Bright River Trilogy

by Annie Greene

The story of Lilly, Jessie, and Ellen--three women united by their powerful attachment to Darcy, a charming drifter and renegade whose passion for freedom keeps him elusive and unknowable

Genres: Fiction

313 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1985

Reviews

[Marcia]

The definition of a trilogy is "a series of three dramas or literary works or sometimes three musical compositions that are closely related and develop a single theme". This is not a trilogy in the anticipated 3 book sense of the word, but it is three stories on the same subject - Darcy.

We never meet Darcy, only ever seeing him through eyes of three women - Lilly, Jessie and Ellen. We learn that he lives in his mother, Lilly's, home; he is 35, and has a son from a previous marriage; he disappears, without warning, for varied periods of time - sometimes drying out in the local drunk tank, sometimes not; he fought in Vietnam; he is a bad-boy never grown up.

We also get insight into the three women through their relationships with Darcy. They all love him.
- Lilly is his widowed mother.
- Independent Jessie is daughter of a farmer, come home after the break up from school-teacher poet Stephen, and Darcy is his polar opposite. The disease in her uterus masquerades as a pregnancy
- Ellen is the engaged, indulged daughter of the town's pharmacy manager, and she has a list

Character studies, primarily of Darcy but also Lilly, Jessie and Ellen. We never see him except through their eyes, and we never see them apart from their relationship to him.

There's a death in each family, but the lives of the 3 women seem more shaped by their particular love for Darcy, than by the death of their respective family member.

Love, loss, independence, and personal strength

[Nathan Lujan]

A story written in the start of the 1980s, through the eyes of three women we see their involvement in the life of Darcy Blunt, a man who is described as a man “whose passion for freedom keeps him elusive and unknowable”, we see how their lives intertwined and their necessity of something more in their relationship with him.
A weird gem of contemporary literature, as well as the small detail that I caught of the time this was written. that being that a character was drinking while pregnant, and the other character that was with them was cool with it (pg, 167), it donned on me that it wasn't till the end of the 1980s that the government added warning labels to bottles to alert the public of the dangers of drinking while pregers. Kinda cool that such an action was scene wit normality at the time that this book was written.

[Helga]

I first read this book 40 years ago, as a college student. It has stayed with me for its heartbreaking story and the beautiful writing. I revisited it, wondering if it would have the same impact on me as it did 40 years ago. I discovered that the writing is still beautiful, and my own life experiences have added to the richness of my reactions to the characters’ stories. It is the intertwined stories of three women who loved the same man, but in different ways. One is his mother, one is his girlfriend, and one is an occasional lover/friend. We never meet the man directly, but only through the remembrances of these three women. It is very much a character study, more than astonishing plot lines.

[Leanne Hengesbach]

I read this book in the early 80s and something made me think of it earlier this year. Once again, so amazed at all the things I didn't remember. I'm convinced that perspective plays a major part in what we read and how it affects us.

This was, over all, a very sad story. Darcy Blunt was a flawed man and the story is told from the perspectives of his mother and two women who were close to him. Darcy's son Tim also figures into the story. Everyone's relationship with Darcy is frustrated and incomplete, and they all yearn for something better from him.

[Cindy Bonner]

I read this book back in the 80s, and remembered that it was a great book. My opinion hasn't changed. My copy is a well-read one since I have loaned it to many many reading friends of mine. Haven't had anyone yet who didn't share my enthusiasm for this story and this writer. I don't think she wrote another book and I've googled her to see if there was some reason why. Anyway, I highly recommend this for people who care about excellent characters, superb writing, and for a light shined on the human condition.

[Karen]

Really weird and sad about 3 women who love the same man who doesn’t love any of them

[Mary]

This story is a love story of a fashion. It is about a young ne'er-do-well man named Darcy and his relationships with the three women in his life who try to love him. Darcy is a drunk and his mother is currently taking care of his son.

Jessie has recently broken up with her latest boyfriend -a shy, quiet poet. Jessie then turns her attention to the charming Darcy in order to start an affair which is bound to bring them both to tears. Ellen also has her eye on Darcy as well.

Mixed in with this plot is a lot of Gothic melodrama: murder, mayhem and mystery; that sort of thing. I liked this story, but this is actually the second time that I read it. I had read it years ago and forgotten most of the plot.. It lost a little of its charm the second time around for me.

However, Bright River Trilogy was still a very good book and it was a fast read for me. I gave it an A!

[Lisa]

Read during 3rd year @ college

[Linda]

Beautifully written story of a man and the women who love him.

[Carol Waters]

Very good writing, interesting characters, made me think. Poor Jessie.

[Cws]

F Gre