Edward Williams: A Modern Parable

by RJU McGuire

After taking his degree, Edward Williams sacrifices the possibility of a more glamorous career to help with the management of the family estate. His younger brother, Sebastian, leaves for the Continent to study medicine, but soon turns to a dissolute and financially ruinous life there. To pay Sebastian's debts and bring him home, their father digs into the estate's assets. Yoked to an impoverished estate and his hopes of marriage frustrated, Edward must wrestle with the resentment he feels towards both his brother and father.

A meditation on duty, love, and freedom, Edward Williams is a modern imagining of the Parable of the Prodigal Son in what is understood to be Victorian England.

493 pages, Paperback

Published June 9, 2022

Reviews

[Hilary · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a "modern" version of the prodigal son parable according to the book cover, but it takes place in an 1800-type time, so "modern" is a relative term here. The writing style is quite wordy and descriptive, which is not my cup of tea, and a slower paced than I typically like, so my rating might be biased by these features. I felt like it took a long time for things to happen, and it was over the half way mark in the book when there was an intriguing turn of events. However, things promptly slowed down again shortly thereafter. The author did tell the story of one character's downward spiral quite well.