A century of change. A death-bed confession. One man’s history, rewritten.
Edwardian Brighton. A wide-eyed young girl enters Mr Parker’s photographic studio and receives her first lesson about a brand-new medium: “Can you think of a really good memory? Perhaps you can see it when you close your eyes. But think how much better it would be if you could take it out and look at whenever you wanted to!” Photography becomes the passion that will shape Lottie’s destiny, taking her on a journey of self-discovery and creative brilliance – and into a disastrous marriage.
2009: Disgraced politician Sir James Hastings faces a lonely old age in a secluded village in the Surrey Hills with only an old German shepherd for company. He is unmoved when he learns his mother has died at the age of 108. In his mind, he buried her when she abandoned him as a child. Brought up by his father, a charismatic war-hero turned racing-driver, the young James dismissed her as the ‘villain’ of his childhood. Now he inherits her life’s work – an incredible photography collection spanning more than six decades – and is finally forced to confront the realisation that his version of the past isn’t even half the story.
Journey across a century of change as one man explores the world through this mother’s eyes and discovers that the villain of his childhood was someone really rather extraordinary. Perfect for fans of Lucinda Riley and Kate Morton.
This book voiced everything I’ve ever held inside of me as a photographer.
amazon review
Touching, exciting, romantic and tender, this novel shines in the deft hands of its author.
compulsion reads
Jane Davis has presented a family that is beautifully flawed, brimming with affection, and inimitably human.
J. R. Metcalf, book blogger
