Thrilled to report that the very first review of THE VISITORS on Amazon has given the book 5 stars and some wonderful comments. Here’s the full review here:
The selection of books that Amazon send me is now so odd that I often find myself reviewing books for which I am probably not a target reader. I assume that this debut novel is aimed at a female readership and possible a young female readership. I am neither of these but nonetheless found it to be a delightful read. The outline of the plot is reported here on Amazon so I won’t spend any time on repeating it.
The strengths of this novel are its imaginative scope and the beautiful quality of the writing. Ms Mascull is a dab hand at describing what her Victorian settings look, smell and sound like and plot-wise she keeps everything on track with what otherwise might be a complex mixture of ghosts, love story, adventure and of course Liza and Lottie’s amazing journey to overcome the terrors of being deaf-blind. In this author’s hand it isn’t complex at all, everything flows naturally and smoothly.
If there is a problem its with the Visitors themselves. Although the explanations do come this reader was still left with some unanswered questions which I can’t articulate here without revealing too much of the story. I even questioned why the Visitors were a part of the novel at all as I couldn’t see that much would have been lost by their absence. I’m sure that whether or not as a reader you enjoy this book will rest upon whether or not you are gripped and enchanted by Liza’s own tale. The Visitors add little that I could see.
But overall this is a superb first effort. In fact its hard to imagine that this is a debut book at all. Whether we are in the hop fields of Kent or the dusty plains of South Africa it all comes alive and Liza’s story will I’m sure be a source of inspiration and hope to many. And not just for those with hearing disabilities (because of course things has moved forward a very long way since the 1860s) but for anyone needing a reminder that when a human being is given hope almost anything can be achieved.“
Thanks Mr. Bones! I particularly like what he’s said about being ‘a source of inspiration to many’, which is wonderful to hear.
A great first review on Amazon. Made my day!
