Review: The Sound Mirror, Heidi James

The Sound Mirror is a beautifully-written, thoughtful novel, full of poetic phrasing that traces the lives of three women. The novel is concerned with nature and nurture and explores Clare, Tamara, and Ada's relationships with their mothers, children and men.

It's so refreshing to see realistic working-class women on the page and to hear from Ada, a complex character who is plucked from India as a young girl. The novel reads almost like a biography the author captures the voices so well, until two-thirds of the way through the novel, when the narrative takes a surprising and devastating turn. At this point you appreciate even more the skill of the writer in building the details, drop by delicious drop. The ending resonates and amplifies the underlying questions that the book explores - how can we live with or escape our past?

Moving and poignant. One to re-read.

My copy of this novel was kindly supplied by the author, Heidi James for a fair and honest review.