“Alys, Aways”

by Harriet Lane is a modern day story of a young woman living in London working in the publishing field. The book opens on her driving home after visiting her parents when she sees a car that’s gone off the road.  She pulls over and spends the last few minutes of the car accident victim’s life comforting her so the 50-something woman fatally injured in the car will not spend her last moments alone.  It turns out the victim was the wife of a well-respected author. The family of the victim reaches out to her to learn how their wife/mother spent her last few minutes and the woman becomes intertwined with them thereafter.  She inserts herself into the life of the daughter, a spoiled, charming young girl in a need of a replacement mother figure. The new contact with the literary family raises the young woman’s prospects in her job and opens up opportunities to her in other ways, as well.  A somewhat slow-moving, but enjoyable read.