The Stranger by Kate Riordan
Genre: Historical Mystery, Gothic
Read: 16th September 2018
Purchase: Amazon
★★★★★ 5 stars
THE STRANGER is a breathtaking story set in 1940s Cornwall, both atmospheric and haunting. It is something of a historical mystery with a plenty of secrets. It actually had a feel of Daphne de Maurier's "Rebecca" as I read it, with even a touch of Danvers in Payne and old Mrs Fox, and was like reading a modern day du Maurier but better.
Three women arrive at Penhallow Hall as "Land Girls" in the role during the war. Eleanor and her feisty controlling mother have opened the doors of their sprawling house to Diana, Rose and young Jane who, in their roles as Land Girls, plant and grow vegetables to aid the war effort. But it's not all smooth sailing. Each of the girls, as well as their hosts, bring their secrets with them to the Hall and will lead to a dramatic conclusion which may surprise you in the end. But one thing is for sure - none of their lives will ever be the same again.
This atmospheric story will draw you in from the very beginning as you step back in time and watch the drama and secrets unravel. There is a cast of complex characters you will either be cheering on or want to give a good slapping.
For me, the most irritating character was Diana Devlin. The story seemed to primarily centre on her for the most part. She is very much a troubled young woman with a somewhat sad and disturbing past. However she enjoys playing "the socialite" and at times appears to be looking down on the other two. She bores very easily and when Rose fails to live up to her expectations she abandons her and latches onto Jane. She spends most of her time delving into things that don't concern her, wanting to root out some interesting titbits and liven things up around the dark and boorish Hall. It's this interference that causes some horrific consequences for the innocent people in her need for drama.
Rose is my favourite, I think. She has ties to Cornwall having spent a beautifully memorable summer in a cottage just near the Hall when she was 16. It is something that has remained with her - both in her heart and memory - as being the last with her mother and the summer she fell truly in love. However, some sixteen years later she is now married and her husband is in the Navy while she does her bit in the land army. Her marriage is not an overly happy one, though it's not a sad one either. They just seem to exist together and despite her husband being away fighting the enemy, Rose finds herself drawn to that summer back in 1924 and her first love. One day on the bus to Fowey she spots Sam, her first love, in the street her breath is taken away. She can't find the words to speak and yet as if drawn to her, Sam looks up and sees her. He smiles that smile that has lived in her memory all these years and says he has never forgotten her. Then as the bus she's on moves away she whispers "I will find you." Can she recapture that love and the girl that she used to be?
Then there is Jane, a small dark and young boyish looking girl with an air of familiarity about her. She arrives a little later than Rose and Diana, and does her best to keep to herself. It is soon revealed that she is the granddaughter of old Mrs Fox, matriach of the Hall, and niece to a somewhat nervy Eleanor. And while it is later discovered that she is only 15, Jane says little but gets in and does the job she is there to do as a Land Girl.
And then there is Eleanor. She is a very nervy character, easily frightened and often teary. She relies heavily on her husband Gerald who dotes on her despite being in London much of the time. But Eleanor has secrets. And it is these that have eaten away at her and kept her mother nipping cruelly at her heels. Penhallow Hall is actually Eleanor's but her mother rules the place.
Diana makes it her mission to find out every little thing she can about everyone, regardless of the consqueneces. She even makes up a few little white lies for another's "own good", in her opinion, not caring whose toes she steps on in the process. She follows both Rose and Eleanor on their respective retreats - Eleanor to her little boathouse and Rose to Vennor - and slowly unearths their secrets.
The story unfolds for the first part with excerpts of Diana's diary thrown in between the atmospheric lead-up to her sudden disappearance and discovery of a body on the beach. It is haunting, sometimes threatening and even claustrophobic in parts with the feeling of something "not quite right". Diana likes to push the boundaries. She is a reluctant land girl, unwanted at home by her mother, with really nowhere else to go. Her diary reveals secrets she has no wish to share, as the main story continues to build up to the penultimate climax of the second part.
The scene is extremely atmospheric. I know I keep saying that, but it tuly is. It has that haunting feel with the threat of war just across the channel and with it also hitting London, and yet Cornwall seems so far removed from it all. Despite the blackout curtains put in place each night, this only adds to the tension of the story and gives it that real claustrophobic feel, and it is apparent that tragedy will be an inevitability. I love the way the sea, the weather, the landscape and the war all become woven into the story to give it that atmosphere. I could hear the waves crashing, smell the ocean, feel the sun and the rain upon me as I walked the coastal path with them. It felt as if I lived and breathed this story, not just read it.
This is the first book I've read by Kate Riordan, and if this book is anything to go by it will not be my last. I thoroughly and truly enjoyed it from start to finish, from beginning to end. It left me wanting more. One thing is for sure, THE STRANGER is a book that will stay with me for a very long time to come.
Highly highly recommended!!
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