Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC.

In a world increasingly dominated by fleeting digital interactions, Virginia Evans' "The Correspondent" offers a refreshing and poignant reminder of the enduring power of the written word.

This captivating novel unfolds through a series of letters exchanged between Sybil Van Antwerp, a sharp-witted and fiercely independent 78-year-old woman facing the twilight of her life, and a diverse cast of characters who have touched her life in profound ways.

Evans masterfully crafts Sybil's voice, infusing her letters with a delightful blend of humor, wisdom, and vulnerability. As Sybil grapples with fading eyesight and the weight of past regrets, her correspondence becomes a conduit for reflection, reconciliation, and unexpected connections.

Through her letters, we glimpse the tapestry of Sybil's life: her career as a lawyer, the tragic loss of her son, the complexities of her relationships with her children, and the enduring bonds of friendship.

But "The Correspondent" is more than just a character study. It's also a celebration of the epistolary novel, a form that allows for intimacy, introspection, and the gradual unfolding of secrets and revelations.

Each letter serves as a window into the lives of those who receive them, revealing their own struggles, triumphs, and perspectives. As the correspondence unfolds, Evans weaves a rich tapestry of human experience, exploring themes of love, loss, forgiveness, and the enduring search for meaning in life.

What sets "The Correspondent" apart is its ability to evoke both laughter and tears. Sybil's wit and candor are infectious, while her of vulnerability and moments of resonate deeply.

Evans has created a character who feels familiar yet extraordinary, a woman who embodies the resilience and complexity of the human spirit.

"The Correspondent" is a novel that is a reminder of the power of connection, the importance of reflection, and the enduring magic of a well-crafted letter. This story reminds us to not view a person's advanced age as a negative, rather to view each elderly person as an individual who has unique life lessons we can all learn from and be fascinated by - we need only to care enough to ask.

In a world that often feels rushed and impersonal, this novel offers a gentle invitation to slow down, savor the words, and appreciate the beauty of human connection.

For fans of Elizabeth Strout (especially Olive Kitteridge) and (of course) Helen Hanff's 84 Charing Cross Road. My favorite: a slice of the life of an imperfect person, and positively riddled with literary references to boot.

I can't imagine a way that this book could be improved upon, other than having more of it.

The Correspondent is a book that stays with you well after the last page. It is the story of Sybil Van Antwerp. She has written letters throughout her life and feels most comfortable communicating like this. The author Virginia Evans does a wonderful job of developing her characters through their letters. We meet Sybil at 78 when she is losing her eyesight.She has a comfortable retirement but there is a sadness about her because of a tragedy that occurred years before. She lost a son when he was 8 in a swimming accident. Her life changed then. She developed a tenuous relationship with her daughter and she became divorced from her husband.
She was adopted at 14 months old and had a happy childhood with her family including an adopted brother. Her son gave her a DNA testing gift and it changed her life. It opens up a whole new set of relatives. Through her letters we learn she still loves her ex-husband although was not in love with him. She starts dating two men who are interested in her and begins a new chapter in her life.
When she realizes her vision is getting worse she tries to make things right with her family and friends.

The Correspondent by Virginia Evans is a beautifully crafted epistolary novel that captures the complexities of love, regret, and connection through the heartfelt letters of Sylvia, a retired legal professional. Evans masterfully balances humor and sorrow, offering a touching portrait of a woman reflecting on her relationships—with her children, old friends, and even those from her legal past. Sylvia’s voice is warm, witty, and deeply human, making her journey both engaging and profoundly moving. A poignant exploration of memory and meaning, The Correspondent is a novel that lingers long after the last letter is read.

Virginia Evans’ epistolary novel, THE CORRESPONDENT, moved me more than I expected. It is early in the year, but this may be my favorite novel of 2025.

For readers of advancing age (and who isn’t?), it seems almost obligatory reading. We see the life of Sybil Van Antwerp, seventy-something, ex-wife, mother, retired law clerk, friend and foe, through her own evolving consciousness, as expressed in a series of letters to everyone from nearly anonymous customer service reps to notable authors. She treats everyone as a person, with surprising results. By novel’s end, Sybil’s secrets have been revealed and we’ve come to think of her as a flawed, but oh so dear!

With thanks to NetGalley and Crown Publishers for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for an early review copy of this book.

The Correspondent by Virginia Evans is an absolute treat. Told through a series of letter then span over a decade, The Correspondent is the story of Sybil, an avid letter writer, who reflects on her career and life and its many ups and downs.

Fans of Elizabeth Strout and Ann Patchett will love this beautifully told story of a woman in the winter of her life who writes and responds to people near and dear to her.

I love epistolary novels, and this one is my favorite. Sybil has a long life well-lived with all the joys and sorrows and regrets. Her life is spelled out in letters to family, friends and her favorite authors as the author develops her characters. Highly recommended.

The Correspondent is an epistolary novel consisting of letters to and from septagenarian Sybil Van Antwerp from 2012 to 2021. The letters tell Sybils story. She writes to family, friends and her favorite authors including Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry. She is direct and grumpy, but also kindhearted and funny underneath.

The writing is beautiful and she makes a wonderful case for preserving communication in the written word. I can personally relate to this as my maternal grandmother died when my mother was 6 weeks old, and the letters she wrote while she was pregnant have become an important family heirloom.

I really enjoyed this heart wrenching and heartwarming novel. Thank you to net galley and crown publishing for this e galley in exchange for an honest review

I fell under the spell of this charming story very quickly. I do
love a well done epistolary novel and this is one of the best ones I’ve read. Sybil, our correspondent, is a wonderfully complex character that invites both your scorn and your sympathy. I just loved her. Her wit, her enthusiastic embrace of life’s challenges but mostly, the vulnerability she was able to reveal through her letter writing. The author masterfully developed all of the characters without relying on the framework of a typical he-said- she-said novel . I was sorry when this book ended. The story has stayed with me and the memorable characters were so alive that I find myself missing them. Write more, Ms Evans. Brava!!!!

"I've always felt it is like a scream living inside me."

Brilliant! #thecorrespondent by @virginia.l.evans is brilliant. Easily the best book I've read this year and perhaps in a long while. I loved the epistolary format, I loved why Sybil writes letters, and I loved Sybil. Deep relationships survive as a result of her letters, and others are surprisingly formed; yet ironically, it's something she's also hidden behind. I'm going to recommend it to everyone!

P.S. Thanks to #netgalley for the ARC.

The Correspondent by Virginia Evans is a stunning, wonderful work of epistolary fiction. Sybil Van Antwerp has built a career as a lawyer, later clerking for her law partner when he becomes a judge. She has also made a life as a wife and mother but lost one of her sons at the age of eight in a swimming accident. This tragic event had a ripple effect in her life, with those ripples still reflected in her relationships with her adult children years later. At age 78 and losing her eyesight, we learn about her life and the people in it through her letters to them, along with their responses. In writing about the challenges, sadness, and triumphs she encountered, we learn about Sybil as a flawed and realistic human being, but one who is also able to undergo changes and adapt even while she ages. There are literary references to Joan Didion and Ann Patchett, along with book titles that Sybil mentions in her letters. Olive Kitteridge is one of my favorite fictional characters, and I can now add Sybil Van Antwerp to that list. I highly recommend this book to anyone who appreciates kindness, honesty, letters, books, and rich lives lived even by older characters. This one gets five big, gold stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for providing me with a copy of this book. It will be published on May 6, 2025.

A wonderful epistolary novel! Sybil's life has centered around her correspondence, with both those she knows and strangers. As a few years of selected letters unfolds for the reader, her relationships with her brother, daughter, former husband, and others allows an understanding of her complete life and her personality appears. Why she finds writing easier than conversing becomes clear, and her sadness and remove are explained through the events of her past, and in her encroaching blindness. Wonderful character development and unfolding of the plot.

I did not know what to expect when I first started this book. It ended up surprising me - in a good way! I loved the structure of how the story was told. It was like getting a more personal glimpse into Sybil's life then we would have if it wasn't told through letters. I finished this book over a day ago and it is still sitting with me and is all I can think about. The author has done a wonderful job bringing her characters to life! I highly recommend.

This is a beautiful, thought-provoking story told through the letters (and emails) that the main character writes and receives.

Sybil Van Antwerp has used letters throughout her life to make sense of the world and her place in it. Most mornings, she sits down to write letters—to her brother, her best friend, the president of the university who will not allow her to audit a class she desperately wants to take, Joan Didion, and Larry McMurtry to share her thoughts on their latest books, and to one person she writes to often but never sends the letters to.

Sybil expects her world to continue as it has—a mother, grandmother, wife, divorcee, and distinguished lawyer- and she has lived a full life. However, when letters from someone in her past compel her to examine one of the most painful periods of her life, she realizes that the letter she has been writing over the years needs to be read. She cannot move forward until she finds it in her heart to offer forgiveness.

.What captivated me most about this book is its heartfelt depiction of life's journey. It addresses the complexities of aging and the challenges we all face while celebrating the wisdom and beauty at every stage. The author's insights on love, loss, and relationships are touching and inspiring, reminding us that every moment is valuable.

At age 73, Sybil Van Antwerp is cruising through retirement, thank you very much.

Her career is over, the children are gone and her husband is divorced. She has plenty of time to read, to garden and to write letters.

Her letters tell the other side of the story: the regrets, the hurts. She races against time to make amends as her eyesight fails.

Virginia Evans has written a book that rings true to us septuagenarians. The author is wise beyond her years.

I appreciate NetGallery for giving me access to this beautiful book. It’s a quick read, but painful. The format is unique, at least to me, but works. I’m richer for having read it.

THE CORRESPONDENT proves that you can measure a life in letters, and the letters of one woman will stay with you long after you close the pages of this beautiful debut.

On the cover of the book, Ann Patchett declares that THE CORRESPONDENT, Virginia Evans' debut novel told entirely through letters, emails, and notes, is "a cause for celebration," and, oh, is she ever right. This epistolary novel takes place on the desk of Sybil Van Antwerp. Sybil is alone, facing the end of her life and holding back secrets from both her friends and family. Over the course of a few years, we see how Sybil's life, as she reckons with what's to come and what she has to lose, fails to contract: Rather, we see how a life can grow even in its later stages, with the help new young friends, a neighbor who checks in, and even a customer service representative and a professor on the wrong end of the stick. Oh, and Joan Didion, because of course. As Sybil connects and converses with all these individuals (using the written word, strictly), readers will fall in love with this woman, who still clearly has a lot of love to give.

A friend of mine recently reminded me that just because one hates a character, does not mean one hates a book. And, perhaps, dear readers, I suspect you'll also go on a bit of a *journey* with Sybil, a retired judge's clerk, mother of disappointing children, and protector of outdated modes of communication. But my early disdain for our protagonist didn't discourage me from continuing to read, and, oh wow, am I glad I did. For a debut, this novel is absolutely staggering. It overcomes the challenges of a restrictive narrative style to tell the story of not just a moment, but an entire lifetime. It's a novel that challenges our assumptions about the importance of long-form written communication in a world that prioritizes so much else. Be prepared to shed tears (of joy and sorrow) and laugh out loud at a near octogenarian learning the internet for the first time. Above all, be prepared to fall in love.

Thanks to Crown Publishing for my early gifted copy. THE CORRESPONDENT is out in May.

From the time Sybil was a little girl, she found solace in writing letters. Always the odd duck in social situations, she built a career as a lawyer and later as a clerk for a judge in Washington D.C. She married, had children, and continued to write letters the old-fashioned way with pen and paper. But when a personal tragedy struck, Sybil lost her way with her family and friends and retreated to the only safe haven she knew - letter writing.
The Correspondent is a collection of letters to and from Sybil over the 70+ years of her life and offer insight into the life that she has led and how it is all rapidly changing for her in her final years as she is losing her eyesight and can no longer write or read the books and letters she loves.
Readers will grow to know each of her correspondents and eagerly await the next "letter" from each of them. Sybil is a complete character and readers will find that she is so much more than just an old lady who still insists on writing "real" letters. A true gem of a book.

Thanks to the publisher and Net Galley for the opportunity to read this lovely book. I requested the book because I loved the cover and fortunately for me the story was as good!! I enjoyed that we get the story through Sybil’s letters. She is just the epitome of blunt and a little cranky. But we get to see how her in all her aspects touches people she sees predetermined to annoy. We also get to see her discover, acknowledge, and grow into herself in her later years. Reading this book makes me want to be braver with my letter writing! I also found myself wishing I could see an actual picture of her house to see if it matched my imagination.

“The Correspondent” by Virginia Evens is a heartfelt and stunning debut novel that tells the story of a woman’s life through her impeccably handwritten correspondence to friends, family and strangers. It is impossible not to connect deeply with her flawed and quirky character as we learn about her successful professional life and the challenges that career placed on her as a mother, wife and friend. Her struggles as an aging woman with strong opinions, dealing with loss and self doubt help us to recognize that there are consequences for our actions and how it impacts the other people in our lives. This book is full of emotion that will make you tear up and sharp insights that you will want to remember. I loved every word in this book and congratulate the extremely talented author.

Thank you NetGalley and Crown Publishing for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.