Oh, glorious. And exactly what I needed just now. She somehow manages to take the utterly banal - haddock and kids being obnoxious (as only kids can) and ordinary stuff like that - and the deeply spiritual - what are we here for, what is the proper aim of the human life - and in between, choices of true love or true happiness or true...call it faithfulness - and combine them all into one smooth tapestry of a very rich story, without those disparate elements jarring at all. A good story, on several levels - she's pushing a moral viewpoint, certainly, but it fits these characters and this situation, and doesn't (somehow) feel preachy. Oooh, I didn't know this was part of a trilogy! Must find the rest. This will be a regular reread, I think. ( )

First in the 'Elliots of Damerosehay' series about an extended family who revolve around the elderly matriarch Lucilla. Written as contemporary fiction in 1940, it's inevitably rather old-fashioned, and modern readers may be puzzled or shocked by some of the ethics of the day. Yet it's a moving story with great characterisation.

Amongst the family interactions and struggles, the book is about the nature of truth. It’s about being true to oneself and one’s family, of making difficult decisions, of faithfulness and tradition. It’s about generational differences in the way people see the world, and also about eternal truths which can transcend simple facts.

This isn’t a book for those who want a quick read, nor for those who like fast plots and rapid action. Sometimes moving, often thought-provoking, and with an encouraging ending. ( )

Lucilla buys Damerosehay, a dilapidated, wonderful old ruin on an estuary by the sea with a wonderful overgrown garden; to make a family seat - a home for grandson, David, whose father died, and a place for all her grandchildren to come. The more I read it, the more wisdom I found in it. It was quite well done. I want to read more of her books.

The first of the trilogy about the Eliots of Damerosehay. It can be quite hard to describe these books without making them sound horribly saccharine, and they are not like that at all. They are, however, old fashioned and this is no exception as David Eliot and his aunt by marriage Nadine must chose between love that destroys and love that builds up (there, that sounds terrible too but it's much better than that!). Beautiful writing. ( )

This is the first book in the trilogy of the Eliot family and their home Damerosehay. Lucilla is the matriarch of this family. She lost two sons in WWI and raised one of her grandchildren, David, who was with her the day she found Damerosehay and determined to build a sanctuary for her family there.

Years pass, and another son of Lucilla's is having marital problems so his three children are staying with her while George and Nadine begin their separation. David is a man now and finds himself attracted to Nadine. Lucilla realizes what is happening and works to show them how much their relationship would damage the family.

Two quotes that convey so much of what this story is about.
First, the difference between David and Lucilla:
"Her generation had built from without inwards, had put the reality of law and tradition above the reality of personal feeling, but his built from within outwards, the truth of personal feeling must come first." (p 97)

Now, Lucilla's comments to David on p 120:
“What I understand, David, is that your infatuation for Nadine has blinded you to every consideration of honor and duty, and even sense. I see what you mean about truth, and I know that you mean to be honest, but I think that unconsciously you are using your ideals to justify action that you would take in any case. What is possessing you, David, is not passion for truth but a man’s utterly selfish longing to possess the beauty of a very lovely woman.”

Elizabeth Goudge provides beautiful descriptions of how Lucilla matured and became who she is. And how her love for her family guides her choices and actions. Highly recommended. ( )