The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner (English) Paperback Book

Description: The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner April 18, 1906- A massive earthquake rocks San Francisco just before daybreak, igniting a devouring inferno. Lives are lost, lives are shattered, but some rise from the ashes forever changed.April 18, 1906- A massive earthquake rocks San Francisco just before daybreak, igniting a devouring inferno. Lives are lost, lives are shattered, but some rise from the ashes forever changed.Sophie Whalen is a young Irish immigrant so desperate to get out of a New York tenement that she answers a mail-order bride ad and agrees to marry a man she knows nothing about. San Francisco widower Martin Hocking proves to be as aloof as he is mesmerizingly handsome. Sophie quickly develops deep affection for Kat, Martins silent five-year-old daughter, but Martins odd behavior leaves her with the uneasy feeling that something about her newfound situation isnt right.Then one early-spring evening, a stranger at the door sets in motion a transforming chain of events. Sophie discovers hidden ties to two other women. The first, pretty and pregnant, is standing on her doorstep. The second is hundreds of miles away in the American Southwest, grieving the loss of everything she once loved.The fates of these three women intertwine on the eve of the devastating earthquake, thrusting them onto a perilous journey that will test their resiliency and resolve and, ultimately, their belief that love can overcome fear.From the acclaimed author of The Last Year of the War and As Bright as Heaven comes a gripping novel about the bonds of friendship and mother love, and the power of female solidarity. FORMAT Paperback LANGUAGE English CONDITION Brand New Author Biography Susan Meissner is a former managing editor of a weekly newspaper, and an award-winning columnist. She is the award-winning author of The Last Year of the War, As Bright as Heaven, A Bridge Across the Ocean, Secrets of a Charmed Life, A Fall of Marigolds, and Stars over Sunset Boulevard, among other novels. Review Praise for The Nature of Fragile Things"A terrific tale that takes us on a harrowing cable-car ride through early 20th century San Francisco, where dark secrets—like the city itself—crack wide open, forcing our world-weary heroine to confront the devastation done by the lies shes been told and by the lies shes still telling..."—Stephanie Dray, author of Americas First Daughter and The Women of Chateau Lafayette "A brilliant story of resilience and the power of female friendship."—Marie Benedict, New York Times bestselling author of The Mystery of Mrs. Christie "A mysterious web of lies, love, and loss that accelerates toward the inevitable: the great San Francisco earthquake of 1906."—Kristin Harmel, author of The Book of Lost Names "A riveting tale set in 1906 San Francisco. These fascinating characters hidden pasts and dark secrets collide, entwine, and explode—and thats before the earthquake hits."—Greer Macallister, author of The Magicians Lie and The Arctic Fury "In the ashes of San Franciscos greatest tragedy, one remarkable woman finds love, friendship, and the means to rebuild. Historical fiction that reads with the urgency and suspense of a thriller."—Lauren Willig, New York Times bestselling author of The Summer Country "Driven by the unstoppable force of the three intriguing women at its heart, this is a novel to savor, and one to share with all the women in your life whom you admire."—Hazel Gaynor, New York Times bestselling author of When We Were Young & Brave "Meissner spins an exceptional story….Unexpected and masterfully crafted twists and turns abound….Ingeniously plotted and perfectly structured, this captivates from beginning to end."—Publishers Weekly (starred review) Review Quote Praise for The Nature of Fragile Things "A terrific tale that takes us on a harrowing cable-car ride through early 20th century San Francisco, where dark secrets--like the city itself--crack wide open, forcing our world-weary heroine to confront the devastation done by the lies shes been told and by the lies shes still telling..."--Stephanie Dray, author of Americas First Daughter and The Women of Chateau Lafayette "A brilliant story of resilience and the power of female friendship."--Marie Benedict, New York Times bestselling author of The Mystery of Mrs. Christie "A mysterious web of lies, love, and loss that accelerates toward the inevitable: the great San Francisco earthquake of 1906."--Kristin Harmel, author of The Book of Lost Names "A riveting tale set in 1906 San Francisco. These fascinating characters hidden pasts and dark secrets collide, entwine, and explode--and thats before the earthquake hits."--Greer Macallister, author of The Magicians Lie and The Arctic Fury "In the ashes of San Franciscos greatest tragedy, one remarkable woman finds love, friendship, and the means to rebuild. Historical fiction that reads with the urgency and suspense of a thriller."--Lauren Willig, New York Times bestselling author of The Summer Country "Driven by the unstoppable force of the three intriguing women at its heart, this is a novel to savor, and one to share with all the women in your life whom you admire."--Hazel Gaynor, New York Times bestselling author of When We Were Young & Brave "Meissner spins an exceptional story....Unexpected and masterfully crafted twists and turns abound....Ingeniously plotted and perfectly structured, this captivates from beginning to end."-- Publishers Weekly (starred review) Excerpt from Book 1 INTERVIEW WITH MRS. SOPHIE HOCKING CONDUCTED BY AMBROSE LOGAN, U.S. MARSHAL CASE NUMBER 069308 Official transcript San Francisco, CA November 6, 1906 QUESTION: Thank you again for coming. Could you please state your full name, age, birth date, and the city where you were born, for the record, please? ANSWER: Sophie Whalen Hocking. August 24, 1884. Donaghadee, County Down, Ireland. Im twenty-two. QUESTION: Whalen is your maiden name, correct? ANSWER: It is. QUESTION: Thank you. Now, if you dont mind, Ive a few questions for the record, since you and I have not had an opportunity to speak before now. You emigrated from Ireland to the United States in 1903 and spent your first two years in this country in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Is that correct? ANSWER: Yes. Nearly the first two years. Not quite that. QUESTION: So you were nineteen when you emigrated? ANSWER: Yes. So why is it you and I have not spoken before? Has the other detective moved away? QUESTION: No, Detective Morris is still on the case. I was brought in only recently. Im a U.S. marshal. ANSWER: I dont know what that is, sir. QUESTION: United States marshals serve at the federal level of law enforcement rather than local. ANSWER: Oh. So . . . so you are also a detective, then? QUESTION: I investigate federal crimes, yes. May we continue? ANSWER: Yes. QUESTION: Can you confirm for me that you married one Martin Hocking on March 10, 1905, at the courthouse here in San Francisco? ANSWER: Yes. Yes, I did. Do you have news of my husband? Is that why youve called me in? QUESTION: Possibly. Again, for the record, did you report your husband, Martin Hocking, missing six weeks after the earthquake that occurred on April 18 of this year? ANSWER: I did, yes. QUESTION: Can you tell me why you waited six weeks to notify the police that your husband was missing? ANSWER: He travels for his job. I didnt know for sure he was missing at first. QUESTION: Youve stated previously you fled your home on Polk Street with your stepdaughter, Katharine Hocking, in the minutes following the earthquake. Is that correct? ANSWER: Yes. QUESTION: And the house on Polk Street was still standing when you left? ANSWER: It . . . everything was broken and shattered inside, and the chimney had fallen off, but, yes, it was still standing. QUESTION: And when you returned six weeks later was it still standing then? ANSWER: I told the police before. It had burned. Every house on the street had burned. Every house in our neighborhood burned. Beggin your pardon, sir, but do you not know what happened in this city? Have you not looked around? QUESTION: I assure you, Im not here to mock the loss of your home, Mrs. Hocking. I am only establishing the facts for the record. My record. I apologize for asking questions you have already answered. But I must ask them. You returned to your home six weeks after the earthquake and found it had burned? There was nothing left of it? ANSWER: Nothing but ashes. QUESTION: And you would have no way of knowing if Mr. Hocking returned to the house after the earthquake but before it burned? ANSWER: How could I? I was not there. QUESTION: Yes. Now, if we may go back to the day of the earthquake. You have said that you and Katharine found your way to the refugee camp at Golden Gate Park when the fires began. Do I have that right? ANSWER: Yes. QUESTION: And during your four days at the refugee camp you didnt hear from your husband, correct? He did not join you there? ANSWER: No. As I said before, he was away on a business trip. He travels for a living. QUESTION: So, to be clear, your husband left on his business trip before the earthquake and you have had no contact with him since? ANSWER: I have not. Have you come by some new information about where he is? I think I have a right to know. QUESTION: I believe I have come upon some new information, yes. But Im not sure if this new intelligence aligns with what we know already. That is why I need to revisit some of the details you provided from the initial investigation into his disappearance, to see if what Ive recently learned is consistent with the previously reported details. May we continue? ANSWER: If this will assist you in finding my husband, then of course. QUESTION: Thank you. Now, for the record, then, you married Martin Hocking the same day you met him, is that correct? ANSWER: Yes. QUESTION: And can you tell me why you did that? ANSWER: Why I did what? QUESTION: Married Mr. Hocking the same day you met him. ANSWER: It is not against the law to marry someone youve just met, is it? QUESTION: Indeed, it is not. I am curious, you see. ANSWER: I married Martin because he asked me. QUESTION: You had answered a newspaper advertisement that hed placed in the New York Times? For a wife and mother. He had advertised that he was a widower with a young child. Do I have that right? ANSWER: Yes. QUESTION: And then you traveled to San Francisco from New York to marry Mr. Hocking, even though the two of you had not yet met? ANSWER: I did. QUESTION: Because? ANSWER: Because, what? QUESTION: Mrs. Hocking, are you declining to tell me why you married a man youd only just met? ANSWER: I am not declining, sir. I married him because I wanted to. 2 March 1905 The sun is dissolving like an enchantment as I stand at the ferry railing and look out on the San Francisco horizon. The day will end jubilant. Jubilant. This is the word I chose this morning from Das book of words, and Ive been keen to use it since breakfast. My father wrote that jubilant means you feel as though you finally possess everything youve always wanted, you are that happy. I like the way the word rolls off my tongue when I say it. I want to believe the day will end on a jubilant note. I am counting on it. Most of the ferrys passengers arent on the deck watching the golden sun fold itself into the western rim of the sky. They are seated inside, out of the bracing wind, but I dont want to be tucked indoors after six long days on a train. I close my eyes as the heady fragrance of the ocean transports me as if in a dream to Grams cottage in Donaghadee above the slate Irish Sea. I can see the house in my minds eye just as it was when I was young, back when life was simple. I can see Gram making me a cup of sugar tea in her kitchen while a harbor breeze tickles the lace curtains she made from her wedding dress. On the kitchen table are shortbread cookies arranged on the daisy plate, and still warm from the oven. She is humming an old Gaelic tune. . . . But no. Ive spent too many hours pondering what I wouldnt do to go back in time to Grams kitchen, what Id be willing to give up. What Id be willing to give. I open my eyes to behold again the nearness of the San Francisco docks. Backward glances are of no use to me now. I move away from the railing to the shelter of an overhang and tuck loose strands of hair back into place. I dont want to step off the ferry looking like a street urchin. Not today. I look down at my skirt to see how bad the wrinkles are. Not too noticeable in the days diminishing light. My journey from New York to California took place on a second-class seat, not in a private sleeping car, hence the creases. Id not expected anything different, as Martin Hocking had written that he is in good financial standing, not that he is rich. That he has means of any amount is miracle enough. I would have ridden in the baggage car all the way to get out of the umbrella factory and the tenement, and especially away from young Irishwomen just like me who reminded me too frequently of what I left back home. If my mother could see me now, shed no doubt put me on the first train back to New York. But then, Mam doesnt know how bad it was. I didnt want to worry her, so she doesnt know that the room I was subletting with four flatmates was no bigger than a kitchen pantry and that a single spigot in the back alley provided the only water to drink, bathe, and cook with for the entire building. She doesnt know everyone dumped their chamber pots out their windows because there were no indoor toilets-despite city ordinances requiring them-and that the stink of human waste hung on the air like a drape. The tenement wasnt a place to come home to at the end of the workday. It was just a shared room with sagging mattresses, a place where dreams for a better life could unravel faster than your threadbare clothes, and where girls like m Details ISBN0451492196 Author Susan Meissner Pages 384 Language English Year 2022 ISBN-10 0451492196 ISBN-13 9780451492197 Format Paperback Publication Date 2022-01-04 Publisher Penguin Putnam Inc Imprint Berkley Publishing Corporation,U.S. Country of Publication United States US Release Date 2022-01-04 UK Release Date 2022-01-04 Place of Publication New York Illustrator Gladys Jose Birth 1927 Affiliation Clark University Position journalist DEWEY 813.6 Audience General NZ Release Date 2022-03-18 AU Release Date 2022-03-18 We've got this At The Nile, if you're looking for it, we've got it. With fast shipping, low prices, friendly service and well over a million items - you're bound to find what you want, at a price you'll love! TheNile_Item_ID:134190247;

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