"His cheek was smooth against mine, his satin-sleek hair slicked against my skin... I put out my fingers and traced the curve of his lips below the unexpected roughness of the moustache. He must have kissed me. I know he kissed me..." The photograph that hangs above Ellie's bed in the old Brittany mansion is of a handsome young man from a former age. The sort of guy any teenage girl might fantasize about.But when Ellie feels him beside her, his breath on her face and his hands on her body, is she fantasizing?And what of the wolf calling in the darkness outside her window? Another fantasy or something more shockingly sinister?
This story revolves around Ellie, Ellie's best friend Amy, Ellie's mother and friends. The main part of the story takes place whilst they're enjoying a holiday in a dusty old mansion in Brittany, France.
Ellie doesn't want to go on holiday with her mother. She and her best friend Amy had other plans for their summer. However, Ellie is surprised to discover Amy wants to, "Why not," she said. "It's abroad and cheap." When the group arrive at the mansion everyone picks a room. The room Ellie picks has an old image of a young man above the bed.
Soon, all Ellie can think about is the stranger in the photograph. Who is he? What was his name? What life did he live? She then starts to hear the howl of wolves in the mansion grounds.
I don't want to spoil the rest so to find out what happens you'll have to read to book.
There's some lovely use of language to describe scene, feelings, smell etc. which draws the reader in. The story is told in the first person, typically a POV I don't enjoy. However, when written well it works and this is the case for this book.
Difficult to put down! A teenage girl on holiday with friends and family in France falls in love with a young man who... No, I'm not going to give anything away except to say that the story is captivating, entrancing, scary and beautifully written. Your age doesn't matter - you'll fall into this story and remain in its spell until you've finished it, and beyond.