What do you think?
Waynes of Wood Mount #2
The Blue Sky of Spring
Greenhurst, a sleepy English village, had not changed since a year ago when the Waynes of Wood Mount fought so fiercely to keep their home together and undesirable characters out of it. But now the place was buzzing with news of Miss Dryden-Smith's sudden death. To think that all these years the village had never known that she had a son! And what of the loud but likeable American playwright who had just wound his way to Wood Mount?
Estelle Dryden, Miss Dryden-Smith's niece (and presumed heir), is a good friend of the Waynes. Best friend of Lucille, teacher to Julia, and the object of Nicholas's romantic dreams. Now Cliff Hermann has arrived and things could not be the same.
Estelle Dryden, Miss Dryden-Smith's niece (and presumed heir), is a good friend of the Waynes. Best friend of Lucille, teacher to Julia, and the object of Nicholas's romantic dreams. Now Cliff Hermann has arrived and things could not be the same.
280 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1956
About the author
Elizabeth Cadell
98 books127 followersViolet Elizabeth Vandyke was born on 10 November 1903 in Calcutta, British Raj, daughter of British parents, Elizabeth Lynch and Frederick Reginald Vandyke, a colonial officer. During the Great War she studied music in London, but refused a musical career and returned to India where she married in 1928 Henry Dunlop Raymond Mallock Cadell, and they had a son and daughter. After she was widowed ten years later, she returned to England.
Elizabeth wrote her first book 'My Dear Aunt Flora' during the Second World War in 1946, there after producing another 51 light-hearted, humourous and romantic books which won her a faithful readership in England and America. In addition to England and India, many of her books are set in Spain, France, and Portugal. She finally settled in Portugal, where her married daughter still lived.
She died on 9 October 1989, aged eighty-five.
Elizabeth wrote her first book 'My Dear Aunt Flora' during the Second World War in 1946, there after producing another 51 light-hearted, humourous and romantic books which won her a faithful readership in England and America. In addition to England and India, many of her books are set in Spain, France, and Portugal. She finally settled in Portugal, where her married daughter still lived.
She died on 9 October 1989, aged eighty-five.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
August 2, 2024
This one truly affected me emotionally for everyone seemed so real ( I know they aren't of course) but I was caught up in a way that doesn't normally happen for me. It's an absolute delightful slice of life in a sense being sense in the 1950s in a small British village with such realistic, interesting, and likeable characters. The conversations between so many was brilliant and entertaining for her writing absolutely captivates me...I'm ordering the third in the series next....
Anyway, I actually did become tearful when reading the part about not marrying a person just because he/she is the one who loves you; for you can't bring that person happiness.......the theme being not just marry someone if not in love, only love and not wanting to hurt that other one. There will be heartbreak either way but perhaps healing later basically with my take on it.
This author was truly talented indeed in my estimation as I will gladly read others of hers whenever I can get my hands on any.
Anyway, I actually did become tearful when reading the part about not marrying a person just because he/she is the one who loves you; for you can't bring that person happiness.......the theme being not just marry someone if not in love, only love and not wanting to hurt that other one. There will be heartbreak either way but perhaps healing later basically with my take on it.
This author was truly talented indeed in my estimation as I will gladly read others of hers whenever I can get my hands on any.
May 20, 2019
Sometimes even a lighthearted book ends sadly, as does the second book in the Wayne Family Saga by Elizabeth Cadell.
It starts with a death, the death of an old spinster, who surprises everyone by trying to write a will leaving everything to her son, a son no one knew she even had.
Who is he? Where is he? What about her niece, Estelle, beloved of Nicholas Wayne and Julia Wayne who has a schoolgirl crush on her. There is a perfectly good will already leaving everything to Estelle.
Could her son be this American fellow who shows up and falls for Estelle? He swears he has a perfectly good mother already, but he'd love to give Estelle a turn.
Hearts will break, and they do. This is very much like life, and these are good people who don't want to hurt each other.
I'm glad there is a third book. I have hopes for better days for the Waynes and their friends.
It starts with a death, the death of an old spinster, who surprises everyone by trying to write a will leaving everything to her son, a son no one knew she even had.
Who is he? Where is he? What about her niece, Estelle, beloved of Nicholas Wayne and Julia Wayne who has a schoolgirl crush on her. There is a perfectly good will already leaving everything to Estelle.
Could her son be this American fellow who shows up and falls for Estelle? He swears he has a perfectly good mother already, but he'd love to give Estelle a turn.
Hearts will break, and they do. This is very much like life, and these are good people who don't want to hurt each other.
I'm glad there is a third book. I have hopes for better days for the Waynes and their friends.
October 11, 2022
Oh, what a change of pace and mood from the first of this series (The Lark Shall Sing). A year has passed since the events of the previous book. The Wayne family is firmly settled in the old home they fought so hard to hold on to.
Love is in the air, and with love comes the possibility of heartbreak. The lovely Estelle Dryden is a longtime friend of the Wayne family. Now a teacher at a local school, Estelle is the object of young Julia's silent adoration. And Nicholas has discovered he really wants to marry his older sister Lucille's dearest friend.
Estelle has her life turned upside down by the sudden death of the aunt who raised her. It seems that the stern, no-nonsense, Miss Mary Dryden-Smith had a son, and her dying wish is that he inherit everything. This casts Estelle totally adrift emotionally. The arrival of American Cliff Hermann serves to complicate matters, as he becomes almost instantly smitten with Estelle. The battle for Estelle's heart ensues, with no possibility of everyone being happy at the end.
While there are bits of Cadell's gentle humor here and there to leaven the mood, most of the book is serious. The love triangle is not comfortable reading; I feel that both Nicholas and Cliff are guilty of badgering Estelle at times. Estelle spends most of the book unhappy and confused, until she finally decides what (and who) she wants.
To offset the bittersweet main storyline, there is one bright sub-plot: the identity of the mysterious son. We do learn who he is, and that's a story with a happy ending for all to enjoy.
Now I'm off to read Six Impossible Things, which wraps up Cadell's trilogy featuring the Waynes of Wood Mount.
Love is in the air, and with love comes the possibility of heartbreak. The lovely Estelle Dryden is a longtime friend of the Wayne family. Now a teacher at a local school, Estelle is the object of young Julia's silent adoration. And Nicholas has discovered he really wants to marry his older sister Lucille's dearest friend.
Estelle has her life turned upside down by the sudden death of the aunt who raised her. It seems that the stern, no-nonsense, Miss Mary Dryden-Smith had a son, and her dying wish is that he inherit everything. This casts Estelle totally adrift emotionally. The arrival of American Cliff Hermann serves to complicate matters, as he becomes almost instantly smitten with Estelle. The battle for Estelle's heart ensues, with no possibility of everyone being happy at the end.
While there are bits of Cadell's gentle humor here and there to leaven the mood, most of the book is serious. The love triangle is not comfortable reading; I feel that both Nicholas and Cliff are guilty of badgering Estelle at times. Estelle spends most of the book unhappy and confused, until she finally decides what (and who) she wants.
To offset the bittersweet main storyline, there is one bright sub-plot: the identity of the mysterious son. We do learn who he is, and that's a story with a happy ending for all to enjoy.
Now I'm off to read Six Impossible Things, which wraps up Cadell's trilogy featuring the Waynes of Wood Mount.
January 30, 2024
As is so often the case, this sequel (to The Lark Shall Sing) did not live up to its predecessor. The first book in the trilogy had an undertow of longing and sadness that lent the ordinary events a deeper resonance. The emotional freight really engaged me as a reader and kept me rooting for all the characters—a family torn from their home because of life’s circumstances, fighting and struggling to return; random strangers tossed around by life finding a bourn in the same home. There was a romantic triangle, but it was firmly rooted in those other, universal emotions. It felt like the frame on which the clothing of the story was hung.
In The Blue Sky of Spring, the same family is now stable and happy in their home. The primary couple from the previous book are having a baby, the younger members of the family are growing and learning. And the oldest son of the family, the overlooked hero of book one, is in love.
There is another love triangle in this book, and there are characters who long for what they don’t have, but somehow the storyline is neither so resonant nor so satisfying. For one thing, the victor who wins the girl in the end is a pretty unpleasant sort, and I could not warm to him even when the author really wanted me to. The characters carried over from the previous book were mostly supporting players, their dramas already resolved, save for the youngest ones, whose problems loomed large to them in their youth and inexperience but were ultimately things to be gotten over. And—trigger warning—there is a scene of violence against an animal that left me sour.
The book is an interesting artifact of its era (mid-1950s), however. The female characters are losing that quality of courage and endurance that marked the English women who grew up through World War II, and are starting to turn into the type of neurotic, dare I say hysterical, female that Elizabeth Taylor played so vividly in the movies—a type of femininity that I loathe. And the author, through one of the main male characters, shows a growing discomfort with the instalove typical of English fictional characters from the first half of the twentieth century. Cadell writes not one but two lengthy, defensive passages in which instalove is challenged and found preposterous but is nevertheless real. It’s as if she knows she needs to abandon the trope as a relic of a bygone age but can’t bring herself to do so.
The first book’s depth of feeling elevated it above the comfy pulp level, but the second book left me frustrated and disappointed. Am hoping the third and final novel in the series will redeem things for me.
In The Blue Sky of Spring, the same family is now stable and happy in their home. The primary couple from the previous book are having a baby, the younger members of the family are growing and learning. And the oldest son of the family, the overlooked hero of book one, is in love.
There is another love triangle in this book, and there are characters who long for what they don’t have, but somehow the storyline is neither so resonant nor so satisfying. For one thing, the victor who wins the girl in the end is a pretty unpleasant sort, and I could not warm to him even when the author really wanted me to. The characters carried over from the previous book were mostly supporting players, their dramas already resolved, save for the youngest ones, whose problems loomed large to them in their youth and inexperience but were ultimately things to be gotten over. And—trigger warning—there is a scene of violence against an animal that left me sour.
The book is an interesting artifact of its era (mid-1950s), however. The female characters are losing that quality of courage and endurance that marked the English women who grew up through World War II, and are starting to turn into the type of neurotic, dare I say hysterical, female that Elizabeth Taylor played so vividly in the movies—a type of femininity that I loathe. And the author, through one of the main male characters, shows a growing discomfort with the instalove typical of English fictional characters from the first half of the twentieth century. Cadell writes not one but two lengthy, defensive passages in which instalove is challenged and found preposterous but is nevertheless real. It’s as if she knows she needs to abandon the trope as a relic of a bygone age but can’t bring herself to do so.
The first book’s depth of feeling elevated it above the comfy pulp level, but the second book left me frustrated and disappointed. Am hoping the third and final novel in the series will redeem things for me.
October 1, 2021
Whilst I felt that the Wayne family were just as charming as when we first met them, a lot of this story centered on a love triangle between Nicholas, Estelle, and an American visitor. I found the (many) interactions between Estelle and Cliff to be boring, so I didn't enjoy this one as much as The Lark Shall Sing. I will be getting to the last book sooner rather than later, however.
June 13, 2016
...but life was too full—she decided—to worry about whether you looked like a monkey or whether you didn’t. It didn’t matter much until you grew up and wanted to stun some man into marrying you.
A continuation of the gentle English romance and chronicle of the Wayne family of the 1950's and 60's. There was a difficult and disturbing scene involving the lovable family dog that struck a discordant note. It ended on a bitter-sweet chord, though we know there is a third book in the series for all to find their happy endings. I didn't enjoy the main couple as much as the first one. I was annoyed by Estelle, and thought she treated both of the men who loved her rather shabbily due to her wimpiness. First, because she didn't want to hurt Nicholas, and ended up prolonging his pain, and then kept Cliff hanging way too long and only committed when he finally got tired of waiting for her and told her he was moving on. She was lucky to get him. He was way too good for her.
https://rebekahsreadingsandwatchings....
June 24, 2024
This sequel about the Waynes siblings wasn't as funny as the previous one, but it was psychologically more absorbing. Elizabeth Cadell memorable portrayed the relationships between Nicholas, Cliff, and Estelle.
I found the mystery twist interesting because between the lines it had something to tell, yet it was too big a coincidence for my taste.
[4-4.5 stars]
I found the mystery twist interesting because between the lines it had something to tell, yet it was too big a coincidence for my taste.
[4-4.5 stars]
January 16, 2025
3.5 stars
"The Blue Sky of Spring" takes place a year after "The Lark Shall Sing". I enjoyed this second entry into the Wayne Family trilogy, but its tone was not as jovial as the first. In fact, instead of the family antics of the first book, this one has a mystery regarding a spinster who suddenly changes her will, revealing a long-kept secret, before she dies.
There is also a more predominant romance in this one, which I found a little less than satisfying (but I can't explain why without giving spoilers.)
Still, it was a pleasure to spend more time with the Wayne family, watching each member grow through the stresses and strains of their shared lives.
"The Blue Sky of Spring" takes place a year after "The Lark Shall Sing". I enjoyed this second entry into the Wayne Family trilogy, but its tone was not as jovial as the first. In fact, instead of the family antics of the first book, this one has a mystery regarding a spinster who suddenly changes her will, revealing a long-kept secret, before she dies.
There is also a more predominant romance in this one, which I found a little less than satisfying (but I can't explain why without giving spoilers.)
Still, it was a pleasure to spend more time with the Wayne family, watching each member grow through the stresses and strains of their shared lives.
April 20, 2018
Listening to this series is just a fun as reading it. Slightly darker than the first but only just a little. Overall, another romantic, satisfying story. One of her best!
June 18, 2020
The first Cadell book I have actively disliked. I read The Lark shall Sing and was entranced. I followed up with another fourteen of her works, nearly all of which I enjoyed greatly. And then this.
The issue was that I had previously found all of the Wayne family and their hangers on delightful. For some strange reason the author introduced a character who was unpleasant and to me was without any redeeming features (unless persistence and using others in pursuit of an end is positive). I imagine that one was supposed to find him more likeable as the story progressed. I found this impossible.
Sometimes Cadell makes unconvincing love matches but none as bad as this.
It was made difficult to read because it was obvious where the story was heading from very early on and there were no twists along the road. The subplot involving the incomplete will which had started promisingly petered out into inconsequence and the one involving Julia was, to use a neutral word, dated. The Wayne family really were in the far background throughout and yet each of them in the first book was as likeable and interesting as the protagonist in this book was the opposite.
The issue was that I had previously found all of the Wayne family and their hangers on delightful. For some strange reason the author introduced a character who was unpleasant and to me was without any redeeming features (unless persistence and using others in pursuit of an end is positive). I imagine that one was supposed to find him more likeable as the story progressed. I found this impossible.
Sometimes Cadell makes unconvincing love matches but none as bad as this.
It was made difficult to read because it was obvious where the story was heading from very early on and there were no twists along the road. The subplot involving the incomplete will which had started promisingly petered out into inconsequence and the one involving Julia was, to use a neutral word, dated. The Wayne family really were in the far background throughout and yet each of them in the first book was as likeable and interesting as the protagonist in this book was the opposite.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 28, 2022
Not as good as the first. In fact, largely the same romantic plot, only the "hero" is no charmer. He has an in-period but absolutely scream worthy bit where he muses about what a waste it is to let girls get degrees--they only end up getting married and abandoning their careers! Utterly sick making.
Read
April 21, 2024Well, if the first book in this series, which is quickly becoming a favorite, made me laugh, then this one made me cry. It was so enjoyable, although I can't say I loved the ending and am eager to read the next one to see if it might resolve the way I would like it to! Highly recommend this series! Although I have not been able to find them at my library, so I purchased them!
March 11, 2023
The second book of the Wayne Family finds the family together in their home, but the sudden death of the town spinster brings the resourceful family a mystery to solve. Miss Dryden-Smith's niece was to inherit all her worldly possessions, but Miss D-S dies in the process of writing a new will and leaving everything to her SON! What? Who? Why? The tongues of Greenhurst want to know. Slowly but surely, the questions are answered. We encounter love and heartbreak in the second book of the series while solving the mystery. Cadell's heroines were beginning to be liberated, but they still were inundated by manspeak...and survive.
July 1, 2020
I found this Elizabeth Cadell book to be somewhat different from others. The plotline is not overly uplifting, especially the ending. It did encourage me to jump right into book 3 of the series to see if things pick up a little. I did like to read about the three youngest Waynes and how they are growing up and changing.
June 12, 2011
You've got to put it out of your mind - or decide to do something about it. It's brooding without acting that causes serious trouble. You've got to accept - or act.
September 9, 2012
These are old books, but they are such a calm, enjoyable read.
November 14, 2013
I loved this book!
June 22, 2016
Good summer read.....
November 14, 2018
Second in the three parter about the Waynes. PErhaps not quite as engaging as the first novel, but another enjoyable Cadell with a bit of a twist to the ending.
March 21, 2024
Today everyones ill so its been screentime day. So just been reading here and lying down. Was a nice little daydream of a story
October 20, 2021
I loved “The Lark Shall Sing” which is the first book in this series of three novels by Elizabeth Cadell. I started reading this book expecting more of the same.
While the book is excellently written, it hits a lot of sad notes rather than the charming and funny ones in the first book. I ended it feeling lower than before.
What I discovered is that you should immediately start reading the third book in the series because the second book is a transition story that sets up the events of the last book.
Don’t be discouraged, because, in the end things come up right though different than what you may have expected after the first book.
As always, Ms. Cadell’s books are charming but not far-fetched. She put a slice of life into her stories and I am thankful that her books are now available again.
While the book is excellently written, it hits a lot of sad notes rather than the charming and funny ones in the first book. I ended it feeling lower than before.
What I discovered is that you should immediately start reading the third book in the series because the second book is a transition story that sets up the events of the last book.
Don’t be discouraged, because, in the end things come up right though different than what you may have expected after the first book.
As always, Ms. Cadell’s books are charming but not far-fetched. She put a slice of life into her stories and I am thankful that her books are now available again.
September 1, 2023
3.5. After reading, and enjoying, the first book in the trilogy (The Lark Shall Sing), I immediately moved on to the second. This book continues the story of the Wayne family, and once again I really enjoyed the numerous subplots, characters, and relationships. The central romance, however, was very annoying. The heroine, Estelle, seemed to be waiting for a man who could tell her how to live her life. I didn't really like the love triangle she was in, and didn't care too much about the outcome. But, as mentioned, the Wayne family continued to fascinate, and I had to go on to the last book in the trilogy.
August 9, 2018
I reread Cadell every so often when I want a breeze of uplift with some humor and some suspense. I'm so glad they are on Kindle now. Some titles I haven't read for years.
This one I didn't know existed. I finally read the 2nd part of the Wayne family series on Kindle because the hard copies are hard to find and expensive. The first and third were the books I first collected. I love reading this series every year.
This one I didn't know existed. I finally read the 2nd part of the Wayne family series on Kindle because the hard copies are hard to find and expensive. The first and third were the books I first collected. I love reading this series every year.
February 5, 2023
Though there were parts that made me laugh out loud, I didn’t really like Cliff. I can’t imagine that marriage working out- their romance happens off-camera, so to speak. And I agree with someone else who said their interactions were boring. I couldn’t figure out how Estelle went from being totally annoyed by him to agreeing to marry him.
What saved the book for me were the Waynes and Long John. I look forward to the next book.
What saved the book for me were the Waynes and Long John. I look forward to the next book.
November 24, 2021
As others have mentioned, parts of this book are not as uplifting as the first in the series. I also wish we saw more of the female characters’ interior worlds, instead of mostly the not-entirely-likable male main character’s thoughts.
Lovely to be back with the Waynes, but perhaps not the plot choices I would have chosen.
Lovely to be back with the Waynes, but perhaps not the plot choices I would have chosen.
May 21, 2020
Just as delightful as The Lark Shall Sing
The list of charming characters grows with problems and surprises and almost tragedies. Beautiful descriptions of country and people and emotion.
The list of charming characters grows with problems and surprises and almost tragedies. Beautiful descriptions of country and people and emotion.
December 13, 2023
The "hero" was pretty awful, frankly. I don't understand why the heroine agreed to marry him, after disliking him so much and having such vastly different opinions & moral standards. Very bizarre.
This is my second Elizabeth Cadell novel, and I'm thinking it may be my last.
This is my second Elizabeth Cadell novel, and I'm thinking it may be my last.
July 30, 2024
happily ever after?
I think this may be my favorite Cadell book so far. It took me a few to get in league with her quite realistic (read flawed) characters. Many whom I don’t like. But one can’t help liking the Waynes.
I think this may be my favorite Cadell book so far. It took me a few to get in league with her quite realistic (read flawed) characters. Many whom I don’t like. But one can’t help liking the Waynes.
November 3, 2024
Gentle and charming story of a large family in a small English village in the '50s. The love triangle gets a little tiresome at points but overall Cadell is surprisingly astute about relationships. Reminiscent of D.E. Stevenson.
December 13, 2023
Audiobook. Great little story
Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews