Island Justice [Paperback]

Elizabeth Winthrop (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1999

In this compelling, evocative novel set on a small island off the New England coast, Elizabeth Winthrop subtly examines our notions of home.

For Maggie Hammond, home means her beloved godmother, so when Nan dies, the Victorian house she inhabited becomes merely a possession for Maggie to shed. Bur when she meets Sam, the island naturalist, and a dead body rolls up on her beach, she finds herself drawn deeper and deeper into the complex world of the island's winter community.

For Anna Craven, married to an abusive bully, home is fraught with danger and shrouded in secrets. As Anna grows closer to Dennis Lacey, the newly arrived island doctor, gossip flies and the domestic problems long hidden behind closed doors erupt into violence. The tightly knit group of year-rounders are forced to examine the erosive undertow of secrecy that threatens to destroy the island community they call home.

A beautifully observed novel in the tradition of Anne Tyler and Alice Hoffman, Island Justice sets Maggie's struggle to trust the pulls of her heart against the backdrop of a community intent on pursuing its own unique brand of justice.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Set among the year-round inhabitants of a small summering spot off the New England coast, the absorbing second novel from PEN Syndicated Fiction Award winner and popular children's author Winthrop (In My Mother's House) delivers an illuminating story of a crisis of community. When antique furniture conservator Maggie Hammond inherits a rambling island house from her beloved godmother, she intends to sell the property and resume her peripatetic life. But when she falls in love with teacher and naturalist Sam Matera, a year-round resident, she changes her mindAeven after a body washes up on the nearby beach. As winter settles in, Winthrop describes the raw beauty and isolation of the island in the off-season (readers of Anne Rivers Siddons's Up Island may find similarities) and introduces other nicely realized year-rounders: Al Craven, a corrupt general contractor and the island's sheriff; dog trainer Anna Craven; their daughter Erin; Dennis Lacey, the new full-time island doctor whose marriage to a sophisticated New Yorker is on the rocks; and various, skillfully portrayed secondary characters. Balancing the love story between Maggie and Sam is the more complex tale of the attraction between Anna Craven and Dennis Lacey and the account of the Cravens' abusive marriage. Al doesn't hit Anna but he reminds her constantly that he ought to. His insidious bullying is tolerated by many on the island, but Dennis's presence makes Anna want out. When she and Erin try to make their getaway, the islanders suspect her plan and silently cheer her on. Only when the attempt fails (in a series of chillingly realistic scenes) do the islanders begin to speak out and take action. Winthrop escalates the tension and keeps the final plot twists of the Craven drama unpredictable as she brings the strengths of their community to the fore. Author tour.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

The interconnected lives and loves of a Maine island's summer and off-season people are explored with engaging warmth in a rather loose, baggy chronicle, from the author of numerous books for children and one previous adult novel, In My Mother's House (1988). As the story begins, 30ish Maggie Hammond, a consultant specializing in the restoration of antique furniture, returns to the (unnamed) island to claim the old house left to her by her late godmother. Winthrop then gradually introduces Maggie's year-round neighbors: contractor (and sheriff) Al Craven, his abused wife Anna, and their 13-year-old daughter Erin; Dennis Lacey, a newly arrived physician; Chuck Montclair, a kind of village sage who quietly observes others' conflicts; and Sam Matera, deemed ``the naturalist,'' to whom Maggie is instantly attracted. The novel springs some surprises, thanks to the skill with which Winthrop shifts the viewpoint (Maggie is by no means its sole focus). But the major actions are nevertheless contrived and predictable: A nurse who sleeps around discovers, and displays, evidence of an extramarital affair; Al's brutal treatment of Anna (and habit of slipping into Erin's bed) produces explosive results; teenagers vandalize empty houses; and Al's construction company, no straight-arrow, is discovered to be using inferior materials and bribing building inspectors. Winthrop does best in portraying Erin's baffled awareness of sex--several scenes involving kids are among the book's sharpest--but she labors too much in distinguishing ``island people'' from their less communal mainland counterparts (``we jump when the siren goes off and take chances when somebody's in trouble. . . . It's not because we're morally upright human beings. It's just because there's this circle of water around us that forces us to be that way''). Add a loose-endtying finale in which a wounded dog recovers and people get the partners they desire, and what you have is a pretty conventional melodrama after all. -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 356 pages
• Publisher: Quill Press; Reprint edition (May 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688169686
• ISBN-13: 978-0688169688
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,658,711 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

ELIZABETH WINTHROP is the author of over fifty works of fiction for all ages.

Her most recent historical novel, COUNTING ON GRACE has been chosen as a Notable Book of the Year by the American Library Association, the National Council of Social Studies, the International Reading Association and the Children's Book Council among others. The novel has also been nominated for state book awards in Vermont, Virginia, Kentucky, Kansas, Missouri,Indiana, Hawaii and Arizona.

Elizabeth has published more than fifty books for readers of all ages. THE CASTLE IN THE ATTIC, nominated for twenty-three state book awards is currently under option to Walden Media.

Her popular picture books include DUMPY LA RUE, SHOES,DOG SHOW, SQUASHED IN THE MIDDLE and most recently, THE FIRST CHRISTMAS STOCKING and THE BIGGEST PARADE. Two of her recent books for older children are THE RED-HOT RATTOONS, a comic fantasy novel and DEAR MR. PRESIDENT, Letters from a Milltown Girl, a work of historical fiction set in western Massachusetts.

Elizabeth is also the author of two novels for adults, IN MY MOTHER'S HOUSE and ISLAND JUSTICE. She is currently at work on a memoir.

The daughter of the journalist, Stewart Alsop,she divides her time between New York City and the Berkshires.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great story, disappointing ending, September 6, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Voorhees, NJ, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Island Justice (Paperback)

This is a great read...especially for anyone who is either a "summer renter" or a "year rounder" at any coastal or vacationing spot.

The true character of social behavior is revealed throughout this story. It reminds me of small town, Anywhere, USA taking a deep look into ourselves and our role in society.

I was very disappointed with the last ten pages and ending. The book was a "can't put down" read bringing all the characters to their moral and immoral peaks, but was let down by the indecisive ending for some of the characters. (i.e. "Anna Craven"). Most of the story shifted (and very well written) to her and her abusive husband, and I was captivated by how she would end up either a victim forever or free from abuse and an idol for women alike. Neither happened, she was just left unaccounted for (although Al got a good send-off).

Winthrope had my attention on the issue, and then dropped the ball on what would have been resonant for all abusive situations, physical or mental.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Characters that draw you into an irresistible story., January 12, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Island Justice (Hardcover)

Elizabeth Winthrop uses an island setting to examine a group of people and their ties to one another, both good and ill. She builds the interlacing relationships among families, from within and in their interactions with other families, beautifully evoking the insecurities and needinesses of teenagers, as well as the tensions, baggage, and hopes of adults in this community.

The island's occupants are a varied group who reflect the problems and malaise of America everywhere: a troubled family poisoned by the vicious dominance of its father, who is also the sheriff and a locally important businessman; a high school teacher dealing with his own past while trying to bring a love of science and life to his students; and Maggie, a reluctant resident who begins to learn that life's restrictions can also be its satisfactions. Conflict among them builds to a climax and an unexpected resolution as the island dispenses its own unique justice.

Winthrop makes the feel of the place almost tangible. The reader can almost smell the sea and mud, the bracken, reeds and trees; feel the sat air summer and winter. It's well worth the read!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very comfortable read -- enjoyed more than I expected., September 29, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Island Justice (Hardcover)

I had previously seen this book reviewed in a leading magazine and thought I would give it a try. I found it to be very interesting with the focus being on the island's winter people, their code of community, their secrets, and their justice. At first I was disappointed at how the last 10-15 pages ended, but after I rolled the conclusion around in my head for a while, I realized the author had concluded the book in typical style of the islanders. They always handled their own situations without fanfare -- . An excellent read!