Lead Review

  • Book: Her Previous Self
  • Location: Guernsey
  • Author: Anne Allen

Review Author: Tina Hartas

Location

Content

This is the latest novel from the ‘Donna Leon of Guernsey’! You certainly get a good feel for the island (a visit to Dix Neuf, no less … neither a restaurant, nor a wine bar, café or pub. It is all these things and more!).

This is the story of Lucy who arrives in Guernsey to take care of her grandfather – with whom she hasn’t had a particularly close relationship – whilst her parents go on an extended holiday. She herself is in need of parental care and nurture because she is on a trial separation from her partner after a bereavement. It is also the story of Mary in the early 1800s, whose presence Lucy can feel; she comes to dream of her and discovers that her story was full of heartache, as she fielded a boorish and bullying husband, her mysterious death adding a piquancy to the story.

Naturally there are clues to be gleaned around the Georgian family house, which help Lucy to identify the mysterious ghost and put the pieces of the jigsaw together. She is on a mission to understand Mary’s agitated state, which appears to her in technicolour detail, all the while trying to heal her own heart.

There is an interesting look at history and free trading, piracy and the wealth thus accrued, which bear witness to the grand houses that can be found around Guernsey.

I am not usually a great fan of stories with a ghost at the heart but this is cohesive and the author negotiates the threads of past and present very well. It is an easy-to-read story and sees growing affection between granddaughter and grandfather, and perhaps there might even be a bit of a love interest!

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