Second Time Around [Paperback]

Marcia Willett (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1997

When Mathilda Rainbird bequeaths her beautiful house in a Devonshire cove to three unknown relatives, she brings together a group of people who all secretly yearn for a sense of belonging. Tessa, a delightful twenty-two-year-old, still misses her dead parents and brother but has learned that it is better to be alone than to be with the wrong people. Will, a retired widow, is by nature a positive man. Enchanted by Mathilda's house and drawn to Isobel, Mathilda's housekeeper who still lives in the cove, he sees life taking an exciting turn. Beatrice, a retired prep-school matron, thinks the idea of living with her cousins is preposterous. But a magical Christmas spent in the cove soon wins her over. As they muck in together it is as though they have known each other all their lives. Isobel, who still grieves for her dear friend, recognises Mathilda in each one of them as she is warmly accepted as part of this delightful and truly extraordinary family.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Mathilda Rainbird wills her English seaside estate to distant relatives shortly before her death, and the three beneficiaries' decision to move in together kick-starts Willett's whimsical tale of independence and familial support. Tessa Rainbird, a 22-year-old dog sitter still mourning the death of her parents and baby brother; widower Will Rainbird; and Beatrice Holmes, a retired matron from a boys' prep school are immediately enchanted by the home's location, perched on a hill overlooking a private beach. Along with Isobel Stangate, Mathilda's former housekeeper who lives in an adjacent cottage, this group of genuinely honest folks forms a strong bond. As Tessa, Will, Beatrice and Isobel get to know one another, Willett artfully weaves in the idea that their unlikely situation is essential to their destiny and will allow each of them to move ahead to the next stage of their lives. With its strong, empathetic characters, this latest from Willett (The Courtyard) will appeal to both fans and newcomers to her warm, easy style. (Dec.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Review

Praise for Marcia Willett:

"Deservedly compared to Binchy and Pilcher, Willett is an equally gifted storyteller."

- Booklist on The Birdcage

“A must for women fiction readers.”
- Booklist on The Children’s Hour

“Like Rosamunde Pilcher and Maeve Binchy, Willett creates such fully dimensional characters that readers feel as if they should phone or e-mail them to keep in touch.”
- Rocky Mountain News on A Week in Winter

“Thoroughly engrossing, with richly drawn characters, a mysterious locale, and a beautifully crafted plot.”
- The South Florida Sun-Sentinel on A Week in Winter

“Readers will enjoy the heartwarming ending, vibrant characters, and the excellent depiction of the English countryside.”
- Booklist (starred review) on A Summer in the Country

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 314 pages
• Publisher: Headline (1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0755325214
• ISBN-13: 978-0747257165
• ASIN: 0747257167
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,904,400 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Moving Relationship Novel Explores Need For Family, April 12, 2007

By 

Antoinette Klein (Hoover, Alabama USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Second Time Around (Paperback)

Marcia Willett does an emotional exploration of the basic human desire for a sense of family. Whether related by blood or by circumstances, all humans have this unfailing desire to "belong."

Wealthy Mathilda Rainbird has lived her life alone and unmarried but in her last years seeks legal help (from James Barrington whom we met earlier in HATTIE'S MILL) in tracking down relatives she has never met. She bequeaths her rather sizable estate including a home on a scenic cove of England to three distant relatives her solicitor is able to locate. There is Tessa, a young single woman who has tragically lost her family and supports herself with a successful dog-sitting business. Tessa counts among her clients Kate Webster, a regularly recurring character in Willett novels, and it is her friendship with Kate that leads to her meeting Kate's son Giles. A cousin, Will Rainbird, is a widowed and retired diplomat living in Switzerland and the third relative is Beatrice Holmes, the recently retired matron at an all-male prep school, who is having a hard time adjusting to her new life. All are at points in their lives where this need to belong is acute, but can these three virtual strangers find a way to all live in harmony? Is blood really that thick? It is also the story of Matilda's companion in the last years of her life, the distraught Isobel Stangate, who seems to have paid a large price for her adulterous dalliance. Rejected by the husband she realizes too late that she still wants, and spurned by the daughter she has publicly humiliated, Isobel finds solace with Mathilda. Will she ever be able to make amends to her husband and daughter? Has she paid too dear a price for a reckless grab at happiness?

The novel is rich with the scenic beauty of the West Country of England, but it is the lives of Mathilda, Isobel, Tessa, Will, and Bea that make this book very special. Whether young or old, married or single, the need to bond is inherent and the road to friendship and love is often perilous.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Can life really be this tranquil? (3.25*s), January 21, 2009

By 

J. Grattan "Ideas can move the world" (Lawrenceville, GA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Second Time Around (Paperback)

Set in England, probably in the 1990's, this novel is a most sentimental look at the lives of five individuals, mostly middle-aged, in their mutual, yet unforced, efforts to restore happiness to their lives. The book first focuses on eightyish Mathilda Rainbird, a sharp and kindly yet taciturn woman living an ascetic life in a large house on a secluded, craggy cove on the coast of England with a cottage and a boathouse. She provides much needed reassurance to forty-something Isobel Stangate, a married woman completely devastated after destroying her family's life as a result of an ill-advised, extra-marital fling, when Isobel is hired to provide assistance while living in the cottage.

Unbeknownst to Isobel, Mathilda becomes gravely ill and, seemingly innocently, conducts a search for heirs for the estate. Three very distant relatives are found, all of whom have holes in their lives: Tessa, twenty-something, lost her family in an accident several years ago but has found some enjoyment as a live-in pet-sitter; Will, a sixty-something widower has been living in Switzerland; and Bea, a retired matron at a boy's school has found that she is now a outsider among her former associates. None knew any of the others and all are surprised at their joint inheritance, but more surprising is the contentment that comes to their lives as they adapt to each other and to the big house for shared living.

The tone of the book is decidedly low-key - no melodrama. Personal problems in this supportive atmosphere seem to somehow get worked out, from Isobel's estrangement from her daughter to Tessa's indecisiveness about marriage. The book is heavy with descriptions of the English countryside: sea, terrain, birds, plants, weather, and the like. The characters are likeable, though lightly drawn. The world as constructed by the author is idyllic to say the least. The book is comfort food, much as the characters are to each other.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars fine English relationship drama, December 14, 2008

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Second Time Around (Paperback)

Due to the splintering her family years ago, never married eighty-four years old Mathilda Rainbird has no obvious heir to bequest her large South Devon estate to once she dies, which the octogenarian knows is soon. As such with the help of barrister James Barrington she leaves her property including her seaside cottage to three nth degree cousins she never met and she believes never met each other.

After Mathilda passes away, the beneficiaries are stunned as none knew the late octogenarian nor expected the gift she bestowed on them. Twenty-two years old dog sitter Tessa Rainbird has felt alone ever since her parents and baby brother died; retired diplomat widower Will Rainbird has gotten used to being alone ever since his wife past away; and spinster retired school matron Beatrice Holmes has always been alone even when surrounded by her all male students and faculty. These three lonely-hearts move into the cottage as each seeks new beginnings. Also on the property is Mathilda's former housekeeper Isobel Stangate who resides in a smaller adjacent cottage while separated from her husband. None of the four want to share anything as each prefers hiding in shallow loneliness out of fear of being hurt; but soon family bonds begin to form as the quartet develop differing but caring relationships with one another.

This is the first American publication of a late 1990s English relationship drama starring five strong characters (including the late Mathilda). Readers will feel they moved into the cottage due to Marcia Willet's trademark ability to bring her cast alive (see THE COURTYARD that contains a similar ensemble warmth story line). Fans will root for everyone to make it especially as a warm loving family who are there for each other.

Harriet Klausner