Review
'That Jane Davis is an important new writer is a given.' ~ Grady Harp, Book Blogger ★★★★★
'Davis is a phenomenal writer whose ability to create well-rounded characters that are easy to relate to felt effortless.' ~ Compulsion Reads ★★★★★
'If one reads a lot, book after book (as I do), you sometimes get a sense of repeated themes, story arcs, and plot points that begin to run together in ways that make it hard to discern what's outstanding or noteworthy from the book before. Then a story jumps out at you with a raw burst of originality and thought-provocation that goes deeper than most, leaving you thinking and pondering the issues and plot lines unfolding in front of you. That would be These Fragile Things.' ~ Lorraine Devon Wilke, author of The Alchemy of Noise ★★★★★
'Jane Davis really does bring characters to life, mothers, fathers, friends, teachers are all perfectly described along with their actions and reactions to events. I love the occasional asides, an overheard conversation here, or a mental comparison of one home with another there, all of which helps to anchor the story.' ~ Cleo Bannister, Book Blogger ★★★★★
'The relationship between husband and wife is so subtle and enduringly lovely.' ~ Sally Markwell, Book Reviewer ★★★★★
'Never wastes a word.' ~ Geoffrey West, Sutton Writers' Club ★★★★★
'Masterly writing on a subject most of us don't give a second thought to.' ~ Amazon Reviewer ★★★★★
'This book will take you on a journey into parts of the psyche we never normally explore. It will make you look at life differently and ask yourself the big questions we all normally avoid.' ~ Mrs Tina Britt, Book Reviewer ★★★★★
'Moving, thought provoking, sad and funny.' ~ Karen Begg, Book Reviewer ★★★★★
'The author's prose is extraordinary.' ~ Julie, Amazon Reviewer, US ★★★★★
From the Author
These Fragile Things tackles the subjects of near-death experienceand religious fervour. These are big issues.
They are, but Orange prize-winner Francesca Kay said that she sees noreason why inexperienced novelists should avoid the big issues. I wanted tobring the premise down to one very simple question: what happens to an ordinaryfamily when their daughter claims to be seeing visions. Of course the dynamicsof the family will shift, but can they survive it?
What was your ownreligious upbringing and how has this influenced the novel.
I wasbrought up as a Catholic. As a child, my life was filled with mythical beingsand stories of great journeys and courage: of avenging angels; St George and theDragon; Jonah and the whale; Noah and his ark; Jack and the Beanstalk; Danielin the lions' den. Be itBothers Grimm, Hans Christian Anderson or the Old Testament, our imaginationswere fuelled. Nobody seemed to consider that children may not be ableto distinguish between stories and 'the truth', and truth, as we know, is very important tochildren. In those days, I didn't think that there was any difference betweenGod and Father Christmas. But heaven forbid you should confuse fairies with angels, and soyou were expected to learn: The Bible is true, Jack and the Beanstalk isn't.Except that it doesn't end there. 'What, God didn't really create the world inseven days?' 'No, that is just an illustration.' 'But everything else is true?''Yes, everything else is true.' 'Including the Prodigal Son?' 'No, that's aparable. Parables are stories that illustrate issues and have moral endings.''Like fairy tales?' 'No! Not like fairy tales.' And now that we have so muchmore knowledge and archaeological evidence, it is being suggested that more andmore of what we were taught was true was illustrative.
Everyone worries how children will reactwhen they find out that Father Christmas doesn't exist. They spend far lesstime worrying about the moment when their child stops believing in God. There's very little preparation for that. With Santa Claus, theimpact is softened by the fact that stockings are still filled withpresents. Where is the softener with regards to God? Who's leftsteering the ship?
But you don't become a lapsed Catholic overnight. I havereturned to church many times over the years: when suffering from depression;for births and marriages; and particularly when mourning the loss of friends. Religion brings people together to offer comfort and support and tocelebrate life's big events. I miss so much about it: singing in a big choir;the setting aside of Sunday as a special day. And then, later, my work in insurance, forcedme to deal with that wonderful question, 'What is an 'Act of God'? A legal termthat's still in use.
About the Author
Hailed by The Bookseller as 'One to Watch', Jane Davis writes thought-provoking page-turners, exploring a diverse range of subjects, from pioneering female photographers to relatives seeking justice for the victims of a fictional disaster. Interested in how people behave under pressure, Jane introduces her characters when they're in highly volatile situations and then, in her words, throws them to the lions. Expect complex relationships, meaty moral dilemmas and a scattering of dark family secrets!
Her first novel, 'Half-Truths and White Lies', won a national award established by Transworld with the aim of finding the next Joanne Harris. Further recognition followed in 2016 with 'An Unknown Woman' being named Writing Magazine's Self-Published Book of the Year as well as being shortlisted in the IAN Awards. In 2019 'Smash all the Windows', won the inaugural Selfies Book Award. Her novel, 'At the Stroke of Nine O'Clock' was featured by The Lady Magazine as one of their favourite books set in the 1950s and was a Historical Novel Society Editor's Choice.
Jane lives in Surrey, in what was originally the ticket office for a Victorian pleasure garden, known locally as 'the gingerbread house'. Her house frequently crops up in her fiction. In fact, she burnt it to the ground in the opening chapter of 'An Unknown Woman' and it is the gardener's cottage in 'Small Eden', a fictionalized account of why one man chose to open a small-scale pleasure garden at a time when London's great pleasure gardens were facing bankruptcy.
When she isn't writing, you may spot Jane disappearing up the side of a mountain with a camera in hand.
