Somewhere lies the moon

the long version

In her earlier novels Too Deep for Tears and All We Hold Dear, Kathryn Lynn Davis introduced readers to the Rose women, a close-knit brood of Scottish women who tend their inner gardens like master botanists. Now in Somewhere Lies the Moon, Eva Crawford connects with her female ancestors through their diaries and heirlooms and leads readers through the complex evolution of these women's relationships. Matriarch Mairi Rose; the three half-sisters Ailsa, Genevra, and Lian; and the granddaughter Ena have an intense connection that pulls them together in times of duress. When young Ena begins to suffer foreboding nightmares, her female relatives sense her pain and rush from the far edges of the earth to help her. As Ena confronts the challenges of life, Mairi, Ailsa, Genevra, and Lian face their own battles and help inspire Ena with their successes. With the liberal use of flashbacks and dreams, Davis carefully develops the internal state of her characters' minds. While the book is sectioned into the stories of Lian, Genevra, and Ena, the last section is by far the most compelling, although the insertion of the modern plot of Eva Crawford's nuptial paranoia feels awkward. New readers will admire the complex tapestry of emotion that Davis weaves, and previous fans will enjoy the chance to watch these familiar characters surmount their latest struggles. --Nancy R.E. O'Brien