In the Company of Others

Jan Karon

Oct 2010 · A Mitford Novel Book 11 · Sold by Penguin

About this ebook

Follow Father Tim and Cynthia on their journey to research his Kavanagh ancestry in the Irish countryside in this novel in the beloved Mitford series from #1 New York Times bestselling author Jan Karon.
 
Vacation—the very word has been foreign to Episcopal priest Tim Kavanagh. Now retired from tending his flock in the village of Mitford, he is making good on a promise to show his wife, Cynthia, the charming land of his Irish ancestors. But after arriving at a Lough Arrow fishing lodge in the midst of a torrential downpour, the charm disappears.

They find their holiday upended by an intruder, a treasured painting is stolen from the lodge, and a family conflict dating back nearly a century turns even more bitter. As three generations struggle to find deliverance from the crucifying power of secrets, Tim and Cynthia stumble upon a faded journal that might just explain the crime—and offer a chance at redemption.

Ratings and reviews

" 't isn't as if we were your own parish"."Wherever I am, he supplies a parish". "I don't understand that,you know". "I hardly understand it myself. But that's okay. Let it be" In this, the 11th book in Jan Karon's Mitford Years series; and the second Father Tim novel, Tim and Cynthia have finally made it to Ireland, fulfilling Tim's long made promise to show his wife the land of his roots. A series of unfortunate events make it a true "staycation" as Cynthia reinjures her ankle. However, that doesn't stop the couple from traveling back in time as the shared reading of a centuries old journal gives them pause into the serendipitous nature of the mind of the writer. We are given glimpses of what's going on "back home" as Dooley and Lace get more serious, and Tim's half brother continues his recovery. However, the focus this time is on how G-d uses us to change what we can and give us the wisdom to know when we can't. Highly recommended 5/5

About the author

Jan Karon, born Janice Meredith Wilson in the foothills of North Carolina, was named after the title of a popular novel, Janice Meredith.

Jan wrote her first novel at the age of ten. "The manuscript was written on Blue Horse notebook paper, and was, for good reason, kept hidden from my sister. When she found it, she discovered the one curse word I had, with pounding heart, included in someone's speech. For Pete's sake, hadn't Rhett Butler used that very same word and gotten away with it? After my grandmother's exceedingly focused reproof, I've written books without cussin' ever since."

Several years ago, Karon left a successful career in advertising to move to the mountain village of Blowing Rock, North Carolina, and write books. "I stepped out on faith to follow my lifelong dream of being an author," she says. "I made real sacrifices and took big risks. But living, it seems to me, is largely about risk."

Enthusiastic booksellers across the country have introduced readers of all ages to Karon's heartwarming books. At Home in Mitford, Karon's first book in the Mitford series, was nominated for an ABBY by the American Booksellers Association in 1996 and again in 1997. Bookstore owner, Shirley Sprinkle, says, "The Mitford Books have been our all-time fiction bestsellers since we went in business twenty-five years ago. We've sold 10,000 of Jan's books and don't see any end to the Mitford phenomenon."