A review by pturnbull
A Live Coal in the Sea by Madeleine L'Engle

3.0

Camilla, an astronomy professor and widow of a clergyman, reveals family secrets to her granddaughter in a series of deep, intimate story-telling sessions. I found the secrecy that the plot was built upon less than convincing. The treatment of the issues--about the generational impact of child abuse and trauma--did not age well (the novel was published in 1996). The family "enemy" was very weakly presented and I was distracted from the plot by my desire to know more about him. Any L'Engle fan will want to read this; others can skip.