This is an unusual book in that it follows the meanderings of the river at its heart through the stories and events of the people who live nearby. It has a Victorian feel and springs from the local pub, where all good stories can build and grow. From there we explore the various tributaries that flow into main story, leading to a final flood of events which cast light on the entire narrative in a satisfying conclusion. A rattling good yarn which keeps the reader engaged throughout.

“By the river, the air carries the story on a journey, one sentence drifts away and makes room for the next.”

I was excited to finally read a Diane Setterfield book - slow on the uptake I know. Was it worth the wait? Three words for you .... what.a.book! Just like the river it’s based upon, this book flows and meanders to regale an unforgettable story. Setterfield presents a village full of characters, in fact there are many, yet each memorable in their own special way. Each of the families and their story is significant is bound together in an inspiring way. The writing and the atmospheric scene portrayal will transport you to this unique place and time.

“He knew his camera could not capture this, that some things were only truly seen by a human eye. This was one of the images of his lifetime. He simply exposed his retina and let love burn her flickering, shimmering, absorbed face on to his soul.”

Once Upon a River is storytelling at its finest. On the one hand, it is a unique folklore tale of myth and magic woven together to present a mystery of the river. Yet, if you delve a little deeper, it becomes clear that this tale is so much more - family secrets, as trials and tribulations, secrets and regrets all come to the surface because of the incident that occurs from the very first page. Each family, and specific smembers within those families, have their story to tell, making this a very character driven tale both for the community as a whole and the journey of the individual. That is magical on a whole new level - Henry and Rita, Margot and Joe, Anthony and Helena, Robert and Bess - each have something unique and special to contribute and the way Setterfield links them all together is mind blowing.

“It had seemed then that her daughter’s absence had flooded Helena, flooded them both, and that with their words they were trying to bail themselves out. But the words were eggcups and what they were describing was an ocean of absence, too vast to be contained in such modest vessels.”

I cannot recommend this book enough. Allow Setterfield to take you away on a special journey to another time and place where puzzle pieces are shifted around the board until the climax comes that will leave you shaking your head in awe. Her writing and descriptions, her ability to weave and interweave, her ability to pull at your heartstrings with twists and revelations that cannot help but leave you both engaged and engrossed on a whole new level. It has been described as a fairytale for grown ups and with magical realism storytelling of this calibre, I wholeheartedly agree. It is a tale to be read slowly and savoured, allowing the atmospheric nature of the village and people seep into your bones, much like the river itself.

“Tears welled in her. She hadn’t thought it would be like this. She had expected heaving masses of water, violent currents and murderous waves, not this serenity without end.”





This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release

I went into this book cautiously optimistic, and I was not disappointed!

This book is a wonderful example of magical realism wrapped in an historical novel. The writing style is very whimsical, almost fairy tale-like, with an omniscient narrator who addresses the reader directly. When it’s done well I always feel more involved in the story, and this was definitely the case here. It’s a simple setting, with a rescued young girl causing upheaval in three families lives – as well as the entire village, it seems! – by resembling their missing family member just enough to cause them to want to claim her. This mystery forms the basis of the story, but there are lots of other themes mixed in, from dealing with the grief of losing a child, abuse, finding family, falling out of faith, as well as the magic of storytelling in its many forms.

The river is the thread running through the tale, from featuring in the landscape, being a danger with its currents and floods, as well as a magical place with some otherworldly beings such as the ferryman Gently. The characters are all distinctly different, and there is some varied representation, with the inn-keepers son having, from the description, Down Syndrome, and the mixed race farmer and his wife, who was born with an abnormality in her hips which make her hobble, as well as having a lazy eye. These disabilities are never ignored, and even more so become a source of magic, with for example her lazy eye being able to see the true nature of people, which is why she keeps it covered with an eye-patch.

This brings me to what I loved most about this novel – the very thin line between magic and science. There are many instances where there is both a magical and a scientific explanation for the events and happenings in the story, and it is never definitively stated which one of the two is true. This leaves you as the reader free to interpret things as you want – as a lovely whimsical historical novel, or a fantasy story.

I also realized that I have two other books by Diane Setterfield on my TBR – The Thirteenth Tale and Bellman and Black – the latter I even own in hardcopy! Her writing really appealed to me, so I’ll definitely be reading these soon!

When I first started this book it was not the genre that I was particularly keen to read at that point in time, whimsical and pretty. I was in the mood for grit and malice. However, it took no time at all for me to love this book!

The characters, including the river, weave stories within stories and the gift of Diane Setterfield is her majestic writing, each word is used perfectly and I devoured each with glee.

A little girl brought into a The Swan, a public house, by an injured man is thought by all to be lost to this world. Then a flicker of breath is observed and she returns to life.

We meet an abundance of characters who all have involvement in the overall story. Each tale was expertly interwoven and held the readers interest at each twist and turn. Rita, the Nurse is a key figure who sees the world in all its glory but, with the experience of life, knows that not all is as it appears.

Three claims are laid for the girl and the build up through the book takes us through tragedy, misfortune, loss and abandonment to uncover the truth.

I loved the chapter titles which were quirky and added a bit of fun. I was glad that the ending answered all of those niggling questions that I had, a great read.

Well, this book is simply glorious.

Like all the best stories, it opens (I won't say "begins" because the beginning was much earlier, a number of tributary tales feeding into the main course) one dark night when the company are gathered at an inn.

The inn is The Swan at Radcot on the Thames, famed for its storytelling. And storytelling is important in this... story. Setterfield tells her tale, approves the social importance of storytelling in her 19th century setting (with various, wonderful, digressions into local lore, legends, dreams, the histories of her characters - all little stories) and builds into it alternative versions and possibilities. Her characters muse on the past, anticipate the future - with hope, fear, uncertainty - and explore the present as it unfolds.

Back to that dark night. An injured man staggers into The Swan from the river, carrying a dead child. But hours later, she is, it seem alive. Was she dead or not? Those present tell and retell the story. There are various approved additions and endings, while the drinkers at the inn frown on other alternatives. As more happens these alternatives and variations ebb and flow in popularity, joining a repertoire of popular tales which are called for repeated, altered and reworked.

As the story - stories - spreads outwards, though, it has an impact, sets things in motion, causes a stir.

Something is going to happen.

Across this little corner of Oxfordshire, people get ready. There's Robert Armstrong and his wife Bess, concerned for their little granddaughter, Alice. The Vaughans, whose child vanished into the dark two years ago. And strange Lily White, living in the damp cottage by the river, haunted by visions of her sister Ann.

Three claims on the mysterious girl. In turn these draw in others. The local nurse, Rita Sunday. The Armstrongs' ne'er-do-well son, Robin. A strange man who smells of yeast and strong spirit. A photographer, whose mission is to document the river and its people.

Even a sagacious pig.

Some are searching for the truth. Some want an advantage. Others just want the pain to end.

It's an entertaining read from start to finish. There is villainy here and darkness - rape and murder have taken place. But there is also love and loyalty and longing. Taking place in the year between one winter solstice and the next, Once Upon a River pays great attention to the seasons, to the rising and falling of the river, its quiet flow at some times and raging flood at others. There are countless memories - those stories, again - of deaths in the water, both intended and accidental. And we are told of Quietly, the boatman, who takes travellers whose time has come "across the river".

Throughout, Setterfield manages to make her world of water, oar, bridge, inn and cottage a place slightly distinct, a little kingdom where things are just a little bit different. It is, of course, a world akin to those of other river stories (I thought of The Wind in the Willows and also of Philip Pullman's La Belle Sauvage, which also features an inn) and I could somehow feel the presence of that weight of story behind the writing, diverted the flow, perhaps, here and there, like a submerged stone or a shallow or deep place that you can't see directly. It's almost an eerie feeling, but enjoyable at the same time.

So, like Poohsticks dropped in the water, Setterfield's characters drift downstream, bumping up against one another, separating, getting caught on obstructions or swept along by a current. Every one of them is a gem, whether it's the mixed race Robert Armstrong, wealthy but always on the outside of things, his frankly villainous son, the practical and self-contained Rita with her collection of medical books, Henry Daunt the photographer or poor Lily White. They are all real people, inhabiting this landscape which always, in the end, comes down to the river (excursions further off - to Oxford, to Lechlade (known for its dragons) or even London - feel strained, as though without the river things will go wrong, go off. I mentally cheered each return to the river, to the Swan.

It's a vivid, enchanting and compelling story, like nothing I'd read before.

A real treat.

I received an ARC copy of this book and am only sorry that it has taken me this long to get around to reading it. Diane Setterfield has a real mastery with words and builds a narrative that is evocative and powerful. Her final paragraph for me sums up how i felt reading this book i.e. out of my own world and drawn into hers she says" and now dear reader, the story is over. It is time for you to cross the bridge once more and return to the world you came from"

It is hard to describe the way that the whole is created from so many different narratives and interpretations. I think it would make a superb film for cinema or TV

It was a cold and blustery night and the simple countryfolk were supping ale in The Swan, entertaining each other with tales, when the door bursts open and in stumbles a soaking wet, injured man carrying a small child in his arms - a dead child that comes to life. Is she Amelia? Is she Alice? Is she Ann?

The Vaughans and the Armstrongs lay claim to the child. Lily White thinks she’s her dead sister, Ann, come back from the dead. While we follow the bewildering story, the river flows along, an integral part of everyone’s lives and the silent keeper of the secret of the child’s identity.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. It’s absorbing and well written. It felt like I was sitting by the fire in The Swan listening to the tale being told. While the river is a character as much as any of the live ones, it lacked wildlife which I thought was strange. Where were the river creatures? The ducks, swans, frogs, river rats? The river is beautifully described in all its various forms but, only on reflection, it’s strange that the description isn’t enhanced by animal noises. The ending becomes overly melodramatic but the Victorians liked a bit of melodrama and it’s their company we’re keeping.

With thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK for a review copy.

This is a great tale from a master storyteller. Like the river itself, it winds its way around and about, its tributaries being the back stories of the characters in the novel. The story even starts in the middle, not at the beginning, and it’s difficult to pin the source of the whole story down – it could be this person’s story, or that person – but all contribute to make up the novel as a whole.

Set in the Thames Valley countryside in the nineteenth century, it’s a time when many people didn’t travel very far, but science and the modern world was beginning to make itself known. There’s no DNA testing to prove the identity of Alice/Amelia and it’s a time when children can disappear and not too many questions are asked.

Whilst the story of child who comes back from the dead and whose child she could be is interesting on its own, the idea of the love of parents for their children is explored here, along with whether it’s nature or nurture which sets the personality. The importance of family and finding a place to feel safe and call home is significant to nearly all the characters in the book, and is seen over and over again from the Vaughans, the Armstrongs, Margot and Joe and even in Rita for her as yet unborn children.

This tale set in the nineteenth century has all the attributes of a brilliant story, a stormy night, a storytelling inn keeper, an ex-nun who works as a nurse a famil6 with a missing child, a lost grand-daughter, a villainous son and finally a downtrodden rector’s maid looking for her sister. Against this cast the doo4 of the inn opens and in comes a stranger with a corpse of a child in his arms and hours later the child returns to life and so the story begins - who is she and why was she in the river. The river is the Thames and the inn is steeped in history with a family who tell tales but their youngest is not able to be like his father due to his handicap but he is much loved. The locals have stories about a ferryman who appears to take the living and and the dead and thus the reader is set up for a tale of discovery to the end. A wonderfully atmospheric book bringing alive life on the river in the 1800s and the poverty some folk lived with as they earned their money. Beautifully constructed and a novel that flows like the river - a great read.

The mysterious tale of a child who drowns and comes back to life... is she real, is she the missing daughter, will she ever speak? A well written story follows the lives and loves, disasters and sadness of a village on the river. The characters are very colourful and real and the story grips you very early on. Highly recommended!

Beguiling, spellbinding, magical

Diane Setterfield is a wonderful storyteller. Set in the late 19th century, the novel is set by and follows the pattern and rhythms of the river Thames. Stories flow into the whole as tributaries flow into the main.

A 4 year old girl is carried into a riverside inn, apparently drowned, only to seemingly wake from the dead. Who is she? Who are her parents? News spreads along the river and claimants arrive.

The story meanders like the river but is spellbinding and memorable.

The scene is set as the ale flows like a river among the regulars in the Swan Inn which stands on the bank of the Thames. It is the evening of the winter solstice so tales of magic, folklore and fantasy are well in swing when a stranger burst in carrying the body of a young girl. The stranger passes out before he can explain who he or the obvious dead girl is. It would be the night that new legends and tales would begin to take form but not conclude, not yet.
Rita is on hand as nurse to tend to the stranger's injuries but keeps being drawn to the body of the young girl, who has been put in a freezing outbuilding. She feels that the natural progress that a dead body always goes through just doesn't fit so when she sees the girl draw a breath all hell breaks loose. The stranger tells the story of how he had rescued her from the river but the poor girl can tell them nothing about who she is. More strangers are to come to the Swan seeking a missing child, each believing or wanting to believe she is theirs.
There is an abundance of memorable stand out characters in this incredible epic tale, some because of their heart-wrenching stories that got them to the Thames and the Swan others from rumours of evil beings risen from the dead. Stories of the living dead and of course the Ferryman that row up and down the Thames taking those whose time it is to die, on their final journey, or returning others to the land until it is their time. While the three generations of women that live at the Swan gladly reap the rewards of new trade.
I met Armstrong, who could have his own book about his life, his mysterious wife and their family and the Vaughans whose story broke my heart. Oh wow I wanted the impossible to be possible but I knew that this story had already used all its miracles up. Every character has something that connects them to the next either directly or indirectly through someone else. It really is a master piece. Tragic and sinister, beautiful and selfless.
Diane Setterfield is a weaver of words that felt timeless as I read and left me feeling that I wanted to walk the banks of the Thames over a hundred years ago to hear more stories at every Inn I came to.
I wish to thank NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an e-copy of this book which I have reviewed honestly.

Wow, what a story, what a writer, what an imagination. I could not put this story down. The way it winds and twists, just like the Thames itself. Three stories all entwined.

I loved this book so much. A story about a river and also a story about stories- how and why we tell them. This novel which centres around children: lost, found, remembered and imagined, could so easily have been sentimental. It manages to avoid that by the depiction of some memorable, well rounded and complex characters and also by the quality of her own storytelling. Diane Setterfield confidently weaves together several stories into one hugely satisfying and cohesive whole. Her love of the Thames is infectious and her historical scholarship is all in the service of the story. This is a novel that I will be recommending to everyone.

I’m never one for rehearsing the plot of a book in a ‘review’ what is the point? It is all there in the blurb and the description. I also tend skip over them in other’s reviews to get to the important points; is it any good and why is it worth reading? In this case the answer to that is a resounding ‘yes’!

What an unusual and wonderful book. In one sense it is just a simple, well told story about love, loss, forgiveness and redemption but its value extends much further than this. This novel is based on the concept that there is truth in story, that the narrative can lead events and that belief can be as important as reality.

It is presented as the story of the river and is constructed in a manner that presents a number characters' stories as tributaries that will eventually run together to merge and form a greater, more powerful story. It is the story of people living on and near to the river but it is also very much the story of the river itself.

Beyond this, the novel reads very like a spoken story or fairy tale which from the very start draws us into its meanderings and continues to hold us in its currents in a wonderful, beautiful and inescapable way.

What we learn from this novel is what we can easily forget; that the ‘facts’ of a situation or an action may be less important than the truth it reveals – it can be the value of the story itself and the truth of that story that is important.

But It is also simply a great yarn! Wonderfully realised, beautifully written and brilliantly paced. I loved every moment of it!

One should really read this book by candlelight (or have it read by a murky person in a dark cloak) whilst sitting in an armchair by embers glowing in the fireplace. Picture a packed, dimly-lit country pub by the upper reaches of the Thames one night where the main entertainment is story-telling. Just as one story begins, the door is flung open and a seriously-injured man stumbles inside *gasp* cradling in his arms a lifeless little girl. At that precise moment I was sold! The separate threads of the story are so carefully woven, stacked, dismantled and rebuilt that the reader will get impatient at times, willing everything to come together, but it is a delightful impatience and will be rewarded. The musings of the regulars at the Swan Inn, mired in folklore, gossip and superstition, are beautifully recounted and the entire novel is like a storytelling dream.

A highly unusual but very good story set around the art of storytelling and the mystical quality of water.The characters were varied and all had their own back story.

I’ve always meant to read The Thirteenth Tale, and discovering Diane Setterfield’s writing through this novel is the thing to persuade me!

This is beautifully written, with almost the feel of a folklore tale. It’s incredibly atmospheric, with a mystery at the heart and an other-wordly feel to it. There’s many key characters at play here, without feeling over crowded. And we’re never quite sure if people are telling the truth, or just their own version of it.

And right at the heart of the tale is the river. It really is at the centre of the community and the story, and Diane does a great job of adding layers of local legend and customers to a river we all know so well.

Overally this is a wonderfully written story, it great when the contents lives up to such a beautiful cover!

I had hoped to love this book more than I did. I failed to connect to the story which I think is sad when the book is about stories. How stories can help people coop with things they can't or don't want to face. How stories can help to explain things that cannot be explained. But I got lost in this story.
I got lost in the amount of characters. I was unable to put them in the right spot, with the right people. Did that one character just appeared in that other characters story or.. and are we before or after the happening. Things I was asking myself for about 65% of the book. Only after that things started to make sense a bit as all characters are moving towards the same point in time.
What I did enjoy was the place of the river in all the stories. It shows how important the river was in that time still to get all the news. The story play in 1887 but sometimes it felt older. I remember I got a bit confused when someone took a train at some point wondering if they did exist around that time.
I did however finish this book. Diane Setterfield has a beautiful way of writing things. Creating an atmosphere. Using beautiful words to make beautiful sentences. I am notoriously horrible when there is a big character pool with a changing point of view and I am sure this book can be a pure joy to read if you do not have that problem.

What an utterly amazing, compelling and skilfully crafted tale. The magical realism of a girl who dies and then lives again, who belongs to several people and to no-one, draws you through every page like the irresistible flow of the River Thames on whose banks the story is set.
The constant imagery of flowing water pervades the entire book, reminding you that one of the most important characters is the river itself. The tributaries of individual characters' stories flow into the stream of the main narrative, whirling around one another until every last detail is revealed to create the complete tale.
The writing is beautifully poetic, perfectly structured and the style is a joy to read.