The Pavilion in the Clouds, Alexander McCall Smith
The Pavilion in the Clouds, Alexander McCall Smith
List: $19.99 | Sale: $13.99
Club: $9.99

The Pavilion in the Clouds

Author: Alexander McCall Smith

Narrator: David Rintoul

Unabridged: 6 hr 49 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Recorded Books

Published: 12/13/2022


Synopsis

It is 1938 and the final days of the British Empire. In a bungalow high up in the green hills above the plains of Ceylon, under a vast blue sky, live the Ferguson family: Bella, a precocious eight-year-old; her father Henry—owner of Pitlochry, a
tea plantation—and her mother Virginia. The story centres around the Pavilion in the Clouds, set in the idyllic grounds carved out of the wilderness. But all is not as serene as it seems. Bella is suspicious of her governess Miss White’s intentions.

Her suspicion sparks off her mother’s imagination and after an unfortunate series of events, a confrontation is had with Miss White and a gunshot rings off around the hills.

Years later, Bella, now living back in Scotland at university in St Andrews, is faced once again with her past. Will she at last find out what happened between her father and Miss White? And will the guilt she has lived with all these years be reconciled by a long overdue apology?

About Alexander McCall Smith

Alexander McCall Smith is the author of over one hundred books on a wide array of subjects, including the award-winning The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. He is also the author of the Isabel Dalhousie novels and the world's longest-running serial novel, 44 Scotland Street. His books have been translated into forty-six languages. Alexander McCall Smith is Professor Emeritus of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh and holds honorary doctorates from thirteen universities. He was knighted by the King in 2024.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Daniel on December 22, 2021

In this standalone novel, Alexander McCall Smith departs from his familiar haunts of the British Isles and Africa.Instead he transports the reader to a tea plantation in Ceylon in 1938. The themes prevalent in the authors body of work are transposed to this milieu. The plot is driven by human capaci......more

Goodreads review by Pam on January 30, 2022

If you are a big fan of this author’s books, I think you will probably be satisfied. The Pavilion in the Clouds of the title might suggest a beautiful life or the clouds might point to something hidden or at least worrisome. The setting is initially Ceylon (before it was called Sri Lanka) and the ti......more

Goodreads review by Donna on May 10, 2023

Alexander McCall Smith’s writing has such a peaceful, almost misty quality to it. In this story, the main character is a child for most of the book, then a young adult for the last part. Guilt over an act of childhood treachery leads the young woman to make an apology, at which point the story final......more

Goodreads review by J.C. on October 02, 2022

I’m in an hotel on my travels. It feels quite appropriate to be doing this when writing this review, as this novel explores exile from one’s own land. Alexander McCall Smith deals with this aspect well here, I feel, although with a slightly insistent tone. The novel is set in what was then Ceylon (S......more