Why a Booktrail?
2017, 1991: A stay in the Welsh mountains sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?
2017, 1991: A stay in the Welsh mountains sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?
Could your dream home be your worst nightmare?
After what happened in London, Kirsty needs a fresh start with her family. And running a guesthouse in the Welsh mountains sounds idyllic.
But then their first guest arrives.Selena is the last person Kirsty wants to see. It’s 17 years since she tore everything apart.
Why has she chosen now to walk back into Kirsty’s life? Is Selena running from something too? Or is there an even darker reason for her visit?
Well, if there’s anywhere you are going to relax and immerse yourself in your surroundings, it’s the Brecon Beacons. The area is known for its beauty and air of space and freedom.
Pen y Fan and Corn Du are the two highest peaks in southern Britain. There are wild walks and breathtaking scenery all around you here. Perfect top move here away from London and feel the fresh air of your face. Move to Wales and set up a B and B, sounds perfect right? AT first it does:
“Buying a guesthouse in the Brecon Beacons had been a long-held ambition of mind. Something to daydream about while I toiled at my dead-end job in marketing, or when I was on maternity leave, surrounded by nappies and wet wipes. The Brecons held fond memories for me, of picnics in the foothills, of family days out, my brother Nathan, and I bickering in the car, our dad barking at us good-naturedly.”
Like something from a book:
“Of those hills and mountains that seemed to go on for ever. When I was a kid they always reminded me of the drawings in the Mr Men books, they were so perfect – they seemed worlds away from where we lived in Cardiff.”
You would think moving to the Brecon Beacons and opening a B and B would be a nice relaxing way of life. When you lived in London and had a husband with anxiety, this would be the move you would hope would do you all good. Except when Claire Douglas takes you, you know that you are soon going to feel like that fallen teddy bear on the cover…..
There is indeed a body at the beginning of the book. Lying at the bottom of the stairs; very Agatha Christie. This is where the main story begins as go back and forth to return to that day and that series of events leading up to it.
You might not want to stay in this guesthouse though – and can’t really as for BookTrail purposes, it’s located in the fictional village of Hywelphilly. Nevertheless, the area is there for background rather than for a true portrayal of the countryside and history. Kirsty is native to Wales however and so for her, this is a return home.
It’s less of a thriller and more of a family drama to be honest. One which only really gets going by the last third of the book. There were a few too many guests in the drama for me as well. But the remote B and B is still a good location for such a drama to play out.
A family drama which unravels against the backdrop of the Brecon Beacons.
Destination: Wales, Brecon Beacons Author/guide: Claire Douglas Departure Time: 2017, 1991
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