There is a lot going on in this seemingly ‘cosy’ British novel. There are the two brothers, living in adjoining railway carriages for so many years, yet never communicating. There is the mystery surrounding the murder of their sister when they were teenagers. There is Zohra, a young postwoman, who is grappling with a trauma from high school. And then there is a restoration of an old railway line.
Clare Morrall cleverly links these stories together, and slowly the reader is drawn into the histories of these characters, and how they came to be so damaged.
So yes, this is a novel about the damage done, particularly in our youth, that if not dealt with immediately, festers and does more and more damage. But it is also a novel about the redemptive power of love and forgiveness. Oh, and it’s also about the love of steam locomotives!
I gobbled this book up in a couple of days, and thoroughly enjoyed it.