ONE LAST DANCE by JUDITH LENNOX

ONE LAST DANCE

BY JUDITH LENNOX

THE BLURB:-

As the twentieth century draws to a close, Esme Reddaway knows that she must uncover the truth. A truth that began during the First World War when Devlin Reddaway fell passionately in love with Esme's elder sister Camilla, and promised to rebuild his ancestral home, Rosindell, for her.

But the war changes everything and Devlin returns to England to find that Camilla is engaged to someone else. Angry and vengeful, he marries Esme, who has been secretly in love with him for years.

Esme tries to win Devlin's heart by reviving the annual summer dance. But as the years pass she fears that Rosindell has a malign influence on those who live there, and the revelation of a shocking secret on the night of the dance tears her life apart. Decades later, it is she who must lay the ghosts of Rosindell to rest.

THE REALITY:-

Another great read from the pen of Judith Lennox. I've read most of her books and whilst I don't think this is her best novel, it's certainly not her worst- but then again, she's never written anything that could be described as “rubbish!”

Her style appears to have changed- or maybe evolved would be the better term, as all writers grow and develop over time. She uses the present tense in certain parts of the novel, which some readers have criticized. I personally think that, in the broader sense of the book, it works.

She uses the theme of two sisters becoming involved with the same man. I've seen this thread used before in her novels but in reverse, with a main female character having a close friendship with two brothers both in Written On Glass and, to a lesser extent, in The Shadow Child. I guess that if you are a successful writer who has written loads of books, then you are going to end up repeating some circumstances, especially if those circumstances are close to your heart or seem to “work” for you.

I wonder if the writer was trying to evoke Rebecca-esque feelings, as this novel was set in The Devon countryside (I've never been to Devon- note to self, make the time to holiday in both Devon and Cornwall) and Rosindell Hall ended up being set alight and almost destroyed in a blaze. Whether yes or no, the ghostly Rosindell and its location were very atmospheric and interesting.

There were many characters in this novel and sometimes too many were introduced at once, making the story confusing. I liked the slutty (and heartless) Camilla- every book needs a villain, and it's good to find a female version of one! I could also associate with the almost Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Zoe, with her need for solitude and order and her lack of spontaneity and hate of disorganization. Some of us like to work out exactly what we will be doing at the beginning of each day and don't like changes to routine, and feel threatened by the concept of adventure, so there!

The “secret” part of the story was all too predictable, as was the final ending and revelation of truth. But, all in all, a fantastic and very highly recommended read.

BAY OF SECRETS by ROSANNA LEY

BAY OF SECRETS

BY ROSANNA LEY

THE BLURB:-

Set between England and the Spanish Canary Islands, three women discover a surprising truth about their shared pasts.

Spain, 1939

Following the wishes of her parents to keep her safe during the war, Julia is forced to enter a convent in Barcelona. Looking for a way to maintain her links to the outside world, she volunteers to help in a maternity clinic. But worrying adoption practices at the clinic force Sister Julia to decide how far she will go to help those placed in her care.

England, 2011

Six months after her parents' shocking death, thirty-four-year-old journalist and jazz enthusiast Ruby Rae has finally found the strength to pack away their possessions and sell the family home. But as she does so, she unearths a devastating secret her parents, Vivien and Tom, had kept from her all her life.

THE REALITY:-

“Three women discover a surprising truth about their shared pasts...” says the blurb. Well, actually no, I read the story and it's two women and one man who discover a surprising truth about their shared pasts... Could those that write the blurb at the back of a novel kindly read the story first, or otherwise leave it to the author? Please and thank you.

This was a wonderful story that was really heartfelt and touching, starting with the tried and tested formula of one of the characters finding a shoe box containing mysterious things pertaining to her parents. It slipped between Ruby's current, modern-day life and Sister Julia's nicely researched historical life as a nun with superb and page-turning ease, continuing pleasantly when the two collided.

All the characters were definitely there for a reason- not superfluous fluff- making this a compact story and an great read. The descriptions of West Dorset and Fuerteventura were so lifelike it made me want to go and visit both of 'em, right now! This novel dealt with the situation of “delayed registration” on a birth certificate- this was not something I have ever come across before and, as I always like to learn new things and keep improving myself constantly, was a very good subject springboard for a story.

My only dislike- and it's a BIG one- is that the story was not tied up properly. If you are going to have a character find out that they're adopted, and go off in search of their birth mother, then at least let them get to actually find and meet her at the end, otherwise the book ends up being unfinished.

Rant over. This novel is still worthy of a read and was a bit of a gem, it's just a shame about the disappointing lack of a real ending.

THE SUMMER GUEST by EMMA HANNIGAN

THE SUMMER GUEST

BY EMMA HANNIGAN

THE BLURB:-

Lexie and her husband Sam have spent years lovingly restoring No. 3 Cashel Square to its former glory. So imagine Lexie's delight when a stranger knocks at the door, asking to see the house she was born in over sixty years ago.

Kathleen is visiting from America, longing to see her childhood home... and longing for distraction from the grief of losing her husband.

And as Lexie and Sam battle over whether or not to have a baby and Kathleen struggles with her loss, the two women realise their unexpected friendship will touch them in ways neither could have imagined.

In Caracove, there's more than a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

THE REALITY:-

A truly lovely story at a time when I needed a truly lovely story and a bit of an uplift! After reading the blurb, I did worry that I'd stepped into the genre of chick lit, but this wasn't sarcastic chick lit that tries to be clever and ironic but ends up being painful (urgh!) This was more than that- a great story, told very well.

As most of the main characters are around my age group, it was easy to associate with the issues that they're dealing with. I think it's always important to create good, descriptive scenes, so that readers can envisage where exactly things are taking place, and the writer does this well with her detailed depictions of Lexie's house and the area of Dublin she lives in, and also the surrounding part of Ireland. It helps that I've been to both Dublin and Howth- it's nice to read novels set in places you've been to.

The lives of the characters are all clearly depicted, along with their shortcomings, issues and angsts. Kathleen's entry into the story offers a totally new perspective and though at first Amelie's teenage diary writings got on my nerves, I do think they were important for building her character, and also as an added contrast in terms of writing style.

The supernatural appearance of rainbows, albeit in unexpected ways, add a sense of other worldliness and make us question whether there is some kind of afterlife, and whether the dead come back to visit the living one way or another. I personally think they do!

Although there is sadness in the story, things do kind of work themselves out to a natural conclusion and the story finishes all wrapped up. Difficult to put down, and a truly magical read.

THE STORY OF YOU by JULIE MYERSON

THE STORY OF YOU

BY JULIE MYERSON

THE BLURB:-

A freezing room in a student house, a sagging mattress on the floor, and two people, one nineteen, the other twenty, kissing passionately.   All night.   It is to this terrible scene that, twenty years later, Rosy returns obsessively.  She has just lost a child in a terrible, careless accident and her partner has taken her to Paris to forget about things, to start again.

It has snowed in the night and, waking at dawn, Rosy goes for a walk.   At the hotel desk there's a note for her: 'I'm waiting for you X.'  And he is, sitting in the corner of a cafe she enters almost at random.  They talk.  He touches her.  She turns away and when she looks again he has gone.

Was he there?  Had she dreamed him?   And why, when he emails her out of the blue two days later, does he write as though they haven't met for twenty years?

THE REALITY:-

Years ago, I read Sleepwalking by Julie Myerson. My partner at the time liked the column she wrote for one of the broadsheets (which I don't know, the News Of The World was always more my cup of tea!) He subsequently bought her first novel. Sleepwalking tells the tale of a pregnant woman who embarks on a very strange affair after finding out that her disturbed father has committed suicide. It was compelling reading, so I thought I'd give this book a go.

Hmm. Part of me wishes I hadn't. “Written in stark, simple prose,” one review on the cover said, which was really an analogy for the writer having used no speech marks. Whilst I understand the need to be artistic, I do think the words would have had more of an impact had they been properly punctuated. This style really grated, and made it a mission for me to finish the novel.

But finish it I did. The subject matter is truly awful- Rosy/Nicole struggles to come to terms with the loss of her baby following an accident and (as in Sleepwalking) embarks on an affair, in this case with a guy she knew as a student. In this novel, she recalls kissing him all night long, with a pearl from a broken necklace in her mouth. I remember something similar from Sleepwalking, so maybe the author experienced this for real.

It didn't take me long to work out that Rosy/ Nicole's lover was actually dead, so if this was meant to be a punchline of great discovery near the end then it was a bit lost on me! The sections detailing baby Mary's accident were really harrowing and brought tears to me eyes. Ditto parts where Mary revisits her mother and also where her mother's feelings for her are described in details of sounds and smells. Very moving and extremely heartbreaking.

I did start to wonder if this was maybe a book that I didn't need to read, and it was DEFINITELY the worst I've ever read in terms of writing style.  An upsetting and unsettling novel.

SOME SUNNY DAY by HELEN CAREY

SOME SUNNY DAY

BY HELEN CAREY

THE BLURB:-

It is 1940 and as the bombs begin to fall on London the women of Lavender Road find themselves struggling to carry on with their lives in the midst of the Blitz. Shy Katy Parsons enrols as a nurse, but finds the rigours of hospital life, and the pressures of a secret love, almost impossible to bear.

Away on tour with ENSA, Jen Carter finds herself unexpectedly homesick- while her mother prefers to face the terror of the burning streets, rather than suffer her husbands brutality at home. And as Pam Nelson longs for a baby to breathe life into her flagging marriage, eighteen-year-old Louise Rutherford faces pregnancy with an illegitimate child.

Some Sunny Day depicts the courage, the emotion and the defiant laughter of war-torn London as the residents of Lavender Road face up to the hardships and dangers of the Blitz.

THE REALITY:-

I know I told myself that I wouldn't be reading another war novel just yet, as the previous ones I'd recently read were too harrowing (as they should be) and I was in need of a little light relief. But Some Sunny Day was in the last load of books I bought from the charity shop and, as a native Londoner, I thought it would be good to read a home-based war story. I wasn't wrong- this was a real tale of courage and community.

So many people who were alive during the war say that those days were “the best of our lives.” I always had to question why and really, any sane person would- what on earth is so great about rationing, making-do and mending by force rather than by choice, the worry regarding loved ones who'd been called up to fight and having to take constant shelter from the risk of having bombs dropped onto your head?  But the answer that comes back always states that the sense of “we're all in this together,” the pulling together of communities, the making of friends you otherwise would not make and the need to live each day to the full as it could be your last, made for real camaraderie and a sense of belonging. The scenes depicting London during the Blitz and the comparisons with country life for evacuees really came to life, with nicely researched historical realities thrown in for a good measure.

This was a lovely, feel good saga with great, likeable yet flawed characters, who were beautifully depicted and very human. Love and romance and defiance over adversity shone through and it was good to see so many happy endings muddled in with the tragedies. It was also super the the bad eggs got their come-uppance.  A very pleasant read.

ZEBRA PRINT SHOES....

ZEBRA PRINT SHOES

Here's a picture of these little zebra beauties, bought from Barratts some years ago.  The white bits have started to turn yellow with age, and the back has stretched a bit, so I will only be able to wear them again if I stick a heel grip in the back.

This seemed like a very good excuse to buy another pair, and here they are, only £2.99 from Ebay!

But when I tried them on, although they pinched around the peeptoe, they seemed really wide.  A close look at the bottom reveals that they are a triple E fitting.  Whilst my feet certainly are not slim, the are not pates o' meat either, and these shoes are very roomy and are also going to be slipping around the heel after a few wears.

Why, oh why, can't sellers state these things clearly, when advertising their wares????

THE AMAZING MR BLUNDEN

THE AMAZING MR BLUNDEN

(and the discovery of said film...)

A VERY STRANGE, OBSESSIVE TALE!

I have very vivid memories of my childhood, and one of the most memorable is sitting at my new desk watching a film on television with my father. It was somewhere between Christmas and New Year and it was afternoon, as I can remember the curtains being open and it gradually getting darker, such is the shortness of the days at this time of year. I was pretty certain it was 1977, as I'm sure that's the year I received my little red desk as a present. I would have been six.

Me at Christmas, age 6, sitting at my little red desk.

I remember snitches of the film:- there was a Victorian street scene with children dancing around a street maypole, and I had it in my head that this was taking place in London.

There was a Victorian room, and in the room was a big blue and white vase (how I knew that the vase was blue I do not know- instinct, perhaps? You have to understand that we only had a black-and-white television at the time, the kind my father had to hit with his slipper, on occasion, to get a decent picture!). (An update- after watching the film again, I've realised that the blue vase gets a mention towards the end...)

Later on you see this very same room on fire, with a man riding from the scene on horseback (although I have since realized that he's riding towards the burning house, not away from- it's amazing what information the mind stores).

You see the fire and horse scene replayed later in the film, in a flashback.

As a little girl, I loved my colouring-in, and had received a colouring book that Christmas. On one of the pages was a patterned vase that was similar in shape to the one in the film, so I duly crayoned it blue.

My memory didn't store the name of the film, nor any of its principal actors, so I didn't know how to find out more about it, and it bugged me BIG time, right through into adulthood.

This is one of the scenes that ABSOLUTELY HAUNTED me!

I questioned my parents about films with fire scenes in them.

'Jane Eyre?' said my mother. No, I know Jane Eyre, and there was no indication of a mad woman living in the attic.

'Great Expectations?' said my father, but no. There was only a fire, not a person being set on fire.

'Gone With The Wind?' said my mother. Although I was sure the street scene was set in London, I saw no reason to suspect that they didn't have street maypoles in the USA.  I duly watched the film, and it was definitely not it.

God bless the internet!

A few years back I googled in “Christmas programmes shown on television” for 1977, 1978 and 1979 ( I wasn't 100% sure about the year). I wrote down some of the names that appeared. Although I was sure it wasn't correct, I duly sat through three hours of War And Peace, in my quest for recognition. No, It definitely wasn't that film.

I recently discovered a Radio Times website dedicated to every programme the BBC had shown, EVER! Although my memory vaguely recalled advert breaks, I had a look through.

Maybe it was Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy? I watched the 1970s version, thinking that I'd struck lucky, but no.  This film was set in modern London, and people certainly didn't dance around street maypoles then. I thought it might have been an episode of The Old Curiosity Shop, as the London scenes definitely had a Dickensian feel about them, but there was no footage of the 1970s version available online and anyway, the programme had been televised too late in the afternoon to coincide with my memory clock.

As it was now Christmas, I googled the 100 best Christmas films ever, and gave It's A Wonderful Life a go, thinking that could be it. But no, this wasn't it and I found this film, sadly, very disappointing.

Only days ago I found a TV Times website which listed Christmas programmes, and duly wrote down a few names. I googled images for a few of the films I'd listed, with no joy.

I then typed in The Amazing Mr. Blunden, and immediately my heart began to race- images showed Victorian children and a fire! And Wikipedia mentioned that the film began in Camden Town, and was filmed in flashback sequence! The whole film was available via YouTube, and within the first five minutes I knew that I'd hit the jackpot. I have since ordered the film on DVD.

Described as a much-loved classic, the film stars the late, great Diana Dors (dressed down to look rancid) as the reprehensible Mrs. Wickens, and also a young Lynne Frederick (she later married Peter Sellers and, incidentally, shared the same birthday as me).  Those of you that like real ghost/ mystery stories with a twist of humour will love this, and I couldn't recommend this film more, for adults as well as kids.

But this was most odd- I'd never heard of The Amazing Mr. Blunden, or even seen it advertised, either as a trailer or listed in a TV guide, even though it's apparently one of those films that gets wheeled out over Christmas and Easter.

It is now up there with my list of favourites/ life-changing-movies, whatever you want to call it. And a thirty-seven year old mystery has finally been solved!

And that concludes this strange, obsessive tale!