Since I was first introduced to Mary Lawson’s novels I have been captivated by them – you can read my reviews of the first two I read here and here. Because I enjoyed these novels so much I was delighted to find A Town Called Solace in a charity shop in Frinton on Sea in August 2025, when I was browsing for books with my sister. I am even more delighted now that I have actually read it.
Solace is a small Canadian town. It’s the sort of place where people gossip about others and spread rumours, but also a place where individuals show great kindness to those in trouble. This story centres on three people – Clara, who is eight years old and traumatised by the disappearance of her sister; Elizabeth who is in hospital and not expected to live and who carries a thirty year old secret; and Liam who is divorced, without a job and who has inherited a house from someone he doesn’t really remember.
The book moves between the three viewpoints and builds a story about regret, poor decisions, the consequences of your actions, and how we move on from difficult situations. In the hands of many writers this could be a sentimental and superficial story. There are lots of themes that many contemporary writers like, including redemption through manual work, holding onto your faith when all is lost and random acts of kindness. This book is definitely not sentimental, it explores some quite difficult issues in depth, but it ends up being full of hope.
I thought that this was brilliant. I read it in two long stretches and I only regret that I couldn’t finish it in one evening. I was captivated by the writing and the characterisations. I shall add it to the other two books I own by this author that I hope to reread some day. I also note that another book set in the same town has just been published – I shall save up for it and buy it soon.
