Myra Malone is thirty-four years old, and she very rarely ventures out of her attic in the Arizona mountains. She spends her days working on a miniature mansion, like a doll’s house, but nothing so childish – and she blogs about the mansion to her hundreds of thousands of fans. People wait with bated breath for the latest posts and photographs, intrigued by the detail of the mansion and also the enigmatic Myra. She is bound to the mansion in ways she can’t explain. And strange things happen as she works on the tiny mansion – rooms appear and disappear, and piano music can sometimes be heard coming from the rooms.
Across the other side of the country, Alex Rakes, also thirty-four years old, is the heir to a custom furniture business, and he is shocked when he comes across Myra’s blog. Her mansion is a miniature replica of his family home, handed down after his grandmother mysteriously disappeared when he was a child. The level of detail is extraordinary when he looks about the family home.
Alex begins corresponding with the reclusive Myra, and slowly they begin to unravel the mystery of the big and small mansions– and in doing so, they discover a similar loss. But will Myra be brave enough to finally step away from her reclusive life? And will Alex be able to cope when there is another devastating loss?
The Minuscule Mansion of Myra Malone is a highly original, captivating read, full of mystery and romance. It’s a charming, engaging story that is beautifully plotted and executed.
Reviewer: Karen McMillan
Macmillan Publishers