Why a Booktrail?
2000s: Iain is an ambassador for Stem4, the teenage mental health charity and he examines the range of emotions in this novel
Sweet William
What you need to know before your trail
Sweet William is a dark thriller that spans forty-eight hours in the life of a desperate father and a three-year-old child in peril, who needs insulin to stay alive.
It tells a story of mental illness, a foster family under pressure, and an angry father separated from his adored little boy.
Locations
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Aldeburgh
Not a happy place in the novel but there is one beacon of light in the form of a Halloween festival. Even that doesn’t stay light for long however as during the festivities, a mentally unstable man who has killed his wife goes in search of the son he wishes to have again. He thinks the festival will allow him the distraction and the crowds needed to allow him to snatch his son back. If any one gets in his way, he simply gets rid of them.
The view of the town in the novel is prejudiced and somewhat unreliable as the main character is or course not seeing things clearly. However as he stumbles along the narrow lanes which lead to the beach and harbour, and along the high street, you can see much of the delights of the place, even if he can’t.
The local indie bookshop is on the map if this tale of misery gets too much.
Booktrail Boarding Pass: Sweet William
Destination: Aldeburgh Author/Guide: Iain Maitland Departure Time: 2000s
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