#13 [2026/CBR18] The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

I've always enjoyed a good epistolary novel, and The Correspondent (2025) by Virginia Evans is no different. I saw The Correspondent on a number of year-end, best-of lists and decided to give it a try. I figured an old lady writing a bunch of letters would be a slow, contemplative novel. I was wrong. Although The Correspondent was contemplative, the story was surprisingly compelling. I had a hard time putting this book down.

The Correspondent begins with 73-year-old Sybil Van Antwerp writing to her brother, who lives in France. It is 2012 and Sybil is divorced, a retired lawyer and law clerk, who has two children and lives alone in Annapolis, Maryland. From these letters, we slowly learn about Sybil's current life as well as her past.

Part of what made this book so readable is that each letter is a little mystery: who is writing to Sybil, how do they know her, what is their relationship, and what is currently happening in their lives. It turns out that Sybil had a pretty interesting life. And even though she is older and stuck in her ways, it doesn't mean she can't continue to change and grow. Spoilers follow.

Reading Sybil's letters, we get to see her relationships to all the people around her, as well as glimpses of her stubborn, smart, practical personality. She has a strained relationship with her daughter, a sweet understanding with the troubled son of a fellow, former law clerk, an antagonistic relationship with a busybody in her local Gardening club, and some important longstanding friendships where they often talk about the books they are reading. In addition to these relationships, we see Sybil create new, delightful friendships with her next door neighbor, a particular customer service representative, and a college professor of poetry. In what are often funnier parts of the novel, Sybil also writes to famous writers that she's enjoyed. These include Kazuo Ishiguro (where Sybil compares herself to the butler from Remains of the Day) and Diana Gabaldon after Sybil read Outlander for the first time.

As I continued to read the book, I also learned more about Sybil's past. We learn that Sybil had three children, but her son died when he was a child. The grief and guilt are still very hard on her. It was this death that led to the unraveling of her marriage. We also learn that Sybil was very smart, and she went to law school before working in private practice. Sybil was so close with her law partner that she became his law clerk when he became a judge (as women were not nominated for judgeships back then). Some of her legal past comes back to haunt her as well, so it is all relevant.

I really enjoyed reading this book. Sybil was an interesting, likable, but complex character. It was intriguing to see how she thought about life as she got closer to the end of her life. In addition, there was so much going on. It was all mixed together and told through the letters in a way that was both funny and sad.

However, I got a little distracted when Sybil talked about her legal education. If Sybil was 73 in 2012, and she went to law school after being a paralegal for a few years after college, she probably went to law school no later than 1965. Although the University of Virginia School of Law started allowing women in 1920, there were very few women until the late 1960's, and women weren't allowed into the University of Virginia undergraduate school until 1970. Sybil blithely mentions that she was a paralegal and then went to law school, but there was nothing in the book about her being one of the only women in the entire school. It must have been remarkable at the time, and I can't imagine Sybil would not at least mention how few women there were. Yes, she is a tough woman who understands sexism, but for readers not aware of that history, Sybil gives the impression that a legal education for women in the early 1960's was a normal thing. 

The other part that didn't quite ring true was the man who was unhappy with Sybil because she was involved in the sentencing of his father. I can see how Sybil felt guilty if she knew she could have influenced the judge into something more just. But families of the accused can't have ex parte communications with the judge, so did the mother go to the judge's offices somehow knowing that Sybil could influence the judge? And everything the mother told Sybil is exactly the kind of thing that should be brought up in a sentencing hearing. This whole plot line felt a little stretched, although it added another layer of mystery and tension while reading the book.

Despite the couple of legal plot points that rubbed me the wrong way, I really enjoyed this book. It was sweet, nostalgic, thoughtful, and moving. I found it difficult to put down, and so far it is my favorite book of the year.