Regina McBride is a terrific poet, memoirist, and novelist. In her fifth book, Stranger from Across the Sea, McBride explores the bonds of friendship and the boundaries of mother-daughter ties, how relationships shift and often scar the psyche. Her rich details evoke Ireland’s misty shores and New York City’s edgy atmosphere.
At the center of her novel is a friendship between Violet O’Halloran, an Irish American deposited at an Irish convent school by her emotionally distant mother, and Indira Sharma, a blind half-Indian girl whose mother is Irish. While Indira pines for her far away lover, she teaches Violet to see beneath the surface of things before she disappears from Violet’s life.
Thirteen years later, Violet meets a mysterious Irishman in New York City; Emmet Fitzroy facilitates her return to Northern Ireland during the Troubles when he asks her to housesit in a mysterious old mansion not far from the convent school where she met Indira.
While there, Violet learns about the long-dead father she never knew—an IRA revolutionary—and uncovers Emmet’s secrets. Ultimately, she must choose between the man she’s come to love and loyalty to Indira, whose spiritualty and mysticism have profoundly affected her.
There are many beautiful qualities to this novel: the writing is lyrical, and the friendship between Violet and Indira is touching. I’m impressed with McBride’s adroitness as she skillfully switches genres in her various books.
Who doesn’t need a friend these days, or any day, for that matter? Reading Stranger from Across the Sea is like having a best friend beside you, sharing the vicissitudes of life and a warm cup of tea.