Like most people in the UK – I’ve grown up with Lorraine Kelly ever present on my TV screen – the definition of a National Treasure! So when I heard she’d written her first novel, I was delighted to be granted an advance review copy by Net Galley. If you need to read the blurb – rather than just read a book because you love the author – here it is:
“Once the tide turns, you can’t hold it back…
When Evie’s father falls desperately ill, she finally returns to the family home on Orkney and the wild landscape she left as a teenager, swearing never to return. Not everyone is happy at her arrival, particularly her estranged sister Liv, their relationship broken after a childhood trauma.
As Evie clears out her father’s neglected house to prepare it for sale, lonely Evie finds herself drawn to a group of cold-water swimmers led by her old friend Freya, who find calmness beneath the waves. Together they help Evie face up to the mistakes in her past, unlocking a treasure of truths that will reverberate through the community, and shake her family to its core.”
The book follows three different time lines:
The 1970s when Evie’s parents are meeting for the first time and starting their relationship;
2004 when Evie leaves Orkney after an unknown trauma; and
the present day when Evie returns to her family home after finding out her father is seriously ill.
Each of the individual timelines has a storyline in its own right – and it was lovely seeing them unwind and how they impacted on each other.
Getting to know Evie and the supporting cast of characters was great – and the descriptions of Orkney and the different settings there was really evocative. It sounds stunning.
Whilst the book is primarily is a family drama – it does touch on other topics such as coercive control, discrimination faced by trans people, cancer and accidental death – so there is definite light and shade.
I have to say that there were some grammatical errors and words missing or repeated in sentences – but I suspect those will be dealt with before the book is actually published (and I am a total pedant!) as this was an advanced review copy.
Overall I would say the book is exactly what you’d expect from Lorraine Kelly – feel good, clever, warm, community spirited, but with enough spice and cheekiness to be interesting! A warm hug of a book.
Many thanks to the publisher and Net Galley for my ARC. It came out on 15 February 2024 – so you can buy it now.
This Price is Usually Right 