The Telling is Rose Mary Boehm's second instalment of the life of Anne Beck, now known as Aybee. A clever, modern-day tale about life's choices and consequences. Her stubborn determination for independence keeps her apart from the love, wisdom, and support of family and friends and turns her plans for her own bright future inside out. Aybee is forced to navigate new beginnings first in Belgium, then England and finally Spain. Each new start is haunted by secrets from her past that come to find her no matter how hard she struggles to escape her ghosts. Will Aybee ultimately find peace in her confessions to a stranger? The finale to this story is surprising - you'll never see coming. A great read that you won't be able to put down.
When I wrote COMING UP FOR AIR the novel ends when the protagonist is only about 20. All my readers wanted to know what happened to Annemarie Becker. So I just had to write the next installment. She is now Anne Beck or Aybee. She's become a famous artist and has to deal with the consequences of a lot of bad choices she made in the course of her younger years (the most important of those bad choices she made in COMING UP FOR AIR). But THE TELLING can be read perfectly well as a stand-alone novel.
THE TELLING is a surprising book. Even though it continues seamlessly from COMING UP FOR AIR, it stands very much on its own and is complete in itself. The writing is superb, and I couldn%u2019t put it down until I knew what %u2018happened%u2019. I was loath to say goodbye to the story and shall soon read it again. THE TELLING is one of those books that subtly changes the way you see life.
Nina Grn, London
THE TELLING is a gripping story and gives the reader a new perspective on life as lived by the protagonist. We share her fascinating metamorphosis from naive young woman to a wise older one. During her life%u2019s journey more often than not she has to navigate the delicate balance between her conscience and what is practical. Family, Lovers and Strangers form the trinity that influence many of Aybee%u2019s moves over the years. Her choice of independence and optimism in the face of great pain makes for special insights. This brilliant story shares the wisdom of how we each must forgive ourselves before we can ever begin to forgive others and live in divine love.
Sally Black, Philadelphia
You are about to enter a fascinating adventure. Let the brilliant writing of Rose Mary Boehm be your guide along the rocky path of Annemarie Becker/Anne Beck's complex life. You'll soon understand why we are 'like the caterpillar', something you will hopefully remember when you need it most. It%u2019s a great read, a great write. You won%u2019t be able to put it down until you%u2019re done!
Lourdes Flores Cowell, Los Angeles, California, US
This book can clearly be read as a stand-alone or as a sequel to Rose Mary Boehm's book "Coming Up For Air".
I have already read the earlier book so the first surprise to hit me in the first chapter of "The Telling" is that Anne Marie Becker is not this time the narrator. That honour falls to a young journalist who meets her under the shadow of the Icelandic ash cloud and who is the medium through which Anne Marie's further story is told to us.
In fact the book is told through two viewpoints, that of the young journalist, who writes in the third person as "Aybee" tells her story, bit by bit: and, in alternate chapters, a narrator's-eye view of events as they unfolded, each chapter being in a subsequent time-frame to the last: it works.
This is a fascinating tale of the life of a young woman cut off from her roots, far from her origins but making her home in one part of the world after another, facing life's blows with fortitude, determined to be herself and to live with the consequences of decisions made - despite frequent doubts as to the wisdom of those decisions.
Some of the things which happen to her are quite shocking. Yet she becomes the wise and forthright older woman whose present day personage we become familiar with at the same time as we get to know her younger self.
The ending is sad but happy, especially if you understand or go along with Aybee's beliefs.
Rose Boehm writes with intelligence and flair. Her command of the language is astonishing for somebody who does not have English as her native tongue. I can not imagine getting to grips with any language well enough to be able to write well in it.
I loved this book. I seem to remember when I started to read Rose Mary's first book that this was supposed to be a trilogy. If so I am now waiting eagerly for the third book, although I can see nowhere for the story to go after the denouement of this one.
Vic Heany, France
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