#LlandeiloLitFest #review “Stargazing” by Kate Glanville

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Book Fair, books, Brenda Squires, Carmarthen, Carmarthenshire, Carmarthenshire Event, hwyl, Kate Glanville, literature, literature festival, Literature set in Wales, litfest, llandeilo, Llandeilo Book Fair, Llandeilo Event, romance, South Wales, Wales, Welsh Books, Welsh Fiction, Welsh language, Welsh literature, Welsh writers

Scratch the surface and life is never as perfect as it seems…Three women, connected by one man: Daniel is father to Seren, husband to Nesta and lover to Frankie. When he leaves Nesta and their beautiful home in the middle of the party to celebrate their fortieth wedding anniversary Seren’s world begins to crumble. Only the continuation of the family ideal can make things right. But Nesta isn’t so sure. And for Frankie, Daniel offers hope of a safe and secure future. But all three women are carrying secrets that they’ve kept hidden even from those closest to them. Secrets that might even threaten a life.

I really enjoyed this novel. Kate became a friend of mine soon after I moved to Llandeilo and I wasn’t sure if her books, aimed slightly more at the female readership, would hold my interest. Only when she gave me one of her books in the German translation, “Heartstones” did I decide to go for it, so I could practice my German.

I was blown away and read the book in almost one sitting, despite a heavy workload at the time. For me this is romantic literature with far better characters than the average romance novel. It reminded me of the great adventure spirit in some of Enid Blyton’s novels and her work will remain for me an “Enid Blyton for grownups”

STARGAZING, her latest novel, is no different in many ways and yet it is different. This time there isn’t a riddle from the past to solve but a clear and present danger. Much goes on in this beautiful novel. Seren watches her father leave her mother and tries to find something incriminating about his new lover, hoping that will rescue the marriage of her parents.
Full of great scene setting, from the anniversary party of her parents to family mornings, a cosiness remains within the thriller element that slowly but surely protrudes as the story progresses. Innocence comes through the perspective of a young woman watching a marriage dissolve and getting mixed up in something bigger than she thought.
Seren is a fabulous character and what adds to the greatness of this novel is the balanced portrayal of the unpleasantness of a break-up and the element of hope and moving forward. Never simplistic in its message, the novel is inspirational as it is lovely. Told from various perspectives, i.e. Seren’s mother and the love rival, we get the whole picture and create sympathy for all of them.
This is a wonderful, entertaining and gripping read that I cannot recommend enough.