WHERE THE RIVERS MERGE Book Review

Where The Rivers Merge¹ by Mary Alice Monroe, audiobook, 12h 20m

Synopsis from Audible: 1908 - The Lowcountry of South Carolina is at the cusp of change. Mayfield, the grand estate held for generations by the Rivers family, is the treasured home of young Eliza. Free spirited, she refuses to be confined by societal norms. Instead, Eliza revels in exploring the golden fields and sparkling ponds of Mayfield, observing wildlife, and riding horses. But her halcyon days are cut short by the Great War, coastal storms, and unexpected challenges to Mayfield. As Eliza battles personal pains and the ravages of family turmoil over the years, her love and devotion for the natural world puts her on a collision course with the patriarchal traditions of a bygone era.

1988: At 88, Eliza is the scion of the Rivers/DeLancey family. She’s fought a lifetime to save her beloved Mayfield and is too independent and committed to quietly retire and leave the fate of the estate to her greedy son. She must make decisions that will assure the future of the land and her family—or watch them both be split apart.

Set against the evocative landscape of the twentieth-century low country, Where the Rivers Merge is a dramatic and sweeping multigenerational family story of unyielding love, lessons learned, profound sacrifices, and the indomitable spirit of a woman determined to persevere in the face of change in order to protect her family legacy and the land she loves.

BOOK REVIEW: Straight up at the top of the synopsis it flat out says that this is the first of two for this story which I missed because we had 17 minutes left in the audiobook and I was like how are we wrapping this up when there is so much more to the story...only to be met with a To Be Continued... basically. The only thing that irritates me about my lack of observing the obvious in a synopsis (which I rarely read anyway) is that this book isn't even out yet at the time I'm writing this so I have no idea how long I have to wait to finish this story!

I finished this book several days ago and just have not been able to figure out what words I could write to do this story justice. I'm still at a loss but since tomorrow is book review day I figured I needed to try. Here's the thing. I love the south. I may be from the PNW but I never felt more at home than I did when I lived in the south. Listening to this book felt like I was right there with Eliza getting to hear her stories from when she was a little girl and it was made all the more special because she was in her childhood home. That tugged at the heart strings a lot and made me love this all the more. My favorite part is at the beginning when Eliza meets with her lawyer to confirm her scheming son's plans. Oh her response was the best!

In case you couldn't tell, this is a 5 star for me. I really need to get a physical copy because I loved it that much! This is told by two narrators. You have one as adult Eliza and one as kid/young woman Eliza. The narrator that does the younger Eliza does a fantastic job making subtle changes to her voice to take Eliza from 8 years old into her 20s. The author does such a great job with her writing that as the narrators are speaking, I can see everything as it is described. To my knowledge I have not read anything by this author before now but I loved this so much that not only will I be waiting to find out when the next book comes out but I'll be adding other works by this author to my never ending TBR!

5/5 Stars

2025 Reading Challenge: 29/50 complete

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