The Willow Pool

by Elizabeth Elgin

The long-awaited Liverpool-at-war novel from an author whose tales of love and loss, passion and pain during the great wars are in a class of their own. Against the background of bomb-ravaged Liverpool, Meg Blundell mourns the death of her beloved mother. She is nineteen, father unknown, her past veiled in mystery by her Ma. Why, she wonders, does the rent man never call at No.1 Tippet's Yard? He does everywhere else. Why did Ma avoid talk of her father, but speak only of the idyllic house called Candlefold – a haven and a heaven to her? With Ma gone, Meg must go back to her roots; and in the long sweet summer of 1941 find and lose love.

480 pages, Paperback

First published November 6, 2000

Reviews

[Liz · Rating 1 out of 5]

I finished it because I wanted to see how Elgin managed to achieve a HEA. She had to conjure up a whole manner of incredible and unbelievable plot twists to do it. " shall I tell you about your mother and father? " " Not today Mrs John. Let's have a nice cup of ovaltine and aren't we lucky to be in the country with no milk ration". That was about the level of the emotion and quality of the dialogue.
Frankly, I thought this was rubbish. Not my cup of tea, cocoa or Ovaltine.

[Bernadette McKinley · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have a lot of things to say about this book, and none of them are positive. I think the only positive I can give it is the fact that I finished it and didn’t DNF.

1) False advertisement.
The blurb of this book advertises it as a mystery, if anything. In reality, nobody mentions anything to do with it for most of the book. They establish questions about Meg’s parentage, and don’t bother even mentioning that there is a mystery half the time.
Also, if I’d known this was mostly going to be a generic romance novel, I never would’ve bothered.

2) Slow as all hell
NOTHING INTERESTING HAPPENS IN THIS BOOK I SWEAR. There is no drama or tension to speak of. Most of the book is hundreds of pages of an idyllic life at Candlefold. It drags on ridiculously long. No tension to speak of whatsoever.

3) Obvious twist
“Oh what a coincidence! We were born one day apart, and you are adopted? I WONDER WHAT ON EARTH THAT COULD MEAN?” I could see that plot twist coming from space. Also, why the hell did she listen to Nanny Boag and do exactly what she said without any questioning whatsoever? The rest of that family were so perfectly saintly I’m pretty sure you could murder someone in front of them and they’d still love Meg. Incredibly stupid.

4) Boring characters
Nobody in this book had a personality. Most of the characters were so saintly good that they had absolutely no character flaws to speak of. Mary Sue central in here. Also Kip is creepy as hell and I wouldn’t touch him with a 10 foot pole. Man won’t take no for an answer.

5) Stupid misunderstandings
None of this book would’ve happened if the characters had just talked to each other like normal people do. Absolutely infuriating.

I am glad that’s over.

[Bonnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. Liked the plot twists, even though I was able to predict some of them. I will be seeking out more books by Elizabeth Elgin. But I do have a complaint: it drives me nuts when authors don't get their dates right. In this book, the main character turns 20 in August 1941, but later confirms for an official of the government that she was born in August 1922. Then, in August 1944, she states that she is turning 24. Also, it is mentioned that a child conceived in September 1941 would be a year old in Spring of 1944. If the author can't keep this straight, her editors should at least catch it. Aside from that, it's a good book, in the flavour of Katherine Webb or Kate Morton.

[Delyse Smith]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I hadn't read any of Elizabeth Elgin's books before and thought it might be a bit too lightweight for me. However, it was easy to read, to put down and then pick up again a few days later. Not a complicated book. It is a love story with a twist The story is based in Liverpool, England, during the second World War. I shall look for another of E Elgin's books because I'm in the mood for light fiction at the moment.

[Paula R C R. C. Readman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book. Loved the characters, the setting, the twisted in the tale. Brilliant. A great tale of love, loss and passion against the back drop of wartime Britain.
Will be looking out other books by this author.

[Amanda Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great read from Elizabeth Elgin. I loved this book and the characters were interesting. The story swept me back to 1940’s wartime Liverpool.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book, it is one of very few on my shelf that I have read more than once:) definitely recommend !!

[Sammi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A engaging story full of interesting, captivating characters. An unexpected gemstone of a read.