The Snow Globe
By Judith Kinghorn
Publisher: NAL
It is December 1926, and all of England is abuzz over the
mysterious disappearance of celebrated mystery writer Agatha Christie.
Speculation is rife, with some suspecting a publicity stunt, others convinced
the novelist has drowned herself in the Silent Pool, a natural spring near
where her abandoned car was discovered, and still others pointing to the
possibility that she was murdered by her adulterous husband, Archie Christie.
Eighteen-year-old Daisy Forbes, youngest of the three daughters of Howard Forbes,
a wealthy industrialist, and his wife, Mabel, is among the volunteer searchers.
Judith Kinghorn uses the search theme and the image of the unfaithful husband
to connect the larger world of post-World War I England with the private world
of the Forbes family.
The first part of the novel takes place as the family
gathers for Christmas at Eden Hall, the grand home Howard Forbes had built
shortly after his marriage. The safe, secure world of the family has already
been changed by war. Of the four employees who left for military service, only
one returned and he is a different person from the one who left. “The war still
hung over them all, young and old. Like an ever-present but reticent guest, it
stood alone, lingering in a shadowy corner.” Iris, the eldest Forbes daughter,
has embraced the new world, flaunting her independence, declaring that she will
never marry, and celebrating her life as the owner of a smart shop and a habitué
of equally smart clubs where she and her friends drink and dance. Lily, the newly
married middle daughter, clings to the remnants of a vanishing world, and
Daisy, unformed and uncertain, is still enough of a child to half-believe in
the power of wishes.
One of the Forbes’s Christmas traditions
involves the display of a snow globe that belongs to Daisy:
Inside the glass orb were tiny pine trees, a
replica of Eden Hall in miniature and hand-painted gold stars—each one studded
with a tiny diamond at its center. A present to Daisy from her father when she
was no more than five years old, the snow globe was brought out each year and
placed in the same spot, its limited appearance making it a veritable treasure
of Christmas. And Daisy continued to be mesmerized by it. She imagined them
all—herself and her family—inside the miniature house: tiny people with giant
souls and infinite love in their hearts, safe and warm beneath the glass,
beneath those diamonds and gold stars.
Christmas 1926 will shatter Daisy’s illusions about her
family. Overhearing a conversation between two long-time servants, she learns
that her father has had a mistress for years. Her faith in her adored father’s
integrity shattered, she is filled with sympathy for her mother, only to
discover that not only is her mother aware of Howard’s infidelity but she has
inexplicably invited his mistress, the actress Margot Vincent, and Margot’s son
to Eden Hall for Christmas. As if these revelations were not enough for Daisy
to deal with, she is also faced with shifts in her relationship with Stephen
Jessop, the son of Eden Hall’s cook and gardener and Daisy’s best friend
throughout their childhood. She is also uncertain about her feelings for
Benedict Gifford, a young man from her father’s company who is clearly
interested in marrying her. The presence of the charming and handsome Valentine
Vincent, Margot’s son, adds to Daisy’s confusion. Given his connection with her
father’s mistress, Daisy feels she should loathe Val, and yet it is he with
whom she shares her first kiss.
The holiday ends with the guests returning to their homes
and members of the Forbes family scattering. Mabel leaves with her husband’s
spinster sister for an extended stay in Italy and France, Daisy joins Iris in
London, and Howard is left to care for Eden Hall and his mother-in-law in
Mabel’s absence. Stephen too leaves, ostensibly for New Zealand. Before leaving
for London, in a gesture heavy with symbolism, Daisy throws away her snow
globe.
The second part of the novel takes place in the summer of
1927 as the Forbes family and most of their guests reunite at Eden Hall to
celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of Mabel and Howard. Although the novel
is classified as historical fiction, the resolutions of the storylines in this
section are generally of the sort that will have romance readers sighing
happily, despite a brief period of dismay when Daisy, piecing pieces of a
puzzle together without all the parts, concludes that Stephen is her
half-brother.
Kinghorn shows her readers a world caught up in the changes
that followed WW I, most obviously in the characters of Stephen and Iris. The
former suggests that the barriers between classes were becoming less rigid, and
the latter exemplifies the greater freedom young women enjoyed in the era of
bobbed hair, rising hemlines, and the early stages of the sexual revolution.
Mabel and Howard’s story holds equal interest because they are tied to the
values of an older generation but find their lives shaped by the new world as
well. Howard’s business is changed radically by the decline of the British
Empire, and only his acumen and his willingness to embrace change save the
family from great financial losses. Reared to accept her husband’s behavior
without protest and to find her purpose in the domestic realm, Mabel refuses to
conform. Early in the book, she is described as a “Henry James heroine, one of
those formidable women whose sense of duty left them unable to breathe
properly,” but unlike those Henry James heroines, Mabel casts off the duties
that had defined her and learns to breathe freely.
I would have rated this book more generously had it been
billed as the first of a series with the reader reasonably able to suppose a
second book would offer fuller development of Iris’s character and a look at
what happens to Valentine. Read as a standalone, I found Iris’s character a
confusing mix of compassion, anger, and shallowness. Valentine too, although
depth is suggested in spots, comes across as essentially shallow. The combination
suggests that those who belong to the emerging world are pleasure-seekers of
little substance. I found this bothersome.
Nevertheless, Kinghorn gives readers a fascinating look at
one family and those around them, and she does so in lucid prose that sometimes
possesses a wonderful lyricism. The
historical setting feels authentic, and Daisy’s youthful vulnerability and
growth are endearing. I recommend this one to fans of light historical fiction
and to fans of 20th-century historical romance.
You make it sound like a wonderful read - thanks!
ReplyDeleteIt sounds interesting, doesn't it? I'm glad to see more stories being set in this time period. It's one of my favorites.
DeleteSounds like my type of book, thanks for the review.
ReplyDelete