One could use words such as 'kaleidoscope' or 'maypole' to describe the deft interweaving of plots and personages in Crimson Joy, but neither word captures the sense of spontaneity that animates this delightful novel. The style is lucid and economical, the words chosen with evident relish, the tone drier than the driest Martini. The fact that Baxter is a renowned painter, sculptor and ceramicist is apparent not only in the book's many visual treats but also the fact that Crimson Joy is an extremely well-crafted novel written with oral attention compassion and great care.

Lynn Baxter has a distinct voice that is both witty and erudite. She has an extraordinary gift for language, bending and shaping words into something entirely her own. The story centres around Mae' family with its heartaches and chaos, and I was charmed by these eccentric people living in the seaside town of Westonport. The naming of the two bookshops, The Sick Rose and The Invisible Worm, referencing William Blake's poetry, sets the literary atmosphere right from the start. Crimson Joy strikes a balance between a literary work and a novel that's accessible for everyone.

Artist, Lynn Bater, brings a lifetime of well-honed observational skills to her first novel, Crimson Joy. We experience a mind, editing constantly, as an artist does, behind every sentence. Precision is evident in the rich descriptive language throughout. Baxter is a lively wordsmith, creating by degrees colourful characters whose lives become both intentionally, and by coincidence, intertwined in a heartfelt story of human emotion. Short punchy sentences and short chapters allow the layering of information to accumulate gradually for the reader Accruing more details as we read, we build colourful characters in our mindscape from what becomes a discursive three-dimensional text. Baxter draws on her knowledge of art theatre and literary through to enhance the pictures she creates. The story evolve around a bookshop, indeed two, in the ownership o Victor, a man besotted with the works of William Blake whose spirit pervades the theatrical fine art of his daughter, Mae/Desiree. This is a story which unravels in time, in place, from Islington to Greenwich, Copenhagen to Saffron Walden and in person, a characters evolve and accrue maturity based on their own past histories. It is a text with a pulse. We feel the beat from 'Damian didn't really "get" Ginsburg', to Rene who 'has dusted down a gown that looks as if is has been made from a myriad of beetles' wings,' recalling Sargent's portrait of Ellen Terry as Lady Macbeth... We can all find flashpoints in the story, It is an escape into a world we can feel and see. It touches all life's experiences. A joy to read!