On the longest day of the summer, twelve people sit cooped up with their families in a faded Scottish cabin park. The endless rain leaves them with little to do but watch the other residents.
A woman goes running up the Ben as if fleeing; a retired couple reminisce about neighbours long since moved on; a teenage boy braves the dark waters of the loch in his red kayak. Each person is wrapped in their own cares but increasingly alert to the makeshift community around them. One particular family, a mother and daughter without the right clothes or the right manners, starts to draw the attention of the others. Tensions rise and all watch on, unaware of the tragedy that lies ahead as night finally falls.
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Dawn. There's no sunrise, no birdsong.
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(@panmacmillan, 20 August 2020, 208 pages, e-book, #ARC from the publisher via # NetGalley and voluntarily reviewed)
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I thought the author's book Ghost Wall was fantastic so I had high expectations for Summerwater. Thankfully, this is everything I was hoping for. This is a very short book, barely 200 pages yet I feel like I've read something much longer, 400 or 500 pages at least. The book is broken up into narratives of different lengths, each one focusing on one of the twelve characters, exploring their issues gradually moving all the threads together as the mother and daughter who don't quite fit in become a force of gravity. The book takes a dark turn towards the end which although hinted at still shocked me. This is a terrific read. One to take your time over despite its brief length.
