Description
Book SynopsisHartlepool Hall has been in Ed''s family for generations - but is that about to change, and who is the mysterious Lady Alice?
''A deliciously dark comedy about class, snobbery and a vanishing way of life'' GOOD HOUSEKEEPING
''Gloriously enjoyable'' DAILY MAIL
''Excellent'' METRO
Ed Hartlepool has been living in self-imposed exile for five years, but with a settlement regarding his inheritance looming, he must return to his ancestral seat, Hartlepool Hall. On his return, he discovers that his father has left him, along with the house, a seven million pound tax bill, two massive overdrafts, an 80-year-old butler, and a vast country estate that is creaking at the seams. Not only that, but there is a strange woman in residence - Lady Alice - who seems to have made herself very much at home.
With the debts mounting, it seems that Ed''s only recourse is to turn to his friend Annabel''s new boyfriend, a property developer who
Trade Review
It's a novel that should enhance his reputation for excellent, ingenious writing * METRO *
More intriguing is the skein of darkness that, in common with much of Torday's fiction, runs discretely through the story - one sequence is sufficiently macabre as to recall the work of a young McEwan * LITERARY REVIEW *
It grabs you right from page one and is another great read from the author of SALMON FISHING IN THE YEMEN * ESSENTIALS *
A novel that's quirky, funny, moving and peopled with superbly drawn characters * CHOICE *
A deliciously dark comedy about class, snobbery and a vanishing way of life * GOOD HOUSEKEEPING *
This is a novel about decay and destruction, but bracingly unsentimental and surprisingly moving * GUARDIAN *
Gloriously enjoyable * DAILY MAIL *
A black comedy of manners and a poignant social commentary. * THE GOOD BOOK GUIDE *
