Reviewed by Vicki Carver
Summer is here and it is a great time for some light fiction reading on
a hot day. Emily Grayson is well-known for books she has written such as
The Gazebo and The Fountain. Her newest book is called Night Train to
Lisbon and is a compelling story about a young woman in 1936.
Carson Wetherell is an 18-year-old girl who has lived a life of
privilege in a wealthy town in Connecticut. Her Aunt Jane, who is
married to an English man, invites Carson to spend the summer of 1936 in
a villa in Spain. Carson grudgingly agrees to go on the trip and the
adventure begins.
While on a train travelling to Lisbon, Carson meets Alec Breve, a young
British scientist. The two young people get to know each other on the
train. They later meet again in Spain and ultimately fall in love.
Carson has been raised in a society of arranged marriages which would
insure and perhaps increase a family’s wealth and statue. She knows that
her affluent family would have difficulty accepting a low-paid British
scientist.
Carson’s Uncle Lawrence, who works for British intelligence, complicates
the plot. He shocks Carson by telling her that Alec Breve is not really
a scientist. He is a spy for the Germans who are becoming an
increasingly larger threat to Europe and the world. Carson is stunned
and does not know who to trust, her uncle or her new-found love.
The story progresses and ultimately Carson learns the truth about Alec.
In the meantime she must rapidly make decisions which will effect her
life forever.
Night Train to Lisbon explains the uneasiness which existed in Europe
during the 1930’s as Hitler’s ideas were being implemented. Countries
which had suffered greatly in World War I were uneasy about the threat
of another war.
The evolution of Carson from an young girl uncertain of her life’s
purpose to a mature young woman makes Night Train to Lisbon an
interesting story. Carson learns to believe in herself and make
decisions by following her instincts. As a main character, Carson
becomes a heroine in the resolution of her and Alec’s fate.