Maureen Fry is an emotionally damaged woman who is grieving for David, her son who died many years earlier. The third book of the Harold Fry trilogy revolves around Maureen, Harold's wife. The trilogy started when Harold went on a pilgrimage to visit his friend, Queenie, in a hospice. Years earlier, Queenie had made a memorial garden by the sea using found objects washed up by the ocean in combination with greenery and flowers. One part of the garden was dedicated to David Fry because Queenie regretted that she was unable to help the young man who committed suicide. What I love about this book is how vague the synopsis is, allowing readers to go in blind. It's an intensely personal journey for Maureen and you feel her pain the entire way. You realize how lost she is from herself, how out of control she feels in her life, and how different she feels from Harold and everyone else. You will get to know Maureen intimately, warts and all. Joyce treats the reader to a wealth of beautiful descriptive prose: “Maureen drove below snat Maureen Fry has settled into the quiet life she now shares with her husband Harold after his iconic walk across England. Now, ten years later, an unexpected message from the North disturbs her equilibrium again, and this time it is Maureen’s turn to make her own journey. Maureen is the third book of Rachel Joyce’s Harold Fry trilogy. As such, it completes the story begun 10 years ago with The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by allowing his wife, Maureen, to venture into the world herself in search of answers or closure on problems that have been crushing her for years. She will drive, not walk, but she will also make a northward journey, encountering strangers and having no clue how to deal with them. She is not Harold. Along the way, we learn of her love for Harold but also of her biggest disappointments and her distrust of much of everything else in her life.

I've found that readers' reactions to the first two books have been uneven. For example, I loved The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy, but did not care for The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry. Reduced by physical injury, Maureen has to accept the kindness and care Kate unstintingly gives. Captive in her disability, she connects with sweet little Maple, Kate’s granddaughter, and eventually, finally, Maureen comes to terms with her grief over David. I understand what the author was trying to do giving Maureen a voice to her grief at the loss of her son. While Harold walked during his journey Maureen chooses to drive and we are subjected to a lot of internal dialogue and not much interaction with others and what we do get is complaints and whining. I think that’s the biggest difference between these stories. Am I going to find out next that the gentle, kind neighbor Rex has to go through some terrible, health threatening trial before he can be happy, when I have innocently thought he was content all along. Really, what a wonderful side character Rex has been for me throughout this series. I hope Rex can live on in peace. Overall, I enjoyed this series very much but it shows me that the less I know about some people, the better. But her snob trigger is still pretty sensitive. She stops to see one of Harold’s trek friends, hoping for a relaxing welcome.Ten years ago, Harold Fry set off on his epic journey on foot to save a friend. But the story doesn’t end there. It’s going to be a long trip. It’s ten years since Harold make his long trek to visit Queenie Hennessy, and since then, Maureen has been haunted by something she knew about Queenie that she has never disclosed to Harold.

After Harold Fry's journey, which takes place at the same time as Queenie's journey, I thought Harold's wife, Maureen, had reached her own better emotional place. She did in a way, she knew she was glad to have Harold with her even if his time is spent peacefully playing games or looking at nature with their neighbor, Rex. Maureen even went through some major steps to attempt closure concerning the suicide of their son, David, thirty years ago. But really, Maureen's brain and heart were brewing discontent, with no way that she could see to relieve it, other than sometimes erupting in anger at those around her. So sadly, I couldn't leave Harold and Maureen living happily ever after with their neighbor, Rex, because along comes the third book in the series, entitled Maureen. After retirement, Queenie had settled in a small home in northern England. She liked gardening and poured all of her energies into forming a beautiful garden. After Queenie's death, it became a community memorial garden bearing homage to people's loved ones. Maureen is interested in visiting it to see a driftwood marker dedicated to David, Maureen and Harold's son. ABOUT 'MAUREEN FRY AND THE ANGEL OF THE NORTH': Ten years ago, Harold Fry set off on his epic journey on foot to save a friend. But the story doesn't end there. Now his wife, Maureen, has her own pilgrimage to make. I would like to say that Maureen had a total transformation, but that would have been unrealistic. By the story's end, Maureen had thawed somewhat and grew a bit more understanding of other people and herself. Maureen isn't the easiest person to like. There is no way she could be described as a 'people person'. She is rigid in both her beliefs and actions. What other people think matters very much. And yet, like her I did. I was mortified for her over her little 'accident'. I cringed along with her at Kate's living conditions. I wanted to grab her and make her sit down and properly take in Queenie's garden. But of course, I couldn't.

Join our email club...

Set during the pandemic, although that is not the prevalent theme, it is a time when solitude is perhaps even more the norm, it seems the perfect time for Maureen to face the loss that has framed these last years. And so she goes on a journey to say goodbye. Rachel Joyce has a genius for creating the most damaged and difficult character and making us care deeply about their redemption. Maureen Fry and the Angel of the North is a powerful finale to her classic trilogy of heartbreak and healing. Clare Chambers, author of Small Pleasures The last of the Harold Fry trilogy, this time featuring Maureen, Harold's wife. She hears about Queenie's garden in Embleton Bay and that her son David is in it, so she makes a pilgrimage of her own to see it, to find him in it. The final novel in the Harold Fry trilogy, this is a heart-stopping story told from the view point of his wife Maureen as she takes her own journey and discovers how to reconnect with the world.

Rachel's books have been translated into thirty-six languages. The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Book prize and longlisted for the Man Booker Prize. Rachel was awarded the Specsavers National Book Awards 'New Writer of the Year' in December 2012 and shortlisted for the 'UK Author of the Year' 2014. Hers is a very different quest from Harold’s, and her private nature makes it hard for her to ask for or accept help. Having a car means she can retreat, be on her way, take her leave without needing anyone.

Fry fans will delight in this tale of a redemptive journey and the kindness of strangers. A new Joyce. Rejoice anew! Saga magazine As with the other two books, I really enjoyed this one - Maureen has a somewhat eventful drive 'up North' from their West Country home, passing many of the landmarks and places that we do when travelling down to Cornwall every year, before reaching her destination and getting a different perspective on both her life and their son's suicide, which she has never been able to cope with: An unforgettable story. It's beautiful all through, but the closing chapters are just astonishing, transcendent and hope-filled and life-affirming.' Donal Ryan

In the first, Harold Fry had set out to post a letter to his former co-worker, and friend Queenie, who has written to him to say “goodbye” after finding out that her illness is terminal. But, somehow, he gets it in his head that Queenie will stay alive, until she gets his reply, so he decides to hand deliver the note instead. He walks 627 miles to her bedside, becoming a bit of a local celebrity along the way. (4⭐️) Maureen has never forgiven herself that she did not see how deeply troubled David was before he took his own life. She makes a journey by car to northern England to visit Queenie's garden which is now maintained by volunteers, and has no idea of how she will react emotionally. Maureen is a difficult woman who always found it challenging to relate to other people, but her journey is one of forgiveness and hope for the future.

Ten years ago, Harold Fry set off on his epic journey on foot to save a friend. But the story doesn't end there. I wasn’t sure I wanted to read about Maureen, but I think the author did a good job of rounding out the three stories while still leaving some things to our imagination. PDF / EPUB File Name: Maureen_Fry_and_the_Angel_of_the_North__Maureen_-_Rachel_Joyce.pdf, Maureen_Fry_and_the_Angel_of_the_North__Maureen_-_Rachel_Joyce.epub