Novel set in Goa and London (“quite simply a lovely read”)
- Book: The Elephant Girl
- Location: England, Goa
- Author: Henriette Gyland
Quite simply a lovely read. A mixture of love story, whodunit, with imaginative and intriguing twists and turns.
The story focuses on Helen – or Yelena as she was originally named, following her as she moves back from Goa to London, summoned back by her step grandmother Aggie. Although the locations are a part of the story, they are not that important in terms of unduly influencing the tale.
The young Helen was present when her mother was murdered. Due to her epilepsy, she had no clear memory of what actually happened. Fay, a friend of her mother was imprisoned for 20 years for the murder – unable to remember what had occurred, or more importantly if she had actually committed the murder.
Helen manages to track her down and moves into the house she shares with other ex-cons, run by Jason who sees it his duty to give others a chance at becoming part of society again.
Despite the co-incidences in the tale, involving Jason, his father and Helen’s family, it is a very readable book. Helen is increasingly convinced that it was not Fay who murdered her mother, following instinct and new revelations to discover the truth.
Henriette writes compassionately about epilepsy and the effects it has on sufferers, touching on how it affects those around them.
I very much recommend that you read this novel.
This review first appeared on our blog and the author talks to us about locale and writing…
Please wait...
