It’s a delight today to be joining the blog tour for Nosy Neighbours by Freya Sampson, and sharing my publication day review: the author’s third novel, published today (28th March) by Zaffre Books, it’s now available both as an ebook, in paperback, and as an audiobook. My thanks to Tracy Fenton at Compulsive Readers for the invitation and support, and to the publishers for my advance reading e-copy (provided via netgalley).
I was SO delighted when Tracy’s email dropped into my inbox letting me know about this tour. Both Freya’s previous books – The Last Library and The Girl on the 88 Bus – have sat unread on my kindle for far too long. It’s just really difficult sometimes to find the time to read the books that have caught my eye, certain that they’d be ones I’d enjoy, when my reading (and reviewing) is planned and scheduled way into the foreseeable future. But if I loved the look of the first two books, this one appealed every bit as much – and I was so looking forward to trying her writing at long last…
You can choose your home, but you can’t choose who lives next door…
Twenty-five-year-old Kat Bennett has never felt at home anywhere, especially not in crumbling Shelley House. The other residents think she’s prickly and unapproachable, but beneath her tough exterior, Kat is plagued by guilt from her past and looking for somewhere to belong.
Seventy-seven-year-old Dorothy Darling has lived in Shelley House for longer than anyone else, and if you believe the other tenants, she’s as cantankerous and vindictive as they come. Dorothy may spend her days spying on the neighbours, but she has a closely guarded secret herself – and a good reason for barely leaving her home.
When their building faces demolition, sworn enemies Kat and Dorothy become unlikely allies in their quest to save their historic home; and even less likely detectives when they suspect that foul play is coming from within Shelley House…
Dorothy – sorry, that should be Ms Darling – spends her days sitting at a card table in the window of her flat in Shelley House, with her pen and notebook to record all the comings and goings. And that, of course, doesn’t exactly endear her to her neighbours – she keeps a close eye on them too.
There’s Omar and his daughter Ayesha – they should be united in their grief after the loss of his wife, but she hears their arguments and knows they’re really struggling to communicate. And Tomas – well, he’s undoubtedly a bit of a thug, with his aggressive pit bull Princess. But he’s not as bad as the tenant who’s rarely seen – the smell of weed lingering outside his door, the thumping music he plays disturbing everyone’s lives. There’s Gloria too – and her string of unsuitable boyfriends. And then there’s Joseph, and his Jack Russell Reggie – something went badly wrong there there, and although he’s only over the hall, Dorothy has no communication with him at all. And now he’s done something particularly unforgivable – it seems he has an illegal sub-tenant, the pink-haired and rather sassy Kat.
But then a few things happen that start to break down the walls that divide them. Joseph has an accident (well, perhaps…) and ends up in hospital – leaving Kat caring for Reggie, and needing to find someone else to look after him while she goes to work. And that leads to an unlikely alliance with Dorothy, increasingly convinced that Joseph was attacked, and working on her list of likely suspects. But there’s another threat that makes them work even more closely together – the landlord of Shelley House, the last mansion now standing in Poet’s Road, has neglected it for years and is now planning its demolition. At first, it’s something Dorothy believes will never happen – but when work begins, she becomes increasingly determined not to allow her home, with all its many memories, to be taken away from her.
The story is told from the viewpoints of both Dorothy and Kat – both have complications in their pasts that gradually emerge, and (however unlikely that might seem at first…) as the trust between them grows and their defences are slowly lowered, both develop into very sympathetic and exceptionally likeable characters. There are moments in both their journeys that touched me to the heart – and other moments that had me pumping the air and willing them on, hoping desperately that their increasing bravery would win the day. The writing is just wonderful – the more emotional content so perfectly handled, the relationships entirely believable, every single character so very real and beautifully drawn and developed. There are plenty of moments of perfectly judged humour, but other times when I found myself caring so very much for these wonderful individuals that it moved me to tears.
Filled with hope and love, it’s a book about the power of friendship and community and the strength of the human spirit to overcome life’s challenges – and I have to say that I thought it was quite wonderful. A very special book that so many others would enjoy every bit as much as I did – and very highly recommended.
About the author
Freya Sampson is the USA Today bestselling author of The Last Chance Library/The Last Library and The Lost Ticket/The Girl on the 88 Bus. She studied history at Cambridge University and worked in television as an executive producer, making documentaries about everything from the British royal family to neighbours from hell. She lives in London with her husband, children and cats. Nosy Neighbours is her third novel.
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Lovely review Anne. I loved this one too.
So was yours, Joanne – and what a lovely read this was!