Fern Britton

When I read The Postcard last year, I commented on the fact that there were two characters whose stories seemed unresolved. Henry and his sister, Ella, seemed to have much more to tell us and so I was really pleased when I heard that Fern Britton was writing Coming Home, Henry and Ella’s story.

It’s also the story of Sennen, their mother, who abandoned them when they were very young. Unable to cope with two young children when she was only 17 herself, she took off and never saw them show more again…until now.

Coming Home is an emotional and moving story. It looks at loss in different ways and how it can affect a person.

For a 400+ page book, I read it quite quickly, within a couple of days. Britton has an easy and inviting writing style. She had me caring about the characters and hoping that all would work out well for them. I loved Ella, although Henry was a little harder to like at times. I liked Sennen a lot as well and found her to be flawed, yet hugely likeable.

It was lovely to return to Pendruggan and Trevay, the fictional villages where the author sets her books. I was a little sad that other characters from The Postcard, such as Penny and Simon didn’t play a larger role but to be fair, it wasn’t their story. I was pleased to see old favourite, Queenie, was in there though. I’d love Fern Britton to write her story next!

This book, like The Postcard before it, was a bit like a warm hug on a cold day. It’s a sweet, easy read but one which still packs a punch. show less

I've been wanting to read a Fern Britton book for ages and so I jumped at the chance of reading The Postcard. I really enjoyed it but I have to say that it wasn't quite what I was expecting.

I had in my mind a fluffy, summery, happy sort of holiday read but there are some much stronger themes running through this book, in particular depression, loss and jealousy.

For much of the book I wasn't entirely sure whether I liked Penny, the protagonist, or not. She's quite difficult at times and, like show more one of her friends, I thought she should count her blessings, but of course life isn't that simple and there was a lot going on in the background that was affecting her quite a lot (see above). Her vicar husband, Simon, was a bit of a saint (quite appropriate given his job!).

But then along came a character who was much easier to dislike and I started to see where a lot of Penny's insecurities came from. I think the author portrayed this really well and there were little vignettes from Penny's childhood that helped to flesh out her character.

I actually really liked a thread of the story that wasn't explored in that much detail, that of Ella and her brother, Henry. I wanted to know more about them and I wonder if the author is planning to write a book about them in the future as there seemed to be some unresolved issues and a lot more to find out about them. And then there's the lovely Kit and Adam, Penny and Simon's neighbours, who also could go on to spawn another book I think.

The Postcard is one of those really easy books to read and enjoy. It has a lovely little Cornish village setting and some really interesting characters. Overall it's quite a gentle, undemanding sort of read and one which I found a real pleasure to pick up. show less

‘Hidden Treasures’, which I downloaded free for my Kindle, starts with an intriguing prologue about an elderly lady. However most of the book is about a middle-aged woman called Helen who has just moved to a small village after leaving her philandering husband. She meets local folk and settles in, then her friend Penny comes for a visit...

There's a lot of potential for a pleasant light village-style book here, but unfortunately, it doesn’t work. After the first chapter, which I show more enjoyed, the writing meanders into irrelevant and tedious details of day-to-day life, a village talent night, and a long, drawn out description of a TV production which takes place in the village.

By the time I was half-way through the book I was almost ready to give up - except that I had been intrigued by the start, and I was rooting for the nice Vicar character, one of two people who felt real in the early stages of the book. I didn’t much like the outcome or the ending, but I did, at least, keep reading.

My overall feeling is that it's a great pity that this book was not thoroughly edited, as it could have been a great story. There are some interesting and memorable characters, and the hint in the prologue could have been so much more significant than it was.

But clichés abound, viewpoints switch almost at random, and the majority of the book is irrelevant and unnecessary. Cut to about half its length and with some significant editing of the remainder, it could have been so much better.

Not recommended. But at least I didn't pay for it. show less

Based on the life of Marion Crawford or ‘Crawfie’ as she was also known amongst the upper circles, Crawfie being the governess to the Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret. This story tells of her rise and her downfall whilst working for the royal family.

I really enjoyed this book. I found it interesting and informative. I’d actually never heard of Marion Crawford before reading The Good Servant and ended up doing a little bit of delving into her history myself. It’s quite a sad tale, show more one where I was on the fence about how I felt about Crawfie. Even thought I think the author is fairly sympathetic to her cause, I didn’t know whether to be sorry for Crawfie and think her very naive, or whether to assume she was a schemer who decided to go for gold. I eventually came to the conclusion that she was just taken in by her cad of a husband who had pound signs in his eyes. He really wasn’t very pleasant. You will have to read it for yourself to make your own hypothesis!

A well researched, imaginative, engaging and easy read which should appeal to those who enjoy historical fiction combined with fact. show less