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Folly [Paperback]

Laurie R. King
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
List Price: CDN$ 18.95
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Book Description

May 28 2002
An acclaimed master of suspense creates a heroine you will never forget in this superbly chilling novel of a woman who begins a desperate undertaking that may transform her life--or end it.

WHAT HAPPENS IF YOUR WORST FEARS AREN’T ALL IN YOUR MIND?

Rae Newborn is a woman on the edge: on the edge of sanity, on the edge of tragedy, and now on the edge of the world. She has moved to an island at the far reaches of the continent to restore the house of an equally haunted figure, her mysterious great-uncle; but as her life begins to rebuild itself along with the house, his story starts to wrap around hers. Powerful forces are stirring, but Rae cannot see where her reality leaves off and his fate begins.

Fifty-two years old, Rae must battle the feelings that have long tormented her--panic, melancholy, and a skin-crawling sense of watchers behind the trees. Before she came here, she believed that most of the things she feared existed only in her mind. And who can say, as disturbing incidents multiply, if any of the watchers on Folly Island might be real? Is Rae paranoid, as her family and the police believe, or is the threat real? Is the island alive with promise--or with dangers?

With Folly, award-winning author LAURIE R. KING once again powerfully redefines psychological suspense on a sophisticated and harrowing new level, and proves why legions of readers and reviewers have named her a master of the genre.

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From Amazon

"The thing about madness was, it just took so damn much energy, and it was so thoroughly tedious in the meantime." Master woodworker Rae Newborn knows madness intimately, with every bone, every pore, every particle of her being. At 52, with three suicide attempts, extended hospitalizations, the death of her husband and daughter, and a vicious attack behind her, Rae has come to Folly Island, far out in the Straits of Juan de Fuca, to rebuild her life by building a house:
She would pull herself together, she would go and rebuild Desmond's house, she would lift his walls and dwell within them quietly all the rest of her days. Everything that House was lay there waiting for her to take it up: House as shelter, House as permanence, House as a continuation and a legacy, comfort and challenge, safety and beauty, symbol and reality joined as one.
Bequeathed to Rae by Desmond Newborn, a great-uncle she never met, Folly Island is lovely indeed. But when Rae discovers Desmond's journal in the 70-year-old ruins of his house, she learns that Desmond had his own internal horrors to confront on the island. As she labors in solitude, her prickly nature deterring all but the most determined of her would-be neighbors, it's not just her well-being that's at stake. Rae must prove herself sane if she is to have any contact with her beloved granddaughter Petra. So when the "skin-crawling feeling of being watched" doesn't fade, she does her best to ignore it. But does paranoia have its roots in reality? And is Rae doomed to repeat her ancestor's tragic end?

So effectively does King weave together past and present--the shrouded history of Desmond's life and death on Folly, and the tense, dusty, exhilaratingly panicky account of Rae's wrestling with old demons and new timber--that the future seems less important than the author might have wished. In other words, the eventual unmasking of Rae's watcher pales in comparison to the gradual revelation of Rae herself within King's haunted and haunting narrative. But with such a strong character and such moodily lovely prose, readers shouldn't miss the denouement-driven trappings of standard suspense. --Kelly Flynn --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly

Beautiful prose and intriguing characters can't quite save the confusing, and at times needlessly complicated, plot of this challenging psychological thriller, set on a fictional addition to the San Juan Island chain in Washington state, from Edgar-winner King. Talented, 52-year-old wood artist Rae Newborn suffers from severe depression, having survived several suicide attempts, as well as the death of her beloved second husband and their young daughter in a car crash. After being mugged by two strangers near her mainland home, Rae decides to wwork for healing by rebuilding the house called Folly that her great uncle, Desmond Newborn, constructed in the '20s as a way of mending his own war-wounded psyche. She capriciously dumps all her medications into Puget Sound, then lives in a tent while she digs and saws and chisels her way to bringing Folly and herself back to life. In uncovering and solving one murder, she works toward regaining sanity and--perhaps--love. While King skillfully portrays psychological illness, the book's sheer complexity of detail is overwhelming. There's more mass than the average mind can keep straight, and the passages about rebuilding Folly, especially, have a tendency to bog down. The denouement is a bit hokey, though definitely more attention-grabbing than all the rest put together. (Feb. 27)Forecast: Fans of King's Mary Russell and Kate Martinelli series will ensure strong initial sales, as will some serious ad/promo and a preview in each paperback copy of Night Work, currently on sale. This is far from King's best work, though, and may turn off some of her fans, leading to poor word of mouth and a weakening of sales down the road.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Customer Reviews

Most helpful customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars different but better July 5 2004
Format:Paperback
I have read the first two of the Mary Russel series before I read this one. I like this one much better. The Mary Russel series is good. However, I can't help feeling that Sherlock Holmes by Conan Doyle is probably NOT as King depicts him. Folly is a stand-alone novel. At first I had my doubts because depression/suicide is not exactly my favorite subject matter. However, the book is absorbing. Despite the fact that I thought I would not be able to empathize with the protagonist at the beginning, I couldn't help becoming interested in her plight as the story unfolded. King is a good story-teller. Much more so in Folly than in the Mary Russel series. She can probably cut some of Desmond's diary entries shorter, however. Philosophizing on fear or solitude or whatever gets a bit boring at times. I found myself skipping over paragraphs of it towards the end.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Should be on Oprah's List! Mar 6 2004
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
WOW! I love the way the story slowly unfolds, increasing in depth and mystery. I've visited the San Juans twice and envied Rae's sojurn there, although not during winter or roughing it. I highly recommend this book, although I don't think it's the thriller others did. Very good story, great characters, good mystery about Uncle Desmond, and some suspense at the end. Laurie King is an intelligent writer.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Just because you're paranoid.... Nov 5 2003
Format:Paperback
Rae Newborn, an internationally famous woodworker, moves to a remote island to rebuild her great-uncle's house. Isolated and paranoid, with only a tenuous hold on sanity, Rae has the "skin-crawling feeling of being watched." Well, just because you're paranoid, it doesn't mean people aren't watching you. Laurie King's Folly is a beautifully written, rich psychological thriller. (King is also the author of, among a slew of other things, The Beekeeper's Apprentice, the excellent first book in a series about Sherlock Holmes' life in retirement.)
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Most recent customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars Fresh As A Daisy
I found this to be a compelling book of renewal, both material and spiritual. We join the story as 52 year old Rae newborn is waving goodbye to her family after being dropped off... Read more
Published on Aug 4 2003 by Untouchable
5.0 out of 5 stars Completely absorbing
This is one of the best books I've read in recent months. I was absorbed about the story of a woman recovering from a breakdown who goes to live on an island and rebuild the house... Read more
Published on May 13 2003 by Kay L. Robart
4.0 out of 5 stars Intriguing story about a woman recovering from trauma.
Rae Newborn is a 50-something woman who has struggled with mental illness virtually all of her adult life. Read more
Published on Aug 12 2002 by Beth Cholette
5.0 out of 5 stars Psychological suspense, family mystery on deserted isle
"What does it mean to lose one's mind? Where does it go? What is sane when the world is mad by contrast? Read more
Published on Aug 9 2002 by Silver Springer
1.0 out of 5 stars Wake Me Up When It's Over.
If I had been given this book to read without knowing the author's name, and when finished, was told that she was Laurie R. King, I would not have believed it. Read more
Published on July 6 2002 by D. R. Yonkin
5.0 out of 5 stars One of King's best efforts!
Having read and loved both the Mary Russell and Kate Martinelli series' by King, I expected a similar read with Folly, but I was surprised and pleased to see her go in an entirely... Read more
Published on Jun 19 2002 by Cathy Wright
5.0 out of 5 stars A MUST READ
I enjoyed this book so much, and I was so sad when it ended. I found myself putting the book down, because I was coming to the end, and I wasn't ready to let go of the characters... Read more
Published on Jun 17 2002 by N. Gargano
4.0 out of 5 stars Laurie King
Laurie King continues to deliver quality in her most recent Folly. Rae Newborn escapes to the San Juan Islands in the Pacific northwest after a family tragedy that culminates in... Read more
Published on Mar 2 2002 by V. B. Earle
3.0 out of 5 stars sherylval@aol.com
Right off the bat, I must say that I am a tremendous fan of Laurie King's Kate Martinelli Series. Based on that series alone I would buy any of her books. Read more
Published on Dec 13 2001 by Sheryl Valentine
5.0 out of 5 stars ANOTHER WONDERFUL LAURIE R. KING BOOK
I HAVE LOVED READING THIS BOOK. RAE NEWBORN IS A WOMAN WHO COULD BE ANYONE OF US. HER CHALLENGES, TRIUMPHS AND OH SO HUMAN RESPONSES STRIKE CHORDS OF EMPATHY OVER AND OVER AGAIN. Read more
Published on Dec 10 2001 by Ellae Elinwood
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