I liked this book but I don’t think it was as good as other Candlish reads. Too many characters at once and, what I felt, was an underlying political message, I don’t think this book packed the punch I was expecting.
It took me a while to get into this story. The first few chapters introduce new characters each time which left me rather confused about the different identities. Unfortunately, I could never quite shake this off for the rest of the read, particularly confusing the two wives and their children. I wished the writer had established the characters more before adding different ones to the mix. If that had been the case, I think I would have enjoyed watching them more.
However, undeniably, these are not likeable characters in the slightest. All of them have an air of self-entitlement that rankled with me. Selfishness abounds and I don’t think the locals were much better either. I cringed when watching scenes with Beattie and disliked the example that the parents set: they are hardly ideal role models and are all considerably flawed. In contrast, the locals are all presented as incredibly angry and gunning for a fight. This is shown through their attitude towards the holiday makers who have bought second homes in Pine Ridge. The clash between two types of people with very different backgrounds simmers over the story, reaching a disturbing climax.
At times I really engaged with the narrative. The fact that the story opens with a summerhouse falling into the sea was really shocking and I loved how Candlish only gives slight clues about this story. Instead, readers are taken back several weeks so we see how events build up to this grand finale. This dual timeline aspect meant readers can make some informed judgements about the present narrative, helping to unravel why a summerhouse has ended up in the sea.
The idea of having a second home dominates the narrative. The locals are sick of these tourists swanning in each summer and then leaving their second homes empty for most of the year, whilst they are struggling to find even a rental property. The injustice of this is reinforced when there is news that immigrants are also to be housed nearby, making the protest group – Not Just For August – even more angered. In my opinion, this felt too close to reality because these topics are in the news so much, that it felt like Candlish was critiquing these current affairs. Personally, I would have preferred less of a reflection of daily life; I wanted a bit more escapism to the coast.
Definitely a slow burner, this a complex plot that has a range of characters. None of them are likeable but with the shocking opening, I was definitely hooked. It took me a while to settle into the story and I do think the ending was quite prolonged however, it was a mystery that I wanted to solve and I was really keen to see all the characters have some sort of comeuppance for their actions.
With thanks to HQ and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.