"You'll Find Home One Day" ~ The Muir House by Mary DeMuth ~ Review

There is a powerful symbolism in “The Muir House” between Willa’s old home and Willa herself. And as the story progresses, that symbolism only becomes more clear.

Willa is a young woman desperately searching for “her” place in the world. But there are so many secrets locked within her, that it pushes her away from everyone and everything around her. Until she comes to her moment of breaking.

The story is told through her surroundings. There isn’t a lot of dialogue (what is though is excellent), but is mainly a story told through what her memories and surroundings, as she digs to remember what she can’t. Can Willa move past the struggles of her youth that are encroaching on today’s promises?

That is basically the premise of the novel. As she sees everything she holds dear being stripped away, she sees where she has gone wrong for so many years. “The Muir House” is one of those books I think you would have to read several times over just to grasp the full power. There is a great deal of subtext buried in the writing and you can’t wear it out by re-reading.

Once I got into the story and grasped the writing style, it was an enjoyable read, it makes you think, but also presents a story that I couldn’t help but sigh in closing. (it is  a lovely ending!)

This review is my honest opinion. Thanks to the publishers and the author for providing a copy to influence on behalf of the author.

~~~ More about the novel...~~~

'You'll find home one day. Sure as sweet tea on a hot afternoon.' Words from Willa Muir's sketchy childhood haunt her dreams and color her days with longing, regret, and fear. What do the words mean? Willa is far from sure. When Hale Landon places a ring on her finger, Willa panics, feeling she can't possibly say yes when so much in her past is a mystery. Bent on sorting out her history, Willa returns to Rockwall, Texas, to the Muir House Bed and Breakfast, a former funeral home. But the old place holds her empty memory close to itself. Willa's mother utters unintelligible clues from her deathbed, and the caretaker of the house keeps coveted answers carefully protected. Throw in an old flame, and Willa careens farther away from ever knowing the truth. Set in a growing suburb of Texas, The Muir House explores trauma, healing, love new and old, and the life-changing choices people make to keep their reputations intact.