Description
Lucretia and her mother have come to tiny Candle Island, Maine (Population: Summer, 986; Winter, 315) with a secret to keep ... and to escape—escape memories of the car accident that killed her father and escape the journalists that hound her mother, a famous and reclusive artist. The rocky coast and ocean breeze are a welcome respite for Lucretia, who dedicates her summer days to painting, exploring the island, and caring for an orphaned osprey chick. But Candle Island also has secrets—a hidden room in her new house, a mysterious boy with a beautiful voice—and just like the strong tides that surround the shores, they will catch Lucretia in their wake. With an unforgettable New England setting and a complex web of relationships old and new, this is a powerful story about art, loss and the power of being true to your own voice.
Review
Twelve-year-old Lucretia, along with her mother and her horse, move to the holiday destination of Candle Island to have a new start, and recover from the accidental death of her father. She meets some locals, but she is not really one of them, and she certainly doesn’t fit in with the wealthy tourists’ kids.
Then she meets the surly Murdock, and Lucretia can understand her reluctance to be friends given Lucretia now lives in the house that her family were evicted from before her parents passed away. And then there is her cousin Bastian, with his incredible singing voice that Lucretia hears from the rocks, but that he is too afraid to share with the world. Lucretia’s Mum is a world-renowned artist, but there is a mystery surrounding this. Murdock is a poet but won’t share her writing. The three slowly become friends but all maintain their individual secrets. Will they finally share their truths, and let the world in on their amazing talents?
This is a brilliantly written piece of art in itself, an inspirational and uplifting story. It depicts a typical small village that is mostly isolated in the winter months, and the positive and negative impact of the summer tourists on their island. It deals with the beauty of art in all of its forms, and looks at local endangered wildlife, when Lucretia finds and adopts a baby osprey to rear it until it can fly and be released back into the wild. It covers themes of grief, friendship, and the importance of art to express emotions, making it a brilliant story for readers aged from 11 to 15 years.
