Central Reservation

by Will Le Fleming

A compelling and highly original novel, Central Reservation tells the story of Holly Jones and the ghost of her dead twin sister. Set in 2001 as the pyres of foot-and-mouth disease blaze around the countryside. This is how Holly had woken up every day since the crash. First she would become aware of a weight pressing against her chest; then she'd open her eyes, stiff and unmoving in a breathless clutch of wrinkled sheets, her hands by her sides, as if in a vice, staring into the face of her dead sister from inches away. She hadn't screamed, not even the first time. It's 2001 and Holly believes her life will never change. She and her twin sister Yvonne, growing up on their mother's isolated farm, will be stuck with each other forever, no matter how desperately Holly longs for freedom. Until, one February morning, Yvonne dies. For a few brief hours Holly is alone at last. Then her sister's silent ghost appears, and haunts Holly with ruthless determination. Her cousins arrive, full of promises and secrets. The foot-and-mouth epidemic erupts, and gangs of slaughtermen begin to maraud the countryside. As the pyres blaze, Holly has to find out how far she's prepared to go for a life that is truly her own. A gripping and darkly comic tale of loss, haunting and the search for identity in a world on fire. 'Central Reservation is a beautifully written, moving and truly original book' --Christie Dickason, novelist and poet 'Central Reservation is a dazzling puzzle piece, an exploration of the relationship between grief and guilt, self and other. This disordered world, where a fatal accident happens in a second of irritation, and the dank smell of death clings everywhere, is a curiously funny diagnosis of the state of England. It's also a delicately observed comedy of family manners and a coming-of-age story

256 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 2011

About the author

Will le Fleming was born in 1976, and raised in a dilapidated West Country farm house with a moat and no heating.

He has written stories all his life, alongside a colourful and eclectic career in which he’s worked all round the world. He’s been a stringer in Ecuador, a croupier in New Zealand and a sword-fighter at the Tower of London. He’s shot arrows and wrestled for money, and spent time as a paid impersonator of Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

He presently teaches English literature and lives in London with his wife and young daughter.

Reviews

[Rosie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A ghost story where the haunting is neither terrifying nor really the point, and that makes it lovely. It is surprising and poignant, cracks on at a pace and has wonderful moments of stillness and observation that really transport the reader to another time and place. The confusion of adolescence, of loss and the very deep pain of isolation are beautifully drawn. And for all this, it is not a sad or worthy thing to read, but light and funny. Do read it.

[Maya · Rating 5 out of 5]

I return to this book often. Whole paragraphs are highlighted--the writer is a gifted stylist, but more importantly manages to weave humor and wit and verve through even the darkest moments in the book. The voice is captivating, the characters are memorable and mostly well-intentioned and flawed in a way that's believable and sustaining. This is a story about a haunting in the traditional sense (there is a ghost), as well as in multiple figurative senses, through dozens of carefully intimated motifs--the landscape is haunted, the characters themselves are each haunted by their own private reckonings. It is a strange book to be sure, twisted and difficult in moments, but utterly alive and remarkable and generous in its vision, and firmly on the side of life, of choosing to endure in spite of what unmoors us. I look forward to reading the author's next novel, whenever that may be.

[Nicky Foster · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was looking forward to reading this but it turned out to be a real struggle to get through. The characters never really came to life for me and the plot was very thin. I did get the reason why the ghost was there but it seemed like the whole book was centred round this one idea. The cousins and the uncle were pretty pointless, issues were brought up but never explained or resolved. I found this overall to be a pointless, tedious read.

[Sandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot imagine this novel landing on any publisher's desk and being greeted with anything but delighted applause, so fresh, unique and appealing it seems, at least to me. And I am far from someone who would go in search of a ghost story.
Equally, I admit to ignorance of the dreadful effect of the slaughter of cattle on farmers, which brought as much of a lump to my throat as did the tribulations of Holly.