Gone are the Leaves

Description

Feilamort can recall very little before he arrived at the grand home of the Scottish Laird and his French wife. Feilamort's voice is one of the finest in the land, and he believes it will keep him safe, in the service of the Laird as a choir boy. The Lady of the house has a special attachment to Feilamort and is willing to go to extreme lengths to preserve the boy's voice. Knowing what he stands to lose, Feilamort and his closest friend, a young seamstress called Deirdre, are catapulted into early adulthood with unimaginable consequences. Full of wonder, intrigue, faith and love Gone are the Leaves is the enchanting story of one young boy's lost past and his uncertain future.

Anne Donovan is the author of the prize-winning novel Buddha Da, Being Emily and the short-story collection, Hieroglyphics. Buddha Da was shortlisted for the Orange Prize, the Whitbread First Novel Award and the Scottish Book of the Year Award, and was nominated for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. It received a Scottish Arts Council Award and won the Le Prince Maurice Award in Mauritius in 2004. She lives in Glasgow.

* Utterly mesmerising and moving. A strange, Scottish fairytale told in lilting, hypnotic prose -- Eve Harris, Booker Prize-longlisted author of The Marrying of Chani Kaufman * Gone Are The Leaves is a poetic and deftly-crafted tale, richly told in magical language - a quest for purity, truth and ultimately, love. With consummate skill, Anne Donovan has produced a wonder of daring and passion, a mythical page-turner -- Kitty Aldridge, the Baileys Prize-longlisted author of A Trick I Learned from Dead Men * Anne Donovan is outstanding -- Melvyn Bragg * Quirky and endearing. Don't wait until your next life too read it Sunday Herald on Buddha Da * An enchanting novel in which ordinary lives are illuminated with extraordinary charm Daily Telegraph on Buddha Da * Donovan skilfully draws to a climax of cinematic proportions The List * A story that began with one word, a word that brought life to a young boy with the voice of an angel, has evolved into what Angela Jackson described as 'a poetic and beautiful book, a story brought to life by the Scots language Edinburgh Reporter * A beautiful tale ... with such a passion for the language, and such an ear for its rhythms and alliterations, you'll find yourself wishing all books could be written like this. Perhaps it's too far to suggest that this was the book Donovan was born to write, but it fits her like a glove Scotsman * A gorgeously rendered upscale historical novel Library Journal