The Taverner's Son is a well written deeply moving novel that has a beautiful story line that everyone can really sink their teeth into. Family secrets, tragedy and a small village help to make this book a real page turner. I love the characters and each one of their with own "quirks".
What family doesn't have some sadness and misunderstandings that get in the way of family connections? I don't think there is one family out there who can't relate in some way.
So it is with Will Kendrick. He has lived most of his adult life away from the small town that was his home. Misunderstandings and pride make it difficult to get through to the part where we still love each other. And sometimes it's too late to do anything about it!
Will gets a phone call letting him know that his father has passed away. Living on the west coast for many years, Will had not given his father too much thought. Now he is in shock and trying desperately to make sense of it all, realizing that there is no more time left.
Will makes the plans to return to the little fishing village of Apalachicola. First he had to make his way from California to Tallahassee and then drive from there to what had been his home. As he drives the roads back to his "home" memories come flooding back to him.
Of course there are the people of the town whom he had known growing up and many that had left the small town for bigger and better opportunities. But there was also one of his oldest and dearest friends from his childhood who remained. Jess, his long time friend from grade school, who had always been there during his childhood, made her life in the small town of Apalachicola.
Will is making his way around town and sees the tavern where he spent many days helping his father. Homework was done on one of the small tables in the back. Penny, the cook and keeper of the kitchen took Will under her wings when Will's mother had died. Will was only 3 years old when his mother died. Penny and her husband were the imaginary parents that Will wanted. His father had become distant and depressed, withdrawn from his son and anything that reminded him of his beloved wife. Will was the spitting image of his mother. So that made things even harder for Will's father. And now Will is standing in the Tavern that now belongs to him.
Will has a lot to learn about the father he didn't know so well and more about his mother too. When you lose your mom at 3 years of age, you really don't know too much about her. As you get into the book, the story takes on a life of it's own and you will be hard pressed to put the book down. So many questions that Will has and so few answers, yet, there is something going on that doesn't make sense.
I don't want to give too much of the story away, but, I would encourage you to pick this book up. It really is a riveting story of family, family secrets and how they impact the people who are being "saved from the truth". This book is masterfully written, a love story with twists and turns that you will not see coming. It is a page turner that you won't want to put down.
I received this book from VoraciousReadersOnly with the promise of sharing a review. It was my pleasure to read this book and review it for you here.
