Mrs Walford by Brenda Tyedmers
Mrs. Walford is the debut novel from Brenda Tyedmers
A knotted shoelace can be an annoyance. As in, “now, how did that happen”? Nevertheless, the knot needs to be teased out so you can carry on. It takes persistence, but the reward is the solving of the puzzling knot. The same can be said for the story contained between the covers of Mrs. Walford, the debut novel by Brenda Tyedmers. She cleverly hands us the “knot” in the first few pages:
“Hello, Alice.” Was that as gentle, as benign, as I’d intended?
Alice shook her head, stunned. “You’re ... alive?”
“As you see,” I said, presenting my form with an illusionist’s hand.
Alice stared, mouth agape; her eyes darted toward the street and back to me, no doubt calculating how much longer we had. “But when you left us, left your family in President Street,” she shook her head, “you—”
“I was not at my best,” I conceded. “Nor were you.” Understatements both. She had the grace to blush.
“But the—incident, Sadie. In Halifax.” That silvery voice foundered. “How?”
How, indeed. I smiled faintly, and reached deep into my satchel.
Who is Alice? Why is she shocked to see Sadie alive? What was “the incident” in Halifax? So many questions tied up in an intricate knot for the reader to tease out by reading every one of the book’s 400 pages. Trust me, it will be worth it!
A warning: the following review my contain what some consider spoilers. I will keep to generalities in the following paragraphs, but if you don’t wish to read further, let me just say that Mrs. Walford is a five-star read. If you like the historical fiction of Genevieve Graham, then this is your type of book.
The above quoted passage is dated 1920, but the opening story of Mrs. Walford reaches all the way back to 1887 when Mrs. Sadie Walford checks herself into the Queen Hotel in Halifax, but under an alias. Clearly, she has something to hide (and somebody to hide from) as she is alone and wishes to be undisturbed, which is not typical behaviour from this regular client.
From there, other characters are introduced, such as Maggie, a hotel maid, Eleanor, the hotel owner’s wife, “The Thief”, and some Indigenous folks who have a market stall. All of these characters are separate entities, but they eventually cross paths in Halifax.
But the knot persists! Ms. Tyedmers then switches the reader over to “The Journal of Sarah Saunders” which takes place in Long Island, New York. Who is this person, and what does she have to with Mrs. Walford back in Halifax? I’m not saying any more than that! I will say that Sarah’s time in Long Island is a setting that Ms. Tyedmers takes full advantage of. Sarah takes a room in a respectable boarding house full of interesting characters, male and female, single and married. They all have their stories, and of course, there’s Jack, a handsome man that catches Sarah’s eye, although she has reasons for not encouraging a relationship at this time. Some captivating background history that occurs is Sarah getting hired by the Tiffany Glass Company, seeing the Brighton Beach Hotel physically moved by rail back 600 feet (ca. 183 m) from the eroding beach1, and other enjoyable activities of the day like picnicking, cycling, and so on. It’s all these historical touches that make Mrs. Walford so fascinating to read, yet they enhance, rather than detract, from the story.
As for the book itself, I was attracted by the cover, which struck me as very professional and worthy of the efforts of one of the larger publishing houses, rather than a self-published novel. I found no issues with the text, and it appears to have been well-edited too. There is certainly no excess material that I found.
Like a knot, the reader’s initial questions at the start of Mrs. Walford will eventually get answered, and the reward for the reader’s persistence will be the unravelling of one of the best historical fiction reads of the past year.
About the Author
Having recently retired from a career spanning environmental consulting, learning and development, and change management, Brenda Tyedmers is embracing life as an author of historical fiction. A produced playwright, acrylic artist, avid gardener, and community theatre set designer, Brenda likes, and writes, fiction that embeds mystery and romance. She’s a sucker for a happy ending and literally finds story ideas in the dirt. Brenda and her husband have a wonderful son, live in Halifax with their Basset Fauve de Bretagne (short-legged hunting hound), Twig, and can frequently be found birdwatching and exploring the shores of Big Island, Nova Scotia.
Mrs. Walford is Brenda’s first novel, and she’s currently writing her second.
About the Reviewer
James M. Fisher is the Editor-in-Chief of The Seaboard Review of Books. He resides in Miramichi, New Brunswick, with his wife, Diane, their tabby cat, Eddie, and Buster, their Border Collie. James works as an MRI technologist at the Miramichi Hospital.
Book Details
Publisher : Brenda Tyedmers
Publication date : Oct. 11 2025
Language : English
Print length : 410 pages
ISBN-10 : 1069545708
ISBN-13 : 978-1069545701