- Paperback: 448 pages
- Publisher: Penguin (16 May 2019)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1405933348
- ISBN-13: 978-1405933346
Synopsis
Grace first came to France a lifetime ago. Young and full of dreams of adventure, she met two very different men.
She fell under the spell of one. The other fell under hers.
Until one summer night shattered everything . . .
Now, Grace is living an idyllic life with her husband, sheltered from the world in a magnificent Provençal villa, perched atop a windswept cliff.
Every day she looks out over the sea – the only witness to that fateful night years ago.
Until a stranger arrives at the house. A stranger who knows everything, and won’t leave until he gets what he wants.
Review
The House On The Edge Of The Cliff is set on the beautiful south coast of Provence in France, the idyllic home of Grace and Peter. But their wonderful life is to be thrown into turmoil by the appearance of a man from their past, a man who is threatening to destroy their family. Set in the present day and with flashbacks to France in 1968 when Grace first met Peter in Paris and their days in the in Provence which ended with a tragedy.
I absolutely loved this book; the setting, the prose, the cultural and social history of the sixties in France, and the characters. This may be the first book I have read by Carol Drinkwater but since finishing this book I have purchased two other books by her as I enjoyed this book so much. Carol Drinkwater has such a beautifully descriptive style of writing that is a feast for the senses; I could smell the salt of the sea, the tyme and rosemary that grew on the cliffs, feel the warmth of the sun on my skin. The idea of an isolated house on a cliff in Provence sounds like heaven to me, and it was certainly a haven for Grace and Peter and previously for Peter’s aunt. The house is a character in it’s own right, a caring and healing place, a place that makes the characters feel safe, and is the heart of the family which is why when they feel threatened it is the one place they feel safe. The opening chapter of the book introduces the reader to the menace that has entered their lives and leaves a chill down the spine that carries you through the book. The sense of menace underpins the whole book as we learn of Grace’s first trip to France that was the starting point for the situation they find themselves in.
Paris 1968 was a hot bed of political and social change. There were student riots, political change, strikes and the sixties free love, all of which makes for interesting reading and for underpinning the ideals of the young Grace and Peter. Not only do we get the social and political history of Paris, but Carole Drinkwater adds the cultural history with a soundtrack of the sixties; references to Otis Reading, The Doors, The Mamas and the Papas. This adds to to the authenticity of the setting of the book, a brilliant detail in my opinion.
Grace was a character I really warmed to; she came from a home where there was domestic violence and she wanted to escape before going to theatre school. It’s hard to believe that she was allowed to go to Paris on her own at sixteen, so young and naive and open to broadening her horizons. Peter takes her under his wing and falls helplessly in love with her, also introducing her to the political issues he believes in. Grace is drawn into this different life, being treated like an adult, the free love and drug experimentation and finally falling in love, but not with Peter. Their perfect summer soon comes to a dramatic end, Grace returns to London but it is fate that brings them back together nearly thirty years later; Grace and Peter were destined to be together.
The House On The Edge Of The Cliff has love, drama, thrills, and a sense of menace that combine to make this such a compelling read. The sights, sounds and smells and the descriptive prose transport you to Paris and Provence in both the present and the sixties; opening this book is like opening the door to a holiday in France. This is the perfect book to pack in your beach bag this summer, with its captivating story, with a breathtaking setting and appealing characters. So go out and get yourself copy, you won’t regret it, an outstanding read!!!
I would like to thank Penguin Books for inviting me to be part of the blog tour and for sending me a copy of the book in return for my honest review.
As always thank you to you, my readers for your continued support and for liking and sharing my posts x
