THE HIDING PLACES by KATHERINE WEBB

THE HIDING PLACES

BY KATHERINE WEBB

THE BLURB:-

A compelling tale of murder and deceit with a twist you didn't see coming.

One hot summer in 1922.

A house at the heart of the village.

A crime that will shock the community.

A man accused and two women with everything to lose.

When Donny Cartwright is accused of murder, his sister Pudding is determined to discover the identity of the real killer.

Together with newcomer, Irene, she begins to uncover the truth- a secret that has been buried for years. 

But when the happen upon a strange object, hidden in the past, they realise it will change everything...

THE REALITY:-

I loved the blurb above the title at the front, which read:- 'A secret so deep, only a liar can uncover it...'   Oooooh, the intrigue!  I've read Katherine Webb's novels before and some I loved- The Unseen is still in my collection and I enjoyed The Misbegotten, although it was confusing in places.  The Legacy and A Half Forgotten Song were good, but they didn't move me.  What I do like about this writer's work is that all of her novels are very different to each other in terms of place and setting which, to me, exemplifies a great writer with a fantastic head for ideas, and also someone who's executed her research well.

I enjoyed the olde-England bucolic setting of this book, where dyed-in-the-bone country beliefs, witchery and old wives' tales are a way of tradition.  You kind of get the feeling that not much has changed in these places over the years, including even nowadays, with modern manufacturing and farming methods in place.  Some things in life such as the sun rising and setting, the harvest and the animals needing feeding (and the humans!) are hard and fast, inexorable facts.  It is good and a kind of reminder of what's important; that however successful we might become (or not) or whatever goes on in our lives then the world doesn't stop turning and tomorrow is just another day.

There is a very clever- SPOILER ALERT- twist to this tale in that we realise (quite far into the story) that there are, in fact, two unsolved murders.  There are three main female characters- Irene, Pudding and Clemmie- and we also realise that Clemmie's story is actually set- EVEN BIGGER SPOILER ALERT!- at the time of the first murder, fifty years ago.  This is very cleverly done (see what I mean about country life changing little over the years) and totally and utterly seamless.  The writer achieves this by using ambiguous names in both time frames: for instance, there are two characters called Alistair Hadleigh (father and son) and the head of the Tanner household is always known simply as 'Tanner'.  Wow!  This was such a good twist that I'm tempted to read the book again just to see if there's any inkling of some separation of the twin time frames, some hint that I may have missed- but I bet there isn't.

There was a real mix of characters here- some likeable and some loathsome.  I couldn't help but like Irene.  What happened to her in London at the hand of her arsehole, spineless, pussy-whipped (by Serena, his wife) lover, Fin, was truly horrid, and I'm glad she started to find the beginnings of happiness away from her city surroundings and her distant, not-especially-loving or forgiving mother.  Making Clemmie a mute added a different dimension to the tale, as did making Donny war damaged.  This story picks up pace towards the end, where we learn the truth about the two murders.  We have one confession (which I'm not going to tell you about) and one discovery which I'm also not going to tell you about.  But I will say that I had this person down as a killer early on...

A fantastic read by a very clever novelist.  

MISS ELAINEOUS RE-VISITS ELTHAM PALACE... AND GETS TO SEE MAH-JONGG!

When my SuperDean said he fancied a day out, my first thought was Kew Gardens.  After all, it's been a year since I was last there (two years for him) and the Temperate House is now re-open.

BUT...... the place involves a hell of a lot of walking (I beg to differ with travel sites that say it can be traversed in 2-3 hours, when 4-5 hours is more like it) and that's not always a pleasure in 25 degrees of heat.  Also, hothouses are hardly going to offer a welcome respite and the Pagoda is still closed for refurbishment.

So, I knocked that idea on the head.

'Eltham Palace?' I suggested.  It's our side of London, can be seen in 2 hours and sightseeing is mostly indoors but with a garden that is a pleasure on a clement day.  I know I only visited (alone) a few weeks ago but I adored the place, PLUS I missed seeing the cage of Mah-Jongg, Virginia Courtauld's pet lemur.

So, Eltham Palace it was.

Here are the things I missed on my previous visit.

This little triangular garden once served as the kitchen garden...

Looking over to the Rock Garden...

The little rockery cascade was worth a couple of photos...

The Loggia.  The reliefs depict some of the interests of Stephen and Virginia Courtauld, which include: gardening, sports, sailing and mountaineering...

My SuperDean heading towards the Pergola...

The supporting stone columns were salvaged from the Bank of England in the 1930s and are probably late 18th century.

Lovely wisteria covers the Pergola...

Next to the heart of the Pergola lies a mulberry tree, which grows at an interesting angle from the ground.  From my close viewpoint I couldn't fit it all onto my camera- so I photographed it in two parts!

We walked around the corner and saw the Great Hall from this end...

There are tables and chairs dotted about throughout the grounds, so we enjoyed the shade of a big tree for a little while...

We took the stairs down to the waterside.  The fountain looked a bit spindly!

Gorgeous waterlilies (but no frogs!)

As we walked away, towards the main entrance of the house, I took a photo of this rather cute door right near the north stone bridge...

And now we come to Mah-Jongg.  He was known as Jonggy (pronounced 'Johnny') and was Virginia Courtauld's ring-tailed lemur.  Stephen purchased him as a wedding present to his wife, in 1923, and he lived until 1938.

He was the world's most spoiled lemur and he certainly got lucky the day Stephen bought him from Harrods.  He got to accompany the Courtaulds not only throughout their changes of residence, but also on their travels.

The following three pictures have been lifted from the Eltham Palace tourist guidebook.

Here is a painting of Stephen and Virginia Courtauld striking an elegant pose with their pet...

Inside his centrally heated cage at Eltham...

This was taken on the Courtauld's yacht, where Jonggy had his own deckchair.  And what a poser he is!  I mean, really!!!

I remember walking past his cage last time but its presence, for some reason, didn't grab me.  It was surrounded by children, as it was half term, and I remember seeing a reference note mentioning mah-jongg (which I know is a Chinese game) and getting the most cursory glimpses of a stuffed animal, but I assumed it was the nursery and decided to do that part later.  At the time, I didn't know that the Courtaulds were childless and I simply forgot about the cage.

The walls of Jonggy's cage are decorated with Madagascan bamboo forest scenes, to make him feel at home...

There is a trapdoor in the corner with a bamboo ladder leading from it, which allowed him to access the ground floor during the day...

The ladder comes down just behind the Flower Room.  Again, I totally missed this the last time I was here and had to search for it this time as it's not immediately obvious.

We were given a lovely talk about the history of the palace in the Great Hall.  Jonggy is depicted on the ceiling here.  It's a actually a wood carving, made to look like stone, and he is the centrepiece.

I tried to crop the photo, to show you a close-up...

It's not great, so here's a picture of a picture held by David (the guide giving the talk).

Mah-Jongg is also featured in this mural down in the basement.  God, he must have been sooooo loved!  I don't blame the Courtaulds- he was supremely cute...

...but he was known to take a chunk out of people to whom he took a dislike.  Here is a lemur care kit, which features iodine for treating bites...

After my last visit, I had to order my own Jonggy.  This little fella came from eBay...

I also thought I'd quite like a red dress similar in style to Virginia's in the photo.  I ordered this from eBay and it cost me a tenner (I don't spend a fortune on clothing- I know how much these rags cost to make, thank you very much).  I'm not sure if it's going to suit me but, if it doesn't, then I will put it under the sewing machine and alter it until it does!

Lets complete this blog with a couple of random, interesting photos.

And of course, I have to be lavatorial (literally!)  

I didn't spot it before, but there's a big hole in this toilet.  I remember, many moons ago, visiting a tacky nightclub in Bognor Regis.  I had a couple of drinks, went to the loo and couldn't help but notice my feet getting wet.  It was only when I got up and flushed that water belched out in a gush, and I spotted a sizeable hole like this in the front of the bog.  Urgh!  Thank God I hadn't needed a number two!

Finally, the view from outside, looking over at London.  You can just about make out the Shard.

Ta ta for now.

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MISS ELAINEOUS VISITS THE OLD ROYAL NAVAL COLLEGE...

So, there was me recommending the Old Royal Naval College to my tourist cousins... when I hadn't even been there myself!  The audacity of it!  That was soon remedied by a journey into Greenwich, which is not too difficult to reach from my east London home.

The current buildings sit on the site of what was once Greenwich Palace; the favourite dwelling of both Henry VIII (r.1509-1547) and his daughter, Elizabeth I (r.1558-1603).

Originally Bella Court, a manor house situated here in the 1420s, it was Henry VII who commissioned  a new royal palace to be built here in the 1490s.

In 1649, royal possessions were removed from the site by order of Oliver Cromwell and demolition of the palace began in 1662.

The Royal Hospital was designed by Christopher Wren, its purpose being to accommodate veterans of the Royal Navy who had grown old or disabled in the service of their country.  Funding for the project was erratic and the building, on the former palace site, took place in four main phases between 1696 and 1751.  The first Greenwich pensioners arrived in 1705.  The popularity of 'out-pensions' that enabled the pensioners to live independently contributed to a decline in hospital numbers, and the last pensioners left the hospital in 1869.

The Royal Naval College took over the site and opened here in 1873 with the purpose of training officers of every rank above midshipman.  Many thousands of men and women undertook training here until 1998,when the training of Royal Navy, Royal Air Force and Army officers was merged in a purpose-built building at Shrivenham.  The college then became known by its present moniker.

I always get off the Docklands train one stop early, so that I can walk through the Greenwich Foot Tunnel.

Here is the striking view of the ORNC from the north side of the water...

I walked down the stairs but looked back at the north lift...

The tunnel was opened in 1902 and was nice and peaceful when I started my walk- but that silence was soon shattered by a group of students with loud voices coming down the stairs after me.  This tunnel doesn't half create an echo effect!

It's always lovely and cool down here, even on clammy days like the one when I visited Greenwich.

The no cycling rule doesn't always get adhered to...

Clearly climbing...

South lift...

The ORNC visitor centre is interesting and I didn't linger, but made a note to pop into the Old Brewery pub and restaurant on my next visit.  Originally created to supply the sailors at the Royal Hospital their daily allowance of 'small' (weak) beer, there has been a brewhouse on the site since 1717.

My first view from the side of the ORNC...

The fountain.  I always love a water feature!

Most of the buildings are given over to the University of Greenwich, although you can visit the central courts: named after King William, Queen Mary and Queen Anne.  I also stuck my nose into a couple of classrooms.

The Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance occupies the only other building (you could hear the music floating through the windows) and here is a photo of the King Charles Court at the centre...

I took some outdoor photos as the views are worth a Kodak moment or two.  Here is the Water Gate.  Visitors in the 19th century were encouraged to arrive by river so that they could enjoy the magnificence of the buildings from this classical viewpoint.  I'm looking the other way!

London Docklands view...

The O2 (formerly the wacky, mad Millennium Dome, which I visited in 2000) and, if you peer, you can see the cable cars to the right of the photo.  I've went on these about a year ago. 

I stepped waaaaay back and took this building and Docklands shot...

The Queens House- built for Anne of Denmark, wife of James I- is the only part of Greenwich Palace which survives above ground today. 

It's worth a visit, if only for its wonderful Tulip Stairs...

The Chapel from the outside...

Photography wasn't allowed in the Chapel of St. Peter and St. Paul, even without a flash.  Words cannot express how much I HATE venues who get too precious about such things.  Grrrr!

Here is a PDF of the inside.

Outside view of the Painted Hall...

The Painted Hall ceiling is in its final stages of refurbishment.  Here's a PDF of what I would have seen from the floor if that hadn't been so...

Here's all I could see from the floor at the entrance point...

There is a room called the Nelson Room which is, apparently (according to Google), 'Off the Painted Hall...' 

It was formerly the Hospital's Records Room and it's where Nelson's body was prepared after it was brought back from the Battle of Trafalgar but before he lay in state in the Painted Hall.  Could I find the entrance to this room?  Could I hell!  On walking into the King William Court, staff told me that the one door I'd just left was the only accessible door, and maybe it's not possible to visit this room at the moment, due to the ongoing refurbishment works. 

Here's a PDF of a statue of the man himself, which presides over the small exhibition in this room...

By now, this place was starting to underwhelm- with buildings now given over to education, a boarded up ceiling, the restriction of photography in the chapel and a skittle alley only accessible via a guided tour (I prefer to do things at my own pace)- I was about to call it a day.

But then I booked myself onto a Painted Ceiling tour, where you get to walk up 67 steps and stand two metres underneath the ceiling, instead of the sixty feet away you would be from the ground.  At a tenner per person, the tour lasted well over an hour and I thought it was good value for money.  Our tour guide was very informative and enthusiastic and you got to see the restorers/ artists at work.

Before you ascend, you get to see the upper hall ceiling.  This part must have been completed, as it looked very fresh to me.

On the ceiling is Queen Anne and her husband.  She's viewed as 'the past' as she died with no surviving heirs...

On the end wall are Georges I and II with the latter's son, Prince Frederick.  With three generations of heirs, they are viewed as 'the future' of the monarchy; as indeed they were.

The two side paintings are, like the end wall painting, in the tromp l'oeil style, meaning 'to deceive the eye'.  These paintings create an illusion of an object or scene as there are no parts of the painting (such as the frame) that are in relief.

I took this collective view after descending...

The Painted Hall was painted by relatively unknown artist James Thornhill, onto a prepared plaster base of lime, sand plaster and animal hair.  The work was carried out in two stages between 1708 and 1727.  The lower hall ceiling is an allegory- a picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one. 

It is named The Triumph of Peace and Liberty Over Tyranny.

Here are some of my favourite parts.

This is Astronomer Royal John Flamsteed predicting an eclipse.  There is the signature of a restorer written onto this part!  Today's restorers have found over thirty signatures on the work- and no doubt added their own notifications!

This picture is flipped sideways, so that you can see the painting better.

Close-up of the details...

Goddess Diana is depicted, along with all the zodiac signs...

King William III and Queen Mary II.  Mary had a restorer's graffiti across her breast!

John Worley was an unruly pensioner who was punished for drunkenness and disruptive behaviour, including inviting women back to his quarters.  He lived to the age of 96, so maybe this lifestyle should be recommended to all!

This partially underground tunnel runs between the Chapel and the Painted Hall and was originally a makeshift mortuary.  It was converted into the Skittle Alley in 1864 and was intended to help relieve the boredom of the pensioners.

It is only accessible via a guided tour.  But, it's right near the toilets... and the door wasn't locked... so nosey parkers like myself just HAVE to enter and take photographs, don't they?!

Stored skittles...

It was the Painted Hall ceiling tour and the chance to have a sneaky, illegal look at the Skittle Alley that turned a day that threatened to be a damp squib around.

Once the restored ceiling is unveiled, I shall return for a good butcher's

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