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Sarah Winman
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A Year of Marvellous Ways Hardcover – July 28, 2015

by Sarah Winman (Author)
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 8,347 ratings
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A YEAR OF MARVELLOUS WAYS is the unforgettable and completely captivating new novel from Sarah Winman, author of the international bestseller WHEN GOD WAS A RABBIT.

Marvellous Ways is eighty-nine years old and has lived alone in a remote Cornish creek for nearly all her life. Lately she's taken to spending her days sitting on a mooring stone by the river with a telescope. She's waiting for something - she's not sure what, but she'll know it when she sees it.

Drake is a young soldier left reeling by the Second World War. When his promise to fulfil a dying man's last wish sees him wash up in Marvellous' creek, broken in body and spirit, the old woman comes to his aid.

A YEAR OF MARVELLOUS WAYS is a glorious, life-affirming story about the magic in everyday life and the pull of the sea, the healing powers of storytelling and sloe gin, love and death and how we carry on when grief comes snapping at our heels.

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Previous page
  1. Print length
    320 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Tinder Press
  4. Publication date
    July 28, 2015
  5. Reading age
    18 years and up
  6. Dimensions
    5.75 x 1.25 x 9 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    0755390911
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0755390915
  9. See all details
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The Amazon Book Review
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Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Fanciful imagery and beautiful prose that ebbs and flows―Independent

Winman excels in her sweeping prose and her unwavering theme of love in all its forms―Stylist

Beautifully written―Sun on Sunday, Fabulous Magazine

One to read slowly so you can savour every beautiful sentence―Good Housekeeping (Book of the Month)

A lavish and clever read which will stand the test of time―Irish Examiner

Moving... offbeat and memorable―Woman & Home

A Year of Marvellous Ways is like Dylan Thomas given a sexy rewrite by Angela Carter―Patrick Gale, author of A PLACE CALLED WINTER

A glorious poem of a novel - a story to read slowly and to marvel at the beauty of it―Rosamund Lupton, author of SISTER

Yet again Sarah Winman has written a beautiful, beautiful novel. A Year of Marvellous Ways will hypnotise, seduce, until you can do nothing but pick it up and read it again―Tiffany Murray, author of DIAMOND STAR HALO and SUGAR HALL

A gripping waiting game ... The novel's surprising denouement is also well worth the wait―Observer

In this warm, kindly novel, the sea is both magical and healing. Lovely―The Times

The book demonstrates vividly how we need family around us, whether homegrown or grafted, to live our fullest lives... By the end of this novel, we too belong in the world of Marvellous Ways―Sunday Express, S Magazine

The sense of magic infused through the novel casts a spell over the reader that makes you not want to put the book down until you've turned the final page―Hannah Beckerman, author of THE DEAD WIFE’S HANDBOOK

A book to savour, to read in wonderful, rich little bits like dark chocolate. Winman's prose is poetry, with a rhythm, a heartbeat, that carries you through like music―Emma Hooper, author of ETTA AND OTTO AND RUSSELL AND JAMES

A truly enchanting book―Irish Times

A breathtaking reading experience... a beautiful book that is unafraid to reveal the ugliness of the world―Toronto Star

She is particularly good at bringing the sensations of landscape to bear - its smell, sound and look - and in Marvellous has created a character of warmth and eccentricity―Metro

The stories are touching and the twist of magical realism lends them a joyful, fairytale element―Daily Record

What struck me was Winman's gorgeous imagery, beautiful passages and imaginative storytelling. Quirky and slightly hairbrained, A Year of Marvellous Ways is an unforgettable book―Mitford Society Summer Reads

A Year of Marvellous Ways is like Dylan Thomas given a sexy rewrite by Angela Carter―Patrick Gale, author of A PLACE CALLED WINTER

A glorious poem of a novel - a story to read slowly and to marvel at the beauty of it―Rosamund Lupton, author of SISTER

Folkloric, poetic, gorgeous. All I needed was a campfire and a bottle of moonshine―Emylia Hall, author of THE BOOK OF SUMMERS

About the Author

Sarah Winman grew up in Essex and now lives in London. She attended the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art and went on to act in theatre, film and television. She has written two novels, WHEN GOD WAS A RABBIT and A YEAR OF MARVELLOUS WAYS.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Tinder Press (July 28, 2015)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0755390911
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0755390915
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 18 years and up
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.75 x 1.25 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 8,347 ratings

About the author

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Sarah Winman

Sarah Winman

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Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
8,347 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

TW
5.0 out of 5 stars Stunning. Marvelous and Beyond
Reviewed in the United States on February 7, 2024
Verified Purchase
This book now counts as one of my most favorite ever. I look forward to reading more by this author. The story is sublime, gorgeous, gritty, tender. Just remarkable and memorable. I just finished it and I’m ready to read it all over again to savor all the magical, meaningful turns of phrase.
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Broome Wife
4.0 out of 5 stars Push on!
Reviewed in the United States on January 15, 2018
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Don't let the lack of quotation marks and rambling sentences stop you. Push ahead with the book and the reading gets easier. Great story and I'll definitely look for more books by this author.
4 people found this helpful
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Nancy Yow
5.0 out of 5 stars A Perfect Gem
Reviewed in the United States on July 24, 2023
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This is a simple story clothed in radiant beauty. Delicately written, it unfolds like a long
awaited flower. Not a long book, and that is good because you will want to savor and absorb each deliciously formed image.
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#EmptyNestReader
3.0 out of 5 stars A book of magical realism, loss and moving on.
Reviewed in the United States on September 4, 2023
Verified Purchase
A Year of Marvellous Ways is an odd story. Somewhere I read it described as being in someone else’s dream and that seems a fairly apt description. With plenty of magical realism and elaborate lyrical prose it does seem to have a fairy tale-like quality.

Marvelous is an 89 year old woman living alone in a remote area called Cornish Creek. She has a "feeling" something is coming, she doesn't know what. But she is certain she’ll know it when she sees it. Drake (28) is a recent WWII veteran fulfilling his promise to a dying soldier - to deliver a letter to the boy's father. He finds himself on the shore of Marvellous' creek "broken in body and spirit". Marvellous is there to help him heal and, although he does not yet realize it, he is there to help her as well. "Marvellous blossomed, having quite forgotten what an exciting and necessary jolt being needed gave.”

I did not connect to any of the people in the story. Also, it is always frustrating to read a book without quotation marks. Ultimately, the problem for me is that I like to read well-written stories that are going somewhere. While I can appreciate style, it frustrates me if I feel that the tale is just meandering hither and yon. I loved Winman’s Still Life which contained wonderful characters and equally as beautiful prose; however, this story took a long time to get anywhere. ⭐️⭐️⭐️
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Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
Reviewed in the United States on January 24, 2016
Verified Purchase
Beautifully written
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Rj
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read
Reviewed in the United States on March 22, 2024
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Not your usual formulaic plot.
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Ella
5.0 out of 5 stars Most Fabulous Book on my Reading List
Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2016
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This has to be the single BEST book I have read in the last 4 years! The prose is magikal and the story sublime. I have recommended it to everyone I know. My version even has book club questions in the back, making it a great choice if you are in a club. Honestly, I have followed authors whose writing became this poetic and fine after 4 or 5 books....this is her Second! I am amazed and can honestly say that I had to force myself to stop reading just to make sure I absorbed the words, letting them soak in like a fragrant perfume. I would just stop, take it in and breathe with it, it is so eloquent. And, to top it off, the ending was a surprise! I am almost never surprised anymore, deadened by bad literature. This book is art.
14 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Love your description of
Reviewed in the United States on November 9, 2017
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Love your description of. beautiful sights in Nature. Great story once I got into it. A little! confusing at times.
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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cheryl lee
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful and moving
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 10, 2024
Verified Purchase
I absolutely adored this book. I was drawn to all of the characters and loved their individual stories. There was something quite magical about it. From the first few pages I was hooked and couldn’t put it down. The beginning of the story was great and the ending was quite beautiful. Sarah Winman is fast becoming one of my favourite authors.
One person found this helpful
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Bird of a Feather
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful book. Unusual and worth reading!
Reviewed in Germany on August 7, 2022
Verified Purchase
This is worth buying as a book in print and reading again a few years later...
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Cleto
3.0 out of 5 stars Realismo mágico
Reviewed in Spain on March 17, 2021
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Si te gusta el realismo mágico este es tu libro. Me gustó la protagonista, una mujer que vive fuera de las convenciones. Pero prefiero la casa de los espíritus o el amor en los tiempos del cólera.
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cheryl marshall
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful
Reviewed in Italy on March 14, 2021
Verified Purchase
This is one of those books that remains in your head and heart a real work of art. Will continue to think about the story for days to come
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Stéphanie-ann Brisson
5.0 out of 5 stars The marvellousness of Marvellous Ways
Reviewed in Canada on November 3, 2017
Verified Purchase
I read this book while travelling and felt like i had a constant companion, full of complexities and an emotional generosity beyond belief. I love this fantastical approach to the hard bits of life. Sarah Winman is now one of my favourite authors and I would recommend this book to anyone who loves discovering the underbelly of humanity.
One person found this helpful
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