The Inn at the Edge of the World [Import] [Paperback]

Alice Thomas Ellis (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Chivers Large print (Chivers, Windsor, Paragon & C; Large Print Ed edition (September 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0745120768
• ISBN-13: 978-0745120768
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ye All Come Back In the End, April 6, 2004

By 

prisrob "pris," (New England USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

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This review is from: The Inn at the Edge of the World (Common Reader Editions) (Paperback)

Many of us complain about Christmas- too much to do, too many gifts, too much to eat, too many people around, too much commercialization and not enough time to rest and be ourselves. In Alice Thomas Ellis's novel "The Inn At the Edge of The World", we are introduced to five people who are trying to escape the Christmas season. They have all responded to an ad in the London weeklies to "ignore Christmas at an inn at the edge of the world" The inn is off a remote coast of Scotland.

Eric owns the Inn, and his wife Mabel helps out at times. Eric wanted to move to this part of the world from London because of his wife. Mabel has a tendency to go out and party and he knows not what else she does. How Eric talked Mabel into joining him at this God forsaken place is beyond understanding They are unhappy together, and it appears later unhappy apart. Eric is not making ends meet at the Inn, and he comes up with the idea of Christmas at the edge of the world. He will be able to accept 5-7 people over Christmas and then maybe his world will turn right.

The five people who decide to answer the ad are an interesting group. Each, of course, has their own story. Harry, a military man, who has lost his wife and son. Harry has a fascination with General Charles Gordon and the last days of Khartoum. He has enough information to write his own book. Jessica is recently separated from her man, Mike. She is a voice-over commercial artist and actress. Jon, a sometimes actor, who is obsessed with Jessica. Anita, a salesperson in the stationary department of a store. And, Ronald, a psychoanalyst who's wife has recently left him. These five people meet and spend the days of Christmas together. However, their miseries just shift with them from one locale to the next. Their being who they are rules out their finding what they profess to be in search of. As in all of Alice Thomas Ellis's novels, the uncanny, the mystic, the strange confront all of them. Because they can only use their everyday reasoning, they remain unenlightened and return to things as they were and as they most certainly will remain.

On this island there is simply another order of reality. There is a supernatural fable woven into this story that gets to the heart of what is missing in the poor, lost souls who came looking for change and understanding. Love this novel- love Alice Thomas Ellis. prisrob

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Alice Ellis is excellent, June 25, 1999

By 

Michael C Rockwell - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Inn at the Edge of the World (Hardcover)

Ms Ellis writes about several disagreeable people all trying to be antisocial at Christmas time. Her descriptions of these horrid people are hilarious, especially the psychiatrist obsessed with getting his wife back to make him his supper. As usual, she puts a touch of the uncanny into the story. I recommend this and any of her books.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ellis at Her Best, September 28, 2001

By 

Judith E. Hanhisalo (Winter Haven FL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Inn at the Edge of the World (Common Reader Editions) (Paperback)

The Inn at the Edge of the World is based on the delightful idea of avoiding Christmas or at least what it has become in the modern world. An ill-assorted lot of guests ends up on a tiny Scottish island with secrets of its own, including the omnipresent smell of fish. As usual, Ellis mixes the real and supernatural deftly and believably. The writing is first rate, the characters real and the ending totally unexpected.