#BlogTour The Unravelling by Polly Crosby

An absolutely brilliant novel – it should definitely be on some award lists this year! Welcome to the BlogTour for The Unravelling by Polly Crosby.

About the AuthorPolly Crosby lives in Norfolk with her husband and son, and her very loud and much-loved Oriental rescue cat, Dali. The Illustrated Child is her first novel. Her second novel, The Unravelling, is out on 6th January ‘22. To Find more about Polly’s writing, visit pollycrosby.com. Sign up to Polly’s newsletter here. Follow @WriterPolly on Twitter

About the book

When Tartelin Brown accepts a job with the reclusive Marianne Stourbridge, she finds herself on a wild island with a mysterious history.

Tartelin is tasked with hunting butterflies for Marianne’s research. But she quickly uncovers something far more intriguing than the curious creatures that inhabit the landscape. Because the island and Marianne share a remarkable history, and what happened all those years ago has left its scars, and some terrible secrets.

As Tartelin pieces together Marianne’s connection to the island, she must confront her own reasons for being there. Can the two women finally face up to the painful memories that bind them so tightly to the past?

Atmospheric and deeply emotional, The Unravelling is the captivating novel from the author of The Illustrated Child.

Review

Marianne is crotchety solitary figure, who is bound to her home in both physical and an emotional way. The memories, experiences and relationships that lack the right kind of closure, which will allow her some peace, are destined to remain grains of dirt under her skin. Irritations that can be dismissed, but never quite forgotten.

She has hired yet another young girl as an assistant to aid her in the accumulation of a variation of species, mainly butterflies, in order to examine and prove a theory she is working on. Tarteline finds herself a little shell-shocked by her new residence and employer. Apparently living without the common comforts of a 21st century home and a wee bit like society over a century ago, is quite the norm on this peculiar and yet beautiful island.

A story told over the span of Marianne’s lifetime, we encounter her as the curious child eager to be the apple of her father’s eye, the young woman coping with mistakes borne out of hurt pride, and the older woman filled with dreams and regrets. Can young Tarteline, who is still grieving her own loss, begin to understand her remarkable and demanding employer.

I absolutely adored this book. Crosby is an amazing writer with an innate ability to create literary and storytelling magic, as she navigates emotions, nature, memories, trauma and the fragility of human relationships. I can only hope this book is recognised as the gem it is going forward. It will definitely be going on my best reads of ’22 list. I can’t wait to read whatever she comes up with next.

Buy The Unravelling at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher ‏: ‎HQ pub date 6 Jan. 2022. Buy at Amazon com. At Harper Collins.

#BlogTour The Illustrated Child by Polly Crosby

Today it’s an absolute pleasure to take part in the Blog Tour The Illustrated Child by Polly Crosby.
About the Author

Polly Crosby lives in Norfolk with her husband and son, and her very loud and much-loved Oriental rescue cat, Dali. To Find more about Polly’s writing, visit pollycrosby.com. Sign up to Polly’s newsletter here.

Follow @WriterPolly on Twitter, on Goodreads, on Amazon, Buy The Illustrated Child

About the book

Romilly lives in a ramshackle house with her eccentric artist father and her cat, Monty. She knows little about her past – but she knows that she is loved.

When her father finds fame with a series of children’s books starring her as the main character, everything changes: exotic foods appear on the table, her father appears on TV, and strangers appear at their door, convinced the books contain a treasure hunt leading to a glittering prize.

But as time passes, Romilly’s father becomes increasingly suspicious of everything around him, until, before her eyes, he begins to disappear altogether.

In her increasingly isolated world, Romilly turns to the secrets her father has hidden in his illustrated books, realising that there is something far darker and more devastating locked within the pages…The truth.

Review

Romilly lives her life through the eyes of her adoring father. The single father raising a daughter, a man who puts pen to paper and creates stories for everyone to enjoy. This exposure of her life comes with a lack of privacy and at times even danger and transgressions. The stories carry the suggestion of a hidden treasure, which tends to generate the interest of many – not enough interest to care how Romilly is dealing with being the main character in a series of books though.

The only thing keeping her halfway sane is her strange, domineering and unkempt friend, who comes and goes as they both go through the different stages of growing-up. They agree, they fight and ultimately the best friend can also be very manipulative at times.

Romilly also has to cope with a disinterested mother, and a parent who is so involved with himself he neglects her emotionally, psychologically and physically. There is still some semblance of love at times, but is it love or just a means to an end?

Although this falls under the YA category for me personally even though it is certainly a coming-of-age story for the majority of the story, it wanders far beyond those boundaries. It’s a complex combination of mystery, discovery of self and sexuality, the almost incestuous leanings of a confused and distraught parent at times, the guilt and the neglect.

There are just so many aspects of this story I would love to go into each fascinating element in depth, but would absolutely give the plot away by doing so. (Arrgh) It’s such a multi-layered piece of work. I loved the way Crosby went from literary to contemporary to mystery and speculative. All within a blink of an eye. The reader is never quite sure which thread to grasp onto at any given time.

It’s a brilliant story with an ending which suits the beginning and a middle that pays homage to the past. A wonderful story. One that speaks of a culmination of imagination and coping techniques, after many years of solitude and mind games.

Buy The Illustrated Child at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: HQ; pub date 29 Oct. 2020. Buy at Amazon com.