Why a Booktrail?
2000s: A recluse living on a hill above the town of Mill River – why is she there and what secrets lie within that house?
The Mill River Recluse
What you need to know before your trail
Mary McAllister has spent almost sixty years secluded in a white marble mansion overlooking the town of Mill River, Vermont. She has survived an abusive husband and is a widow but still bears the scars of her previous life. She barely goes out and has few links with the outside world. All she sees and knows is from the view of one window onto the town below.
Most longtime residents of Mill River consider the marble house and its occupant peculiar, and few of them have ever seen Mary. But three newcomers – a police officer and his daughter and a new schoolteacher – are curious about the reclusive old woman. Only the town priest truly knows the Mill River recluse, and the secret she keeps . . . a secret that, once revealed, will change the town, and the lives of its residents, forever.
Travel Guide
Vermont
Vermont is known for its stunning scenery, mountains, forests and the famous covered bridges. The area of the Mill River and the town of Clarendon are the places to head to for a booktrail as they more than showcase the setting of the novel.
Mill River
Mill River (town) might not be real but the river is. And the town of Clarendon is a good place to venture out to to see both the river and the surrounding area. This is where the famous Clarendon Gorge, and the combined Appalachian Trail/Long Trail, is a popular local spot with tourists as well as locals.
“Outside the February darkness was suffused with light from the town. Thick snowflakes floated past the window. Only the Mill River itself, for which the small Vermont town was named, escaped the snow covering. Its unfrozen centre flowed, black and snake-like along the edge of the sleeping town”
Booktrail Boarding Pass: The Mill River Recluse
Author/Guide: Darcie Chan Destination: Vermont Departure Time: 2000s
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