Nine Men's Morris

Nine Men's Morris is a contemporary novel with flashbacks over the last fifty-plus years, the life-span of the central character. It is the story of ROSEMARY RICHARDSON, an artist, long divorced. Rosemary had planned a holiday in France with Edward, her 32 year old lover, but a couple of days before they are due to set off, he abandons Rosemary for her 20 year old lodger, Miranda. With heavy heart she goes off for the holiday alone, taking along a mysterious box that comes into her possession a day or two before she leaves for France, this proves to be of tremendous significance. In the box she discovers a set of wooden nine-pins, each one lovingly carved in the form of a little man. Heart-sick for Edward, Rosemary begins to talk to these little figures, identifying each of them in turn with the men in her life: the man she thinks of as her father, a lecturer at Art School, her husband, her son, a couple of other lovers, and Edward. In this way, a picture of her life is built up. Amongst the nine-pins is an old faded picture-postcard from some village in France, posted to Rosemary's mother at the end of the war. Finding there are no other bookings for the French farmhouse she and Edward had originally taken for a fortnight, Rosemary extends her stay indefinitely, spending the whole summer painting the spectacular landscape, the sunflower fields that stretch away in every direction. Gradually she heals and grows stronger and learns the true significance of the contents of the box. A real page turner with hints of magic and New Age madness!