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OverviewAn impressive and unusual first novel by Leslie Retallick, whose previous publications have all concerned the history and buildings of Torquay. His knowledge of the town underpins this novel which might, technically, be classified as science fiction, but it feels nothing like it. It is set in Torquay in the Aprils of two different years: 1898 and a year in the second decade of the twenty-first century; but the realistic sense of place and the lively, natural and often amusing dialogue allow the reader to feel equally at home in both years. Sixteen-year-old Matt and his uncle, Connor, whose 'own time' is ours, find themselves 'flipping' backwards and forwards between these two Aprils, while remaining in the same location on the edge of Torquay. In 1898 they become involved with a wealthy widow, Maria Debbon, and her three children, endangered by political scheming in connection with their family origins. Connor and Matt form emotional attachments to Maria and her elder daughter Helen respectively - relationships which are handled with insight and delicacy. The event at the heart of the novel - the destruction by fire of the Debbons' mansion on the night of 29th-30th April 1898 - has affinities with the burning of two other literary mansions: Thornfield Hall in Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre and Manderley in Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca (also a West Country novel). Without making it explicit, Before The Fire offers a subtle and ingenious answer to the question: If we could go back in time, could we change the past? The book has forty-three black-and-white illustrations, mainly positioned between chapters. Some were created by the author; others are his photographs of Torquay today; but the majority are from his extensive collection of old photographs and postcards of Torquay. Full Product DetailsAuthor: Leslie RetallickPublisher: Colenso Books Imprint: Colenso Books Dimensions: Width: 14.80cm , Height: 2.30cm , Length: 21.00cm Weight: 0.585kg ISBN: 9781912788187ISBN 10: 1912788187 Pages: 458 Publication Date: 30 November 2021 Audience: General/trade , General Format: Paperback Publisher's Status: Active Availability: In Print  This item will be ordered in for you from one of our suppliers. Upon receipt, we will promptly dispatch it out to you. For in store availability, please contact us. Table of ContentsAcknowledgements vii Dedication ix 1 A fire in the night 1 2 Echoes from the past 17 3 Two-way mirror 33 4 Belmont 45 5 Burning proof 55 6 The past can't be changed 69 7 The boy with the notebook 81 8 Questions without answers 91 9 Meeting Daniel 107 10 The music room 119 11 A night vigil 143 12 A secret in the vault 151 13 Nightmares and choices 163 14 Among the primroses 185 15 A day at the beach 209 16 Answers from an unlikely source 227 17 Attempting a warning 243 18 Proof in the vault 251 19 Taking photographs 267 20 Moving in 275 21 A violent encounter 289 22 Maria and Connor 309 23 To savour every last moment 321 24 Asking for help 333 25 Accepting a dare 349 26 Precautions 363 27 Faces at the window 377 28 Forty-five minutes earlier 383 29 Partings 401 30 Picking up the pieces 417 31 Past and present 425 Afterword 447ReviewsAuthor InformationLESLIE RETALLICK WRITES: I was born in Hornchurch, Essex, one of the London suburbs that had spread out like a rash from the capital. When I was six my family moved to Rugby in Warwickshire, where I was educated. During my school days I developed a total lack of interest in all forms of sport through spending hours in the freezing cold on the school playing fields, but I did develop a passion for history by taking part in an archaeological excavation at the nearby Roman site of Tripontium. Our family moved again when I was seventeen to Torquay, where my parents bought a corner shop. Several years later, having tired of delivering boxes of groceries to the local hotels, I took a summer seasonal job at Torre Abbey, an historic house and art gallery in Torquay, which led to a full-time senior post during a thirty-six-year association with that building. There I expanded my interest in local history and have had a number of books and articles published on that subject. Later I became a full-time carer for my by then elderly and very frail parents until they both passed away, after which I used the caring skills I had acquired in those five years to become a primary carer for a seriously disabled local lady, to whom this book is dedicated. I am an avid photographer, a keen railway modeller, and passionate about local history, my knowledge of which underpins this novel. Tab Content 6Author Website:Countries AvailableAll regions |
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