Why a Booktrail?
2000s: A funny fourth book from a funny Northumberland author based right in her homeland.
The Mysterious Miss Mayhew
What you need to know before your trail
Fran Mayhew – as you might expect from the title of the book is a mysterious lady. She’s very forthcoming as well and refreshing or blunt according to opinion. She doesn’t suffer fools gladly and is up in Northumberland for a particular reason.
She soon appears in the life of single father Tom and his delightful 5 year old daughter Hattie. Or rather they appear and she has something to say about it! Tom lives a complicated life and is try it to do the best for his daughter. tom admits himself that he is learning on the job with his daughter but whenever things go wrong or he does something embarrassing, Fran seems to be around.
Just what is Fran doing…..in the graveyard of all places?
Travel Guide
Northumberland – hurrah for books set in the North East. Although the fictional village where the main characters live us called Tynebrook is clearly identified for those who have been to or know Corbridge in Northumberland. The Town Square, the Cemetery and although there is no magazine building as such, there are two rather fantastic bookshops and an utterly fantastic bakery where you should sample a cake in honour of the many cakes in the novel.
It is the characters however which make this fictional village fun – we know of no Tom and Harriets or indeed Frans but this line did resonate with us as we wandered aournd on a summers day –
“Northumberland doesn’t seem to be much of a melting pot, although today a lot of it did look as if it were melting. The faces I saw were mainly pink or red.”
The warm and witty writing is evident of the humour and warmth that Northumberland gives off and the line ‘It’s hard to eat a lamb burger when there is a lamb looking at you” made us laugh particularly as there are a lot of lambs in the fields nearby.
Even Carlisle gets a mention – it’s where Suzie lives and where she is driven back to when a little under the influence.
Visit Tynebrook by wandering around Corbridge and seeing the warm and humour of the novel in real life.
Booktrail Boarding Pass Information:
Twitter: @hosmond
Facebook: /Hazel-Osmond
Web: hazelosmond.co.uk
Back to ResultsWhere Next?
