypnotise, seduce, until you can do nothing but pick it up and read it again
Fanciful imagery and beautiful prose that ebbs and flows
Winman excels in her sweeping prose and her unwavering theme of love in all its forms
One to read slowly so you can savour every beautiful sentence
Moving... offbeat and memorable
Beautifully written
The book demonstrates vividly how we need family around us, whether homegrown or grafted, to live our fullest lives... By the end of this novel, we too belong in the world of Marvellous Ways
In this warm, kindly novel, the sea is both magical and healing. Lovely
A truly enchanting book
A breathtaking reading experience... a beautiful book that is unafraid to reveal the ugliness of the world
She is particularly good at bringing the sensations of landscape to bear - its smell, sound and look - and in Marvellous has created a character of warmth and eccentricity
The stories are touching and the twist of magical realism lends them a joyful, fairytale element
What struck me was Winman's gorgeous imagery, beautiful passages and imaginative storytelling. Quirky and slightly hairbrained, A Year of Marvellous Ways is an unforgettable book
A gripping waiting game ... The novel's surprising denouement is also well worth the wait
Spellbinding
A lavish and clever read which will stand the test of time