Jayne wanted to be unobtrusive...she'd rather walk dogs for a living than have to face people. The other apartment dwellers in her townhouse complex in the posh English town of Bath had nothing to do with each other, which suited Jayne just fine. Although she walked their dogs, she did not mix in their lives...that is, until the day Margot, the fox terrier slipped the leash and ran into Meredith's apartment. She had been warned about Meredith, an eccentric older lady who sometimes wandered the halls in her nightgown-in the middle of the day. But until the Margot incident, nobody knew that Meredith suffered from dementia. Her apartment was in horrible shape-books and papers stacked everywhere, disgusting smells emanating from the kitchen, and pieces of fabric strewn all over gave evidence of a chaotic mind. But all Meredith wanted to know was when would her husband William return. And why was a beautiful custom made ball gown draped over a chair in the middle of this mess?
The plot switches between the stories of Meredith and William, dressmakers to Princess Diana, and Jayne who takes responsibility for trying to help Meredith piece together her life. To do this she creates a community of the other residents who ban together to restore some equilibrium for Meredith-aided by the clues of drawings on her walls of the dresses Diana famously wore. Jayne especially receives an unexpected ally in Jake, the bloke living in the carriage house, who was rich and handsome, and so out of Jayne's league.
This is a beautifully written story of how, with a bit (or a lot) of persuasion, unrelated people can help other people with their problems, and by doing so, help solve their own. As the residents get to know Meredith, and begin to unravel her secrets, they start to form a real support system and each becomes a better person for it. A serious subject served up in a sweetly quirky way-just my cup of English tea.
Reviewed by Donna Ballard
Publication date - November 5, 2024
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