I first discovered the work of H S Norup when I was asked to review her last book “The Hungry ghost”, so I was particularly excited when I was asked to join in with this blog tour. I have to say that her writing just keeps getting better , with its ability to immerse the reader in the scenery and atmosphere of the surroundings.
When Alfred moves to stay with his Granny, it is because his father (a civil engineer) is involved in building a road tunnel under the local hill. As with so many projects like this, there is a lot of local disagreement , mainly around the themes of environment; however there might be some other reasons for not wanting this destruction of the hill area. Alfred has spent most of his childhood moving to different countries with his father’s work, because his mother had died when he was young. Returning to his Granny’s home, after a gap of five years, he is surrounded by feelings of darkness and has the disturbing thought that he can see small faerie type creatures. It is only when he meets his neighbour, Saga, that he discovers that they can both see these creatures and he begins to understand what a road tunnel could mean to the magical inhabitants of the area. The children find themselves becoming heavily involved in the fight to prevent the building, but at the same time they are having to deal with the magical world and the dangers that it could bring to their families.
This really is a fabulous story about the meeting of two worlds; one of them is our own and the other is the magical world of folk lore and myths. The author has set the action in a scenario that many of us can understand; my own village is due to start on the building of a new bypass after a wait of over 50 years since it was first mooted, luckily our own ‘faerie’ hill is not affected, but I can really understand the issues that people would worry about. However the thing that really comes across is the need to understand and cherish the nature that surrounds us. The world is changing at a rate that could only be imagined (as a nightmare possibly) when I was a child, however, we need to understand that nature is something that we all need for our physical and mental well-being.
Beyond all of this, it is the story of a young boy who desperately wants to understand what has happened to his mother. As the story unfolds, he discovers that he has not been told the whole truth and that the reality is stranger than he could imagine. This really is a very special book and one that will totally enthrall the reader, with its mix of magic and reality. Thank you so much for allowing me to join in the celebration of this launch and I know that it will be a firm favourite. A great five-star start to the year.
Author bio:
H. S. Norup is the author of The Hungry Ghost and The Missing Barbegazi—a Sunday Times Book of the Year in 2018. Originally from Denmark, she has lived in six different countries and now resides in Switzerland with her husband and two teenage sons. She has a Master’s degree in Economics and Business Administration and sixteen years’ experience in corporate marketing strategy and communications. When she’s not writing or reading, she spends her time outdoors either skiing, hiking, walking, golfing or taking photos.
Thank you to the author for the author information and the photograph that she has made available on her website https://www.hsnorup.com/