The Anniversary

A lovely 'switch-off' read (though with some depth) about a family who founded 'St Martin's', an artistic community in the Herefordshire countryside, and the anniversary they hold to celebrate its 50 years running. Covering one day, with flashbacks to the past, Swinfen tells the story of an extraordinary clan: Natasha, the White Russian immigrant who founded St Martin's and whose enthusiasm for it kept her going after the death of her husband Edmund in World War II; Irina, her diffident daughter, struggling to help her husband William recover from a stroke; Frances, Natasha's artistically-inclined granddaughter, disillusioned with her philandering actor husband Giles and drawn back to St Martin's by the possibility of work there; Gregor, her Polish sculptor foster-brother and former lover; Frances's five children, all of whom have suffered in their own ways from their parents' unhappy marriage; Frances's daughter Anya's Greek partner Spiro; the local vicar; Frances's botanist brother Hugh... this is a novel rich in different stories and viewpoints, and deeply interested in people and culture.True, there are some weaker moments and episodes in the book. It is popular fiction, not literary fiction, and this can occasionally lead to silliness, or crudeness. Giles the actor, for example, rarely rises above the position of caricature, and is so crude that one wonders what on earth Frances ever saw in him. There's a rather irrelevant and silly scene with a child falling out of a tree, a slightly sentimental episode involving a puppy, and Katya, the teenager, becomes too much a sullen stereotype of teenage grudge-bearing at times. The ending also perhaps ties up things rather too neatly, though I suppose it is perfectly credible. But these little quibbles are as nothing compared to the sheer pleasure of much of the book, some of the lovely observations (I particularly liked the Anya/Spiro relationship, and Frances's love for her father and grandmother) and the beautiful setting. Perfect down-time reading - the equivalent of a warm scented bath.

I bought The Anniversary after enjoying another of Ann Swinfen's books, The Testament of Mariam, and I think I like this one even more. You are in safe hands with Ms Swinfen; her books are intelligent, engrossing and her writing is reminiscent of the classic authors. There is no recourse to cheap thrills, no wild excitement or adventure but her very believable characters move through the finely drawn setting as if they belong there, which of course they do. Their problems are real and as the characters grow and overcome their conflicts, so does the reader begin to understand that the story isn't so much about the trials of the individual as the different ways in which they deal with them.This book carried me through the trials of the world cup, while my husband watched that, I took The Anniversary to a cosy nook and moved into another world where there is no football.I highly recommend this book and will be reading others by this author.

This book is excellent and well deserves its 5 stars. It is one I will come back and read again in the same way as I would look through an album of family photos.It is Natasha Devereux's (nee Greshlov) 95th birthday and all her family are doing there best to be there for at least part of the day. So are many of those who have spent part of their lives at St Martins, also neighbours.While events of the day unfold, we are given glimpses into the lives of all.I shed tears of laughter, compassion and delight almost equally as this family became mine for this day.The Anniversary has left me longing to read more of the author's work and hoping it will become available for the kindle.

I prefer this to Mrs Swinfen's historical fiction. While the main action takes place in just one day the cast of characters occasionally take us to past events which colour their present lives. I suppose it could be thought a little clicheed but the writing is really quite good and the story intriguing enough to keep reading to the end. personally I found it hard to keep tabs on all the different characters but the context helped a great deal which must be die to the writer's skill.

A well written novel in the style of Joanna Trollope. The Anniversary is an absorbing story of a family brought together to celebrate something important to them all and is told with great warmth and humour. The flashbacks to years gone by are handled well and the setting is very much part of the tale.

One man's dream, the building a creative community for artists is on the verge of disintegrating. Can and will the family members return to help save a way of life that has sustained so many over the years?A wonderful cast of characters each with their own dreams, fill the pages of this book, making it a delight to read.