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A Novel
by Dirk Wittenborn
Book Reviewed by:The Stone Girl is a riveting tale of deception, vengeance, and power set against the haunting beauty of the Adirondack wilderness.
Deep in the Adirondack Mountains lies a speck of a town called Rangeley. There isn't much to this tiny town, but it is at the crossroads of serene fishing streams off the Mink River, pristine hunting grounds in the surrounding mountains, and vast estates of the extremely rich. It is also the gateway to the Mohawk Club, which houses the Lost Boys, an exclusive group of wealthy and powerful men with global influence and a taste for depravity.
Raised wild and poor in the shadows of the Mohawk Club, Evie Quimby was a teenager when she first fell victim to the Lost Boys. Seventeen years later, she is now a world-renowned art restorer famous for repairing even the most-broken statues. After spending half her life in Paris, establishing her reputation and raising her daughter Chloé, Evie has come a long way from the girl who left Rangeley behind. But when Chloé receives a visit from an elegant stranger who claims to be an old friend of her mother's, the ghosts of Evie's past return in full force, pulling her back to the North Country of her girlhood and into the tangled, intricate web of the Lost Boys. Evie bands together with her formidable mother and an embattled heiress, both victims of the Lost Boys, in pursuit of an unusual and heart-stopping vengeance.
When Buddy and Evie got to Valhalla that Friday morning, the party tents were up. A pink- and- white- striped one for the dance that night, and virginal white for the wedding tomorrow. As caterers arranged gilt chairs around tables for ten, father and daughter set off into the lake once again. Knowing they had to check the traps and truck the dead beaver out before the guests started to arrive that afternoon, they had to work fast. Evie's decision to say nothing and hope for the best made her feel like an accomplice.
By noon, the mist had burned off, the sky was a cloudless blue, and they had nineteen beaver and four muskrat in the boat. Forty traps still to go, Buddy cranked up the Evinrude and they headed back across the lake to ice down the carcasses they had collected.
They hadn't gone a hundred yards when Buddy throttled back the outboard and turned the boat in a tight circle. "You see that? It's the sail to that Sunfish. Somebody must have tipped it over, gotten the mast stuck ...
The Stone Girl intrigued me from the first page. It is the story of abuse, misogyny, the cruelties of humans... It is also a tale of survival, fortitude, friendship, family, resilience, generosity, determination and the fact that decisions often fall within those gray areas where there is no true delineation of black and white or right and wrong (Vivian H). I loved this book. It was a perfect dose of escapism and exactly the kind of fast-moving, not-terribly-deep novel I needed right now (Kim K). I would definitely recommend this to people who like a good mystery, and perhaps need a good beach read. I had the luxury of being able to stay up late reading to complete it rather quickly, which I did (Karen S)...continued
Full Review
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(Reviewed by First Impressions Reviewers).
Richard E. Grant, Oscar-nominated actor, Can You Ever Forgive Me?
A sprawling baroque thriller that had me in its grip all the way. Susanna Moore, author of Paradise of the Pacific
Dirk Wittenborn understands that traditional male society is fragile and justifiably endangered. His vibrant female characters refuse to turn themselves into commodities or victims. Suspenseful, witty and wise, it is a compelling thriller.
In Dirk Wittenborn's The Stone Girl, the main character, Evie, is an art restorer who specializes in repairing statues. Art restoration is the professional process of repairing works of art that have been subjected to the effects of damage or age, including paintings, sculptures and architecture. The restoration of art is somewhat distinct from the conservation, or preservation, of it, but both processes seek to reduce the decay and damage inflicted on artistic creations over time by aging, human interference, nature and other factors. Art conservators, like restorers, repair and restore works of art, but often with the intent of providing a temporary fix or slowing their degradation. Art restorers are more concerned with returning works ...
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