Fell off the face of the earth again, but....

....now I'm back. Summer just took me and ran the hell away with me. Anyhoo, I find myself here, writing, with a purpose. It is to insist, INSIST, that each and every reader of this humble little blog, hie off to a library or bookshop, and immediately aquire a copy of The Forgotten Garden, by Kate Morton. Preferrably a bookshop, because then this lovely, lovely book will be yours to keep!

I will reveal not very much, because part of the pleasure here is to gradually and inexplicably find yourself pulled into this magical, unusual and masterful story. Magic abounds here, in this tale of lost identities, fairies, gardens, windswept Cornish estates, Arthur Rackham style childrens' tales, and the following of the past. It whispers and sings and absolutely won't let you go. Haven't enjoyed a book this much in ages. Ms. Morton's earlier book, The House at Riverton, was very enjoyable, too, but she hits this baby out of the park.

I feel quite deflated now that it is over, and the only answer is to now turn to a novel featuring King Henry VIII's dead brother Arthur as a vampire in Victorian England. Clearly, this is an obvious choice.....