In her fictional saga, A MINGLED YARN, author Louise Williams chronicles 30 years in the lives of the Walsh family, a clan whose dysfunction is rooted in the hard-hearted brand of religion embraced by its patriarch and matriarch. When the youngest daughter, Sally Anne, gives birth to a child outside of wedlock and dies from complications, she takes with her a secret that will haunt the family for decades to come: the identity of her baby’s father. The only person who knows the truth is Sally Anne’s best friend and college roommate, Clare. But a deathbed promise to never reveal the truth weighs upon her and the family as she struggles to maintain her silence over the decades.
Shunned by Sally Anne’s cultish Catholic parents, who lurk in the background of their children’s lives, the orphaned baby, Liza, is taken in by married-with-children daughter, Fiona and her husband, Jack. They become loving parents to her, raising her with the same tenderness they afford their biological children. It’s a relatively happy landing for Liza, though she longs to fully understand the circumstances of her parentage – a yearning she carries into adulthood. Ultimately, Clare’s choice to harbor Sally Anne’s secret is destined to destroy the lives of those who have been kept in the dark.
A secondary storyline that introduces interesting tension focuses on Fiona and Jack’s son, Finn – a difficult child whose inability to emotionally connect with his family leads to callous, mean-spirited behavior, particularly where Liza is concerned. While the inner workings of his mind give rise to the possibility that autistic tendencies are in play, the parents’ relaxed disciplinary style is hinted at as a perpetuating factor in Finn’s social impairments, as is the notion he was shorted on parental attention thanks to the arrival of Baby Liza. The reasons are never made clear, which keeps alive the possibility that Finn might be a victim of sorts.
The family saga unfolds scene-like through a long series of abbreviated chapters spanning from 1952 to 1981. While this makes for quick, easy reading, the characters and their quandaries often beg for more development. An approach that allows for lingering in their lives a little longer might better serve the story and make for a more fulfilling read.
The author writes with descriptive flair and has created characters to care about – even down to the stoically depraved Finn. That makes it all the more frustrating to accept the many tragedies that unceremoniously befall them. If the takeaway of A MINGLED YARN is that the Walsh’s are an irrevocably cursed family, it’s an understandable conclusion. Tension builds, peaks and then obliterates happiness, time and again. The final tragedy slams the door on the hope that, at long last, there will be some reward for the emotional investment.
Author Louise Williams demonstrates a flair for characterization in A MINGLED YARN, as she alternately skims over and plunges into three decades in the lives of the Walsh family. Through a storyline steeped in scandal, religious fanaticism, unconditional love, secrecy and tragedy, she weaves a tale that repeatedly breaks the heart with little reprieve.
~Libby Wiersema for IndieReader