Steam tumbled skywards as the train beat onwards to Swanton Stoke, scurrying through black turned fields towards the end of the line. It was late in the afternoon on the last day of October and only one passenger remained on board...
The Blurb
Adolescent baker’s boy Jack catches sight of a beautiful woman alighting from a train at dusk. His remote Norfolk village is built around a railway maintenance hub known as The Works which is ruled by ritual, hierarchy and God.
Newcomer Rosie is escaping a secret past involving a well-known London cartoonist who is a proponent of early photographic pornography.
A beguiling tale of love and learning unfolds against the backdrop of the hardships faced by the railwaymen and fishermen of the time.
Poignant and moving, this literary novel weaves the key themes of women’s rights, childhood memories, sexual freedom, religion, art and pornography around its compelling cast of characters. Based on extensive research in and around Melton Constable and Cromer, The Sitter exudes the charms of Victorian Norfolk and a nostalgia for the steam railways.
An historical novel of richness and depth, The Sitter is a remarkable, engaging and deeply atmospheric debut.
My Review
I enjoyed reading this book and it has much to commend it.
It follows the story of two people: Rosie, who is the titular sitter and who has escaped to Norfolk after realising that being the subject of a photographer's obsession wasn't as innocent as she had thought. Also, we have Jack, a young boy who, seeing her alight from the train, is struck by her beauty.
Alongside the characters, we read of the arrival of steam trains. Many of the local upper and middle class have invested, and as readers, we can observe the hype surrounding this and the impact the trains will have on the area.
The writing in this novel is beautiful. It is a slow-paced, literary luxury of a book. I found its gentle pace almost a meditative experience to read. The author has used and placed every word of text with care, and the result is this gorgeous reading experience.
Ms McGhie is clearly an intelligent writer who has researched both the time and place thoroughly. Additionally, she inhabits her characters and permits the reader to accompany her as we observe Jack turn from a boy to a man within its pages, and Rosie's discovery that we cannot always leave our past behind.
This is a compelling story, and the author has captured the spirit of the age, place and her characters perfectly. Whilst Ms. McGhie is an established journalist and writer of non-fiction, this is her first foray into fiction. This debut novel feels accomplished, and I hope we will see more fiction from this author in the future.
Book Details
ISBN: 978 1739603410
Publisher: Waterland Books
Formats: e-book and paperback
No. of Pages: 230 (paperback)
Purchase Links
About the Author
Caroline McGhie is a multi-award-winning journalist who has written for The Sunday Times, The Sunday Times Magazine, The Sunday Telegraph, and was part of the launch team for The Independent on Sunday. She has written columns for The Financial Times, The Standard and Country Living. She has lived in North Norfolk for over thirty years.
You can also find Caroline at:
(ARC and media courtesy of Hannah Hargrave)
(all opinions are my own)
