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Flight
Moving between the majestic coastline of North Cornwall and the leafy suburbs of London, Flight is a story of secrets and lies - and of the indelible traces that are left behind when someone tries to disappear. When Wren Irving's numbers come up in the first ever national lottery draw, she doesn't tell her husband, Rob. Instead she quietly packs her bags, kisses her six-month-old daughter Phoebe goodbye, and leaves. Two decades later, Rob has moved on and found happiness with their oldest friend, Laura. Phoebe, now a young woman, has never known any other life. But when Rob receives a mysterious letter, the past comes back to haunt them all. With their cosy world thrown into turmoil, Laura sets out to track Wren down and discover the truth about why she walked out all those years ago. - See more myriadeditions.com/books/flight/#stha...
320 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 21, 2015
44 people are currently reading
426 people want to read
About the author
Isabel Ashdown
15 books255 followersIsabel Ashdown is an award-winning author and writing coach. 'One Girl, One Summer' is her tenth novel.
Isabel’s writing career launched with her critically acclaimed debut 'Glasshopper', which was twice named among Best Books of the Year after winning first prize in a national competition judged by Fay Weldon, Sir John Mortimer, and Michael Ridpath. Since then, her thrillers 'Little Sister' and 'Beautiful Liars' have been shortlisted in the Dead Good Reader Awards, while '33 Women' was an Amazon bestseller within weeks of release. Alongside her own work, Isabel is a Royal Literary Fund Fellow and a coach to developing writers.
Born in London, Isabel grew up on the south coast, and she now spends much of her time in a writing cabin in West Dorset, built for her by carpenter husband, Colin. She is a member of the Society of Authors and is represented by Kate Shaw of The Shaw Agency. Isabel lives with her husband, with whom she has two grown-up children and a pair of ageing dogs. Her happy place is anywhere with a coastal view.
Find out more about Isabel via her website, Instagram, Facebook or TikTok.
Isabel’s writing career launched with her critically acclaimed debut 'Glasshopper', which was twice named among Best Books of the Year after winning first prize in a national competition judged by Fay Weldon, Sir John Mortimer, and Michael Ridpath. Since then, her thrillers 'Little Sister' and 'Beautiful Liars' have been shortlisted in the Dead Good Reader Awards, while '33 Women' was an Amazon bestseller within weeks of release. Alongside her own work, Isabel is a Royal Literary Fund Fellow and a coach to developing writers.
Born in London, Isabel grew up on the south coast, and she now spends much of her time in a writing cabin in West Dorset, built for her by carpenter husband, Colin. She is a member of the Society of Authors and is represented by Kate Shaw of The Shaw Agency. Isabel lives with her husband, with whom she has two grown-up children and a pair of ageing dogs. Her happy place is anywhere with a coastal view.
Find out more about Isabel via her website, Instagram, Facebook or TikTok.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
August 18, 2018
Isabel goes from strength to strength with each novel that she writes. What stands out with this beautiful novel not only is the best ever novel that Isabel has written to date, but this novel is a thoughtful novel with a difficult theme.
A complicate entanglement happens when Wren Irving's numbers come up in the first National Lottery draw, she doesn't tell her husband, Rob. Instead she quietly packs her bags, kisses her six-month-old daughter Phoebe goodbye, and leaves.
Two decades later, Rob has moved on and found happiness with their oldest friend Laura. But when a journalist is doing some research uncovering all the lottery winners, and asks Laura about Wren's connection with her lottery win. Laura explains to him that Wren no longer lives at this address. The journalist presses on to Laura and wants to know Wren's last movements and enquired if Wren has been reported missing or if she is dead or alive.
Will Mark Wood the journalist be able to trace where Wren moved to after winning the lottery? And will Rob find out why Wren left him and their daughter. Flight is a story that is full of secrets and lies
June 21, 2015
‘Flight’ – Isabel Ashdown’s fourth novel – is an engaging and emotional story, exploring the ties – and the breaking of the ties – between three people.
Wren, Rob and Laura.
Rob and Laura became the closest of friends when they were young children. Wren become friends with both of them at university; they became a closely-knit, beautifully balanced threesome. That didn’t change when Wren and Rob became a couple, when they married, when they had a child. You might saw that they were their own chosen family.
That changed when Wren’s numbers came up in the first National Lottery draw. She told no one, she simply packed her bags, kissed her baby daughter goodbye, and walked away from her life.
In time Rob and Laura would become a couple, and Laura would take the place of the mother Phoebe had never known.
Twenty years after Wren left Laura was approached by a reporter. He was working on a ‘where are they now’ story about the winners of the first lottery draw. She was already unsettled, because Rob had received a letter and was evasive about what it said and who it was from. And so, when she had a hint of where Wren was she decided it was time to find her , to understand why she had left, to somehow come to terms with what had happened.
There’s a certain level of contrivance in the plot, but no ore than is needed to make the story work. It works very well, because everything that I read felt so real and so possible. And because the characters and relationships were so very well drawn. That make it so easy to believe that I was reading about real people; ordinary people whose stories became significant in the wake of one momentous decision.
I had been concerned that I would struggle to care about the woman who made that decision, but I found that he did. It helped that she chose the life I might wish for in times of trouble – a small house on the Cornish coast, alone but for the company of dogs – and it helped even more that it was clear that, though she would not – or maybe could not – make amends, her life was constrained by the guilt at what she had done and the grief at what she had done.
It was quiet – she was quiet – but it was there.
The woman who had picked up the pieces was easy to like. She was loyal to all those she loved, she put herself out to do what was best for them, and because she was open and honest I found it easy to understand and share in her feelings. I realised that she had both lost and gained a great deal when she effectively stepped into the shoes of a missing wife and mother.
I appreciated that the story affected not only the main characters, but also a younger generation and an older generation. And most of all I appreciated the relationships and the interactions between the characters; they rang so true, with all of the awkwardnesses, uncomfortable silences and unexpected turns that happen often in life and not quite so often in fiction.
The settings – a London suburb and the Cornish coast – were exactly right, and well chosen details helped to make the story sing. I particularly liked the understanding of the relationships between a woman and her dogs, and between those dogs and their beach ….
The narrative moves between character and through time quite naturally, always moving the story forward, always holding the attention.
‘Flight’ is a an engaging and emotional human drama; a story to make you feel and a story to make you think.
Wren, Rob and Laura.
Rob and Laura became the closest of friends when they were young children. Wren become friends with both of them at university; they became a closely-knit, beautifully balanced threesome. That didn’t change when Wren and Rob became a couple, when they married, when they had a child. You might saw that they were their own chosen family.
That changed when Wren’s numbers came up in the first National Lottery draw. She told no one, she simply packed her bags, kissed her baby daughter goodbye, and walked away from her life.
In time Rob and Laura would become a couple, and Laura would take the place of the mother Phoebe had never known.
Twenty years after Wren left Laura was approached by a reporter. He was working on a ‘where are they now’ story about the winners of the first lottery draw. She was already unsettled, because Rob had received a letter and was evasive about what it said and who it was from. And so, when she had a hint of where Wren was she decided it was time to find her , to understand why she had left, to somehow come to terms with what had happened.
There’s a certain level of contrivance in the plot, but no ore than is needed to make the story work. It works very well, because everything that I read felt so real and so possible. And because the characters and relationships were so very well drawn. That make it so easy to believe that I was reading about real people; ordinary people whose stories became significant in the wake of one momentous decision.
I had been concerned that I would struggle to care about the woman who made that decision, but I found that he did. It helped that she chose the life I might wish for in times of trouble – a small house on the Cornish coast, alone but for the company of dogs – and it helped even more that it was clear that, though she would not – or maybe could not – make amends, her life was constrained by the guilt at what she had done and the grief at what she had done.
It was quiet – she was quiet – but it was there.
The woman who had picked up the pieces was easy to like. She was loyal to all those she loved, she put herself out to do what was best for them, and because she was open and honest I found it easy to understand and share in her feelings. I realised that she had both lost and gained a great deal when she effectively stepped into the shoes of a missing wife and mother.
I appreciated that the story affected not only the main characters, but also a younger generation and an older generation. And most of all I appreciated the relationships and the interactions between the characters; they rang so true, with all of the awkwardnesses, uncomfortable silences and unexpected turns that happen often in life and not quite so often in fiction.
The settings – a London suburb and the Cornish coast – were exactly right, and well chosen details helped to make the story sing. I particularly liked the understanding of the relationships between a woman and her dogs, and between those dogs and their beach ….
The narrative moves between character and through time quite naturally, always moving the story forward, always holding the attention.
‘Flight’ is a an engaging and emotional human drama; a story to make you feel and a story to make you think.
June 20, 2015
As a lover of novels with a narrative around families, relationships and ‘what makes us all tick’, I have read all three of Isabel Ashdown’s previous books and she never disappoints. Flight was no exception.
All her novels are very much character driven. Her characters are very much alive, some vulnerable and all subject to the flaws, foibles and emotions with which we, as readers, can so readily identify.
In Flight Laura and Robert have been friends since primary school, later at college together, they meet Wren - and both fall in love with her. Laura couldn’t be happier when her two favourite people decide to marry, and then, eight years later, when Robert and Wren’s daughter, Phoebe, is born Laura is delighted when asked to be her godmother. In fact Laura seems more relaxed with baby Phoebe than Wren herself. Does this have anything to do with Wren’s decision to walk out on them all without trace? As the novel unfolds, told through each of the characters’ voices, we learn the answer to this any many other dark secrets embroiled in their lives and relationships.
Isabel’s sense of place also plays an important part in the success of her novels. The towns in Surrey where Laura, Robert and Wren spent their childhoods and lived together were cosily familiar to me, and Wren’s choice of North Cornwall awakened memories of childhood holidays.
From the following sample I formed my own vivid image of Wren’s cottage – which was uncannily similar to the picture I subsequently discovered to be on the inside cover of my copy of the book.
Estate agent, Jenny, is showing Wren around her prospective new home.
‘Jenny grimaced a further apology. “I’m sure this isn’t what you’re looking for,’ she said, though it sounded like a question. She turned the property papers over in her hands. ‘Of course there is still the garden – I haven’t shown you the garden yet! It’s still quite a selling point, so the details say. Shall we…?’
She led the way through to a simple kitchen at the rear, the tap of her heels echoing harshly within the walls of the gentle cottage. Wren followed as Jenny drew the bolt and eased open the swollen back door, peeling away the salt-dried ivy that had crept over the lintel and up through the hinges. She stepped out, stood aside and allowed Wren to pass through the door and into the jagged, bright light of outdoors.
The land to the rear of the cottage was no more than pasture, gnarly and overgrown, running downhill a few hundred yards to meet the thick gorse bush that surrounded the property, pinning it in, holding it fast against this secluded stretch of coastal path. The garden was perfect, or at least it could be with some attention and time. But it was the view that stopped Wren’s breath. Beyond the grassy decline of her lawn the landscape opened out into a panorama of vast sky, rocky headland and undulating tide, and she halted, giddy, wondering if this might be a dream, she felt so strongly that she’d been here some other time, in some other life.
As a soaring line of migrating birds shadowed the sky overhead, Wren knew she had found her place.’
Twenty years after her disappearance it takes the interference of the meddling media to re-unite Wren with Laura, Rob and Phoebe, causing emotional turmoil and the opening of old wounds for them all.
Some reviewers I have read have found it difficult to like Wren and forgive her. I found that I did. Whilst I couldn’t identify with her reasons for her flight, I came to understand them. Who hasn’t, at some stage in their lives, wished they could just disappear off the face of the earth? Isabel has shown us the shadowy sides of the psychology of marriage, motherhood and friendship, and in the, almost unbearably poignant, final paragraph I felt a fondness and admiration for Wren, and what I felt was her massive sacrifice. I would love to think that life moved on happily for them all.
Flight is possibly Isabel’s best yet and has stayed in my thoughts for days after I finished reading. Now I’m looking forward to Number Five.
All her novels are very much character driven. Her characters are very much alive, some vulnerable and all subject to the flaws, foibles and emotions with which we, as readers, can so readily identify.
In Flight Laura and Robert have been friends since primary school, later at college together, they meet Wren - and both fall in love with her. Laura couldn’t be happier when her two favourite people decide to marry, and then, eight years later, when Robert and Wren’s daughter, Phoebe, is born Laura is delighted when asked to be her godmother. In fact Laura seems more relaxed with baby Phoebe than Wren herself. Does this have anything to do with Wren’s decision to walk out on them all without trace? As the novel unfolds, told through each of the characters’ voices, we learn the answer to this any many other dark secrets embroiled in their lives and relationships.
Isabel’s sense of place also plays an important part in the success of her novels. The towns in Surrey where Laura, Robert and Wren spent their childhoods and lived together were cosily familiar to me, and Wren’s choice of North Cornwall awakened memories of childhood holidays.
From the following sample I formed my own vivid image of Wren’s cottage – which was uncannily similar to the picture I subsequently discovered to be on the inside cover of my copy of the book.
Estate agent, Jenny, is showing Wren around her prospective new home.
‘Jenny grimaced a further apology. “I’m sure this isn’t what you’re looking for,’ she said, though it sounded like a question. She turned the property papers over in her hands. ‘Of course there is still the garden – I haven’t shown you the garden yet! It’s still quite a selling point, so the details say. Shall we…?’
She led the way through to a simple kitchen at the rear, the tap of her heels echoing harshly within the walls of the gentle cottage. Wren followed as Jenny drew the bolt and eased open the swollen back door, peeling away the salt-dried ivy that had crept over the lintel and up through the hinges. She stepped out, stood aside and allowed Wren to pass through the door and into the jagged, bright light of outdoors.
The land to the rear of the cottage was no more than pasture, gnarly and overgrown, running downhill a few hundred yards to meet the thick gorse bush that surrounded the property, pinning it in, holding it fast against this secluded stretch of coastal path. The garden was perfect, or at least it could be with some attention and time. But it was the view that stopped Wren’s breath. Beyond the grassy decline of her lawn the landscape opened out into a panorama of vast sky, rocky headland and undulating tide, and she halted, giddy, wondering if this might be a dream, she felt so strongly that she’d been here some other time, in some other life.
As a soaring line of migrating birds shadowed the sky overhead, Wren knew she had found her place.’
Twenty years after her disappearance it takes the interference of the meddling media to re-unite Wren with Laura, Rob and Phoebe, causing emotional turmoil and the opening of old wounds for them all.
Some reviewers I have read have found it difficult to like Wren and forgive her. I found that I did. Whilst I couldn’t identify with her reasons for her flight, I came to understand them. Who hasn’t, at some stage in their lives, wished they could just disappear off the face of the earth? Isabel has shown us the shadowy sides of the psychology of marriage, motherhood and friendship, and in the, almost unbearably poignant, final paragraph I felt a fondness and admiration for Wren, and what I felt was her massive sacrifice. I would love to think that life moved on happily for them all.
Flight is possibly Isabel’s best yet and has stayed in my thoughts for days after I finished reading. Now I’m looking forward to Number Five.
Read
August 31, 2015Novel set in Cornwall and London (“we’re having a baby”)
Author Isabel Ashdown has a real gift for storytelling – enjoyable, engrossing, with a few twists and turns along the way. Our introduction to her work was originally Summer of ’76 set in the Isle of Wight and in that book she beautifully captured the era and feel of this beautiful island. Flight, her new book, moves through London and into North Cornwall…
Flight is a story of firm friendship, family, abandonment, loss…. and secrets.
Three friends Rob, Laura and Wren form a tight friendship group when they meet as students in the 1990s; it is an unshakeable threesome going into their post Uni days, where mutual support and care is fundamental. They have created a family unit for themselves that suits their individual needs. There are early indicators that Wren comes from a difficult background where mum hasn’t really been emotionally available to her. Laura goes on to find herself in a relationship that isn’t working but struggles to bring it to an end and is all the while desperate to have her own child. And Rob is just content to be a part of it all.
Wren and Rob gravitate towards each other and end up getting married, in Weybridge as it happens. The three of them are so enmeshed that Laura is actively invited to join the happy couple on honeymoon (which feels just a little weird). Soon there is a baby on the way, yet increasingly Wren is becoming a shadow of her former herself. Baby Phoebe is born but Wren is struggling to cope and escapes to Cornwall – and the story develops from there (I will end there as I don’t want to give too much away).
North Cornwall is a terrific setting for Wren’s life in a small cottage, with a pair of tiny dachshunds – the sea pounds, the wind howls, the beach stretches on for ever. She is a tiny figure blending in with dramatic surroundings: “..the pink horizon shimmers beyond the barnacled rocks and pools of the bay, the peace only broken by the fires of gulls feeding some way out. Waders cast shadows along the wet shoreline, a colony of industrious migrants, digging deep for lugworms and rag.” The reader is definitely there with character.
I certainly wanted to see how the story ended, it’s a very readable book. I found myself feeling frustrated, however, with the interactions between the main characters. There is little palpable anger at the ‘loss’ of parent/partner Wren, there are none of the inevitable dynamics of inclusion/exclusion which are often at the heart of such a tight-knit threesome – jealousy, rancour, upset, for example… the real raw emotions never really seemed to manifest. For sure, Rob goes off the rails and sleeps with several women when crisis hits, and Laura disappears for a lengthy period too. A greater exploration of the psychology – hinted at – behind this unusual grouping of characters would have been a real bonus.
It’s nevertheless an engrossing read and a good book to add to your TBR pile.
This review first appeared on our blog: http://www.tripfiction.com/flight-nov...
Author Isabel Ashdown has a real gift for storytelling – enjoyable, engrossing, with a few twists and turns along the way. Our introduction to her work was originally Summer of ’76 set in the Isle of Wight and in that book she beautifully captured the era and feel of this beautiful island. Flight, her new book, moves through London and into North Cornwall…
Flight is a story of firm friendship, family, abandonment, loss…. and secrets.
Three friends Rob, Laura and Wren form a tight friendship group when they meet as students in the 1990s; it is an unshakeable threesome going into their post Uni days, where mutual support and care is fundamental. They have created a family unit for themselves that suits their individual needs. There are early indicators that Wren comes from a difficult background where mum hasn’t really been emotionally available to her. Laura goes on to find herself in a relationship that isn’t working but struggles to bring it to an end and is all the while desperate to have her own child. And Rob is just content to be a part of it all.
Wren and Rob gravitate towards each other and end up getting married, in Weybridge as it happens. The three of them are so enmeshed that Laura is actively invited to join the happy couple on honeymoon (which feels just a little weird). Soon there is a baby on the way, yet increasingly Wren is becoming a shadow of her former herself. Baby Phoebe is born but Wren is struggling to cope and escapes to Cornwall – and the story develops from there (I will end there as I don’t want to give too much away).
North Cornwall is a terrific setting for Wren’s life in a small cottage, with a pair of tiny dachshunds – the sea pounds, the wind howls, the beach stretches on for ever. She is a tiny figure blending in with dramatic surroundings: “..the pink horizon shimmers beyond the barnacled rocks and pools of the bay, the peace only broken by the fires of gulls feeding some way out. Waders cast shadows along the wet shoreline, a colony of industrious migrants, digging deep for lugworms and rag.” The reader is definitely there with character.
I certainly wanted to see how the story ended, it’s a very readable book. I found myself feeling frustrated, however, with the interactions between the main characters. There is little palpable anger at the ‘loss’ of parent/partner Wren, there are none of the inevitable dynamics of inclusion/exclusion which are often at the heart of such a tight-knit threesome – jealousy, rancour, upset, for example… the real raw emotions never really seemed to manifest. For sure, Rob goes off the rails and sleeps with several women when crisis hits, and Laura disappears for a lengthy period too. A greater exploration of the psychology – hinted at – behind this unusual grouping of characters would have been a real bonus.
It’s nevertheless an engrossing read and a good book to add to your TBR pile.
This review first appeared on our blog: http://www.tripfiction.com/flight-nov...
May 24, 2015
I really enjoy Isabel Ashdown's writing. Flight is an extremely thought-provoking story that explores the darkest corners of motherhood and friendship.
Told in the separate voices of the main characters, and narrated over many years, this is a book that hooked me in from page one and had me frantically turning the pages as the story unfolded with unexpected twists and discoveries that shocked me to the core.
Rob, Wren and Laura; three friends who love each other dearly. Laura is free-thinking and passionate, Wren is quieter and deeper and Rob is the man who they both adore. Despite Laura's life-long love for Rob, she is delighted when her two best friends become a couple. Laura is never excluded from their life, she seems to be the glue that keeps them all together. When Rob and Wren's daughter Phoebe is born, Laura is the obvious choice as Godmother and relishes her job.
Wren is slowly fading away. She feels empty inside, she feels that Phoebe should have been Laura's daughter. Wren feels trapped. Is this all there is?
When Wren strikes lucky on the Lottery, she leaves everything. Rob, Laura and Phoebe don't hear from her, or see her for twenty years.
Isabel Ashdown has created a complex web of relationships featuring these three characters. Rob, Laura and Wren don't need anyone else in their lives, everything they do is centred around them and their friendship. Parents, fellow students and colleagues are not needed.
When Wren leaves, their whole life explodes. Laura and Rob deal with their abandonment in their own personal ways and Wren creates a solitary, punishing existence for herself. When, twenty years later they meet again, the secrets that have been kept are laid bare, along with the pain and sorrow caused by Wren's disappearance.
Wren is a difficult character to empathise with throughout the story and when all the facts are revealed at the end of the book, it becomes even more difficult to find anything to like about her. Laura, on the other hand, is strong and selfless. She sacrificed such a lot so that her friends could be happy yet is still forgiving and loyal. Rob is a weak man who allowed the women to guide him, yet his vulnerability and sensitivity endears him to the reader.
Flight is exquisitely written, Isabel Ashdown is a very accomplished author and has created a complex, yet beautifully woven story of love and relationships that is both heart-breaking and though-provoking. Her characters are imperfect, somewhat flawed but oh so human. The story flows perfectly, and the ending is unexpected yet quite perfect.
Told in the separate voices of the main characters, and narrated over many years, this is a book that hooked me in from page one and had me frantically turning the pages as the story unfolded with unexpected twists and discoveries that shocked me to the core.
Rob, Wren and Laura; three friends who love each other dearly. Laura is free-thinking and passionate, Wren is quieter and deeper and Rob is the man who they both adore. Despite Laura's life-long love for Rob, she is delighted when her two best friends become a couple. Laura is never excluded from their life, she seems to be the glue that keeps them all together. When Rob and Wren's daughter Phoebe is born, Laura is the obvious choice as Godmother and relishes her job.
Wren is slowly fading away. She feels empty inside, she feels that Phoebe should have been Laura's daughter. Wren feels trapped. Is this all there is?
When Wren strikes lucky on the Lottery, she leaves everything. Rob, Laura and Phoebe don't hear from her, or see her for twenty years.
Isabel Ashdown has created a complex web of relationships featuring these three characters. Rob, Laura and Wren don't need anyone else in their lives, everything they do is centred around them and their friendship. Parents, fellow students and colleagues are not needed.
When Wren leaves, their whole life explodes. Laura and Rob deal with their abandonment in their own personal ways and Wren creates a solitary, punishing existence for herself. When, twenty years later they meet again, the secrets that have been kept are laid bare, along with the pain and sorrow caused by Wren's disappearance.
Wren is a difficult character to empathise with throughout the story and when all the facts are revealed at the end of the book, it becomes even more difficult to find anything to like about her. Laura, on the other hand, is strong and selfless. She sacrificed such a lot so that her friends could be happy yet is still forgiving and loyal. Rob is a weak man who allowed the women to guide him, yet his vulnerability and sensitivity endears him to the reader.
Flight is exquisitely written, Isabel Ashdown is a very accomplished author and has created a complex, yet beautifully woven story of love and relationships that is both heart-breaking and though-provoking. Her characters are imperfect, somewhat flawed but oh so human. The story flows perfectly, and the ending is unexpected yet quite perfect.
February 11, 2018
Fire the editor or proofreader !! A couple of proper howlers cost this great book its 5*.....I was still going to give it 5* regardless but I haven't with other books when their writers have done the same so in fairness I have to do the same here. The story was a terrific one as usual by this author. Plus with her stories, I have the added bonus of knowing some of the areas she mentions or sets her scenes in which is always an enhancement to a good tale. I have no imagination whatsoever so don't really picture places I don't know so it makes quite a difference for me.
The premise of this particular book was so intriguing, yet that lottery win doesn't feature too heavily. If I'd realised that before beginning I might've been a little disappointed but as it stands, it made no difference at all and it was a nice thing that money wasn't at the root of the whole book. She throws in some neat little red herrings throughout and her characters are all likeable here, whatever they've done. The trio of Laura, Rob and Wren as pals were some splendid chapters. I so loved their relationship. They speak my language and are of my peergroup, too, so their humour and points of reference I recognise and enjoy. There were some lovely, heartfelt incidences perfectly described here and it certainly made me think about the nature vs nurture debate as well. I was left a little confused by Wren's treatment of Rob towards the end....to my way of thinking, he should've been the one with any sort of grudge since she did the leaving, not him !! The last paragraph of the book was a lovely one, too.
I chuckled at the mention of Laura "rattling" up the road on her red skates. A perfect description. Mine had bloody laces and more often than not I was "off the road" as they broke continuously !! But a smooth ride they weren't !! I also got a kick out of the fact she had a name for the Terry's Chocolate Orange 'core nugget'....hehehe.....
One line lost a word-"....Phoebe who stands at the centre of kitchen" but the two horrendous errors were using Laura in one passage when it was meant to be Wren and then talking briefly about a character called Matthew but then changing it to Michael on the next page !! That was the one star lost for me. How nobody spotted that last one in particular is beyond me.
I've just pre-ordered her new book, however, and look forward to it and hope her "people" are paying better attention in that one.
The premise of this particular book was so intriguing, yet that lottery win doesn't feature too heavily. If I'd realised that before beginning I might've been a little disappointed but as it stands, it made no difference at all and it was a nice thing that money wasn't at the root of the whole book. She throws in some neat little red herrings throughout and her characters are all likeable here, whatever they've done. The trio of Laura, Rob and Wren as pals were some splendid chapters. I so loved their relationship. They speak my language and are of my peergroup, too, so their humour and points of reference I recognise and enjoy. There were some lovely, heartfelt incidences perfectly described here and it certainly made me think about the nature vs nurture debate as well. I was left a little confused by Wren's treatment of Rob towards the end....to my way of thinking, he should've been the one with any sort of grudge since she did the leaving, not him !! The last paragraph of the book was a lovely one, too.
I chuckled at the mention of Laura "rattling" up the road on her red skates. A perfect description. Mine had bloody laces and more often than not I was "off the road" as they broke continuously !! But a smooth ride they weren't !! I also got a kick out of the fact she had a name for the Terry's Chocolate Orange 'core nugget'....hehehe.....
One line lost a word-"....Phoebe who stands at the centre of kitchen" but the two horrendous errors were using Laura in one passage when it was meant to be Wren and then talking briefly about a character called Matthew but then changing it to Michael on the next page !! That was the one star lost for me. How nobody spotted that last one in particular is beyond me.
I've just pre-ordered her new book, however, and look forward to it and hope her "people" are paying better attention in that one.
September 14, 2015
I liked the story and the main plot idea: three people with close ties living in happy harmony until one of them breaks away, abandoning her husband and baby daughter and a secret that will be revealed as the story unfolds. Perfect ingredients for a good read.
It is not that Isabel Ashdown cannot write - her prose reads well enough, nothing grates or irritates. But the pacing of this book is all wrong. There was a moment, about half way through, when I felt like just reading the last chapter to get it over with. You can certainly keep your readers in suspense, but Ashdown really overdid it with her multiple narrators going over the same old, same old, never getting on with the "secret" that was keeping this reader turning the pages with rising impatience. And - without wishing to spoil anybody's reading experience - did Phoebe really have to have a baby herself? What was that for? To balance the plot? Her strange explanation for her decision to become pregnant did not work for me at all.
I also had a problem with the psychological aspect of this story: would you really so readily forgive a friend for abandoning her baby - especially as a woman who suffered numerous miscarriages? I find Laura a bit to good to be true - and Phoebe and Robert, too. Wren never really openly repents her sins, instead Laura and the rather cruelly abandoned daughter Phoebe try to get her to open up - and where is all the anger, hurt and feeling of injustice? I found that a bit unrealistic and unsatisfying. Similarly, I did not buy the upbeat behaviour of the second abandoned daughter - being abandoned by your mother is not something you just put behind you after a few minutes' reacquaintance. And frankly, the close friendship between the three protagonists is all very dandy, but a rather too unrealistically saccharine scenario for my liking.
Overall not a very satisfying, rather drawn-out reading experience.
It is not that Isabel Ashdown cannot write - her prose reads well enough, nothing grates or irritates. But the pacing of this book is all wrong. There was a moment, about half way through, when I felt like just reading the last chapter to get it over with. You can certainly keep your readers in suspense, but Ashdown really overdid it with her multiple narrators going over the same old, same old, never getting on with the "secret" that was keeping this reader turning the pages with rising impatience. And - without wishing to spoil anybody's reading experience - did Phoebe really have to have a baby herself? What was that for? To balance the plot? Her strange explanation for her decision to become pregnant did not work for me at all.
I also had a problem with the psychological aspect of this story: would you really so readily forgive a friend for abandoning her baby - especially as a woman who suffered numerous miscarriages? I find Laura a bit to good to be true - and Phoebe and Robert, too. Wren never really openly repents her sins, instead Laura and the rather cruelly abandoned daughter Phoebe try to get her to open up - and where is all the anger, hurt and feeling of injustice? I found that a bit unrealistic and unsatisfying. Similarly, I did not buy the upbeat behaviour of the second abandoned daughter - being abandoned by your mother is not something you just put behind you after a few minutes' reacquaintance. And frankly, the close friendship between the three protagonists is all very dandy, but a rather too unrealistically saccharine scenario for my liking.
Overall not a very satisfying, rather drawn-out reading experience.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 11, 2015
Friendship, motherhood and desertion.
This book is beautifully written, with well described characters and gradually revealed secrets, but it's a bit short on plot.
The question at the heart of the novel is why Wren would have left her husband and six-month-old daughter to go and live a solitary life on the Cornish Coast?
It's hard to say more without giving spoilers, but there were some aspects of the story that didn't quite work for me. Having said that though, it was a compulsive read and well deserving of its four stars.
Rob and Laura have been best friends since primary school and never had any need for anyone else until they meet Wren in the canteen of their secondary school. She is immediately absorbed into their small 'gang' and the three eventually decide to share accommodation at university. Laura feels no resentment when her two best friends decide to get married, but it is what happens after that that leaves both her and Rob reeling in shock.
Personally I feel that many reviewers have given too much away, so I'll say no more about the story-line, except what we learn in the first chapter; that Wren is one of the very first lottery winners, enabling her to make decisions that would not otherwise have been possible.
There is a lot of back-story involved and I did find the transitions a bit jarring at times, but on the whole this book flowed well. Most of my niggles were things that started to annoy me after I had finished and was thinking back over the narrative.
Probably a good book group read, as not everyone will react to events in the same way.
Also read by Isabel Ashdown
Glasshopper (5 stars)
This book is beautifully written, with well described characters and gradually revealed secrets, but it's a bit short on plot.
The question at the heart of the novel is why Wren would have left her husband and six-month-old daughter to go and live a solitary life on the Cornish Coast?
It's hard to say more without giving spoilers, but there were some aspects of the story that didn't quite work for me. Having said that though, it was a compulsive read and well deserving of its four stars.
Rob and Laura have been best friends since primary school and never had any need for anyone else until they meet Wren in the canteen of their secondary school. She is immediately absorbed into their small 'gang' and the three eventually decide to share accommodation at university. Laura feels no resentment when her two best friends decide to get married, but it is what happens after that that leaves both her and Rob reeling in shock.
Personally I feel that many reviewers have given too much away, so I'll say no more about the story-line, except what we learn in the first chapter; that Wren is one of the very first lottery winners, enabling her to make decisions that would not otherwise have been possible.
There is a lot of back-story involved and I did find the transitions a bit jarring at times, but on the whole this book flowed well. Most of my niggles were things that started to annoy me after I had finished and was thinking back over the narrative.
Probably a good book group read, as not everyone will react to events in the same way.
Also read by Isabel Ashdown
Glasshopper (5 stars)
November 30, 2015
No, I really didn't like this book at all!! Despite the good reviews on Goodreads, I got 80% through this audio book and I'm now just giving up. I have been pushing myself but I can't stand it, and so I'm giving up with the end in sight. The story is so slow and totally unrealistic. To think that Wren could act like she did and then still have Laura, Rob and Phoebee running after her 20 years later, forgiving her for everything and chasing her, trying to get her to love them, is just too ludicrous for words. Either Laura is a saint delivered directly from heaven, or this story is a load of rubbish. I think the latter. Not for me I'm afraid.
July 5, 2015
This is a story about three people; Wren who cannot cope with being herself as a mother and wife, Rob her husband, and Laura their friend who is full of life, and fits neatly into the golden trio bringing it love, laughter and life. It is told through the perspectives of each of them, and brings a quality of story telling that is a delight to read.
This is one of my favourite lines because it captures a complete essence with a snapshot line.
Imagine this: you love your friend, you love your husband, your child but you simply cannot stay because you feel…what? Stifled, isolated, dead inside. Ashdown offers a glimpse into the rare unexplained pain of the fear of motherhood and marriage. What should have happened is that your best friend Laura should have stayed with you and Rob, the three of you could have survived together, but grown ups leave behind the group of ‘besties’ and split into adult relationships.
As a mother it is nigh impossible to understand how any one could abandon their child, but reading this story brought a memory back of a friend (with mental health difficulties) who did the same thing for similar reasons and I was blown away by Ashdown’s perfect account of the emotions surrounding the whole thing. Such wonderfully, softly written complexity of life that speaks the unspeakable.
Wren’s life in Cornwall is quite enviable with life itself melting into the landscape. Isolation in the most beautifulest of places, self sufficiency and a cottage just big enough for one and a couple of dogs. But, life has a way of finding you and catching up.
However this is definitely not a predictable book at all, it not simply about how they each cope emotionally, it is about secrets that will shock and change everything forever.
This is a book you have to read if you like well written complex relationships.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am so please to have received this book as a Goodreads first reads winner. Thank you!
This is one of my favourite lines because it captures a complete essence with a snapshot line.
“The sole of the bongo player’s leather boot flapped at the heel, snapping in rhythm with his stride, opening and closing like a lazy mouth”.
Imagine this: you love your friend, you love your husband, your child but you simply cannot stay because you feel…what? Stifled, isolated, dead inside. Ashdown offers a glimpse into the rare unexplained pain of the fear of motherhood and marriage. What should have happened is that your best friend Laura should have stayed with you and Rob, the three of you could have survived together, but grown ups leave behind the group of ‘besties’ and split into adult relationships.
As a mother it is nigh impossible to understand how any one could abandon their child, but reading this story brought a memory back of a friend (with mental health difficulties) who did the same thing for similar reasons and I was blown away by Ashdown’s perfect account of the emotions surrounding the whole thing. Such wonderfully, softly written complexity of life that speaks the unspeakable.
Wren’s life in Cornwall is quite enviable with life itself melting into the landscape. Isolation in the most beautifulest of places, self sufficiency and a cottage just big enough for one and a couple of dogs. But, life has a way of finding you and catching up.
However this is definitely not a predictable book at all, it not simply about how they each cope emotionally, it is about secrets that will shock and change everything forever.
This is a book you have to read if you like well written complex relationships.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am so please to have received this book as a Goodreads first reads winner. Thank you!
July 13, 2015
Everything about being a wife and mother seems to smother Wren. She feels has lost her identity and she is suffocating. She flees in terror. But twenty years later, the past is at her door wanting answers!
And Wren isn't the only one with secrets! 1st read from this author- would read again.
And Wren isn't the only one with secrets! 1st read from this author- would read again.
June 26, 2015
I loved this book all I wanted to do was keep reading, I don't really know what else to say except it's a wonderful read from beginning to end.
April 19, 2024
I read this for my book club. I had never heard of the author before, or read any of her other books. The cover is pretty and would certainly catch my eye.
This is a story that focuses on relationships and it follows Rob, Laura, and Wren. Rob and Laura have been best friends since childhood and when they meet Wren at university, the three of them are inseparable. Fast forward to their thirties and Rob and Wren are married with a young baby. Wren is struggling and when she discovers she’s won the lottery she leaves, instructing a solicitor to inform Rob she doesn’t want to be contacted. Left alone with their baby, Laura steps in to help Rob and they become a couple.
Twenty years later, a journalist is writing a piece on the first lottery winners and has found Wren. Will her reclusive life she’s built come crumbling down?
I found the story readable enough and I liked some aspects of it. The descriptions of the rugged and remote Cornish coastline were good, and I loved Wren’s dachshund dogs. 🥰 Unfortunately, I didn’t really like the characters. Their reactions and actions seemed unbelievable and strange to me. No one ever seems to be annoyed with Wren for abandoning her family and they’re so forgiving of what she did. Phoebe’s reasoning behind having a baby were bizarre to me, she could have got a pet if she wanted to mother and love.
The ending was such a disappointment, I thought I was missing a chapter. It’s all happy families which I felt was so unrealistic. I think everyone in the family would have needed therapy and support to cope with the changes.
Overall I was disappointed with this book. The slow pace and unbelievable plot points let it down for me.
2.5 stars rounded to 2.
This is a story that focuses on relationships and it follows Rob, Laura, and Wren. Rob and Laura have been best friends since childhood and when they meet Wren at university, the three of them are inseparable. Fast forward to their thirties and Rob and Wren are married with a young baby. Wren is struggling and when she discovers she’s won the lottery she leaves, instructing a solicitor to inform Rob she doesn’t want to be contacted. Left alone with their baby, Laura steps in to help Rob and they become a couple.
Twenty years later, a journalist is writing a piece on the first lottery winners and has found Wren. Will her reclusive life she’s built come crumbling down?
I found the story readable enough and I liked some aspects of it. The descriptions of the rugged and remote Cornish coastline were good, and I loved Wren’s dachshund dogs. 🥰 Unfortunately, I didn’t really like the characters. Their reactions and actions seemed unbelievable and strange to me. No one ever seems to be annoyed with Wren for abandoning her family and they’re so forgiving of what she did. Phoebe’s reasoning behind having a baby were bizarre to me, she could have got a pet if she wanted to mother and love.
The ending was such a disappointment, I thought I was missing a chapter. It’s all happy families which I felt was so unrealistic. I think everyone in the family would have needed therapy and support to cope with the changes.
Overall I was disappointed with this book. The slow pace and unbelievable plot points let it down for me.
2.5 stars rounded to 2.
June 19, 2018
For much of this story I persevered with much skipping of pages. The thing is, I was intrigued with the thread of the story. Briefly, Wren, married to Rob, up and leaves the marriage, leaving behind her 6 month old baby Phoebe. I wanted to find out why this happened and what happens to each character. To Phoebe, now 20 years old, to Rob settled now in his life with Laura who slipped back into his life and became mother to Phoebe, and of course to Wren, who did the unthinkable.
This story began to take hold and I loved the raw realism of the emotions the writer portrayed. Her skill in painting the environment of London and Cornwall as the characters interacted in these places was vivid and believable.
My frustration lay in the continued flashbacks to build the background to each person. I generally don’t love flashbacks, but they are important to give depth and forward movement to the story. Isabel Ashdown used flashback to make sense of what each person meant to the other, which in turn allows the reader to understand the direction of the plot. I get that, but having skipped many pages to pick up the forward thread didn’t detract from my overall satisfaction of the story when I reached the end.
Overall I loved the way the writer made me believe this story of flawed people trying to navigate their lives in their own way while being connected to one another. However I don’t regret skipping pages of what seemed to me repetitive storyline.
This story began to take hold and I loved the raw realism of the emotions the writer portrayed. Her skill in painting the environment of London and Cornwall as the characters interacted in these places was vivid and believable.
My frustration lay in the continued flashbacks to build the background to each person. I generally don’t love flashbacks, but they are important to give depth and forward movement to the story. Isabel Ashdown used flashback to make sense of what each person meant to the other, which in turn allows the reader to understand the direction of the plot. I get that, but having skipped many pages to pick up the forward thread didn’t detract from my overall satisfaction of the story when I reached the end.
Overall I loved the way the writer made me believe this story of flawed people trying to navigate their lives in their own way while being connected to one another. However I don’t regret skipping pages of what seemed to me repetitive storyline.
August 1, 2018
Having become a mother for the second time at the age of thirty-nine, I could readily identify with Wren's longing to escape the confines of motherhood. I think most women with domestic ties could readily admit they've often dreamt of a big lottery win to enable their flight. I love the way Isabel Ashdown weaves the past and the present into her novels. As I'm of a similar age, I could easily relate to Rob, Wren and Laura's student days. There are some nice touches to evoke the era (Terry's Chocolate Orange's 'core nugget' and the photo booth passport size shots of a group of friends) and Isabel Ashdown has a knack of bringing both era and setting alive with great attention to detail. The thing I like most about Isabel Ashdown's novels is that fact she focuses on characters and their flaws. She also introduces a couple of great plot twists. I did find the reunion scenes at the end went round in circles a little, though, but this is the only slight niggle. All-in-all a great read!
June 13, 2019
Set against the back-drop of London and Cornwall, this book is beautifully written. It is, however, very repetitive at times and I found myself struggling a little to get to the end and with a number of unanswered questions. I have no doubt that Wren has experienced a significant mental breakdown and trauma and I would have liked to have seen this explored a bit more. Also, Laura is portrayed throughout as a feisty, assertive woman and yet she seems to immediately forgive Wren for abandoning them (and giving up her second child) all those years before. I just dont believe this would happen, especially after experiencing such losses herself. And why was Phoebe pregnant? This just seems unnecessary. An enjoyable book but sadly left too many questions unanswered for me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 2, 2018
Touching, compelling, frank.
I am on holidays and was keen for something readable and satisfying. This book is both. The interdependence of central characters is unconventional yet believable as it is fraught with those nuances of human frailty.
I love the way this book deals with birth as psychological minefield rather than a physical hurdle. It also investigates issues pertaining to the Nature v Nurture debate, settling on environment as the key influential element... Or does it?
I am on holidays and was keen for something readable and satisfying. This book is both. The interdependence of central characters is unconventional yet believable as it is fraught with those nuances of human frailty.
I love the way this book deals with birth as psychological minefield rather than a physical hurdle. It also investigates issues pertaining to the Nature v Nurture debate, settling on environment as the key influential element... Or does it?
May 20, 2018
Unfortunately I've filed this one on the Did Not Finish shelf. Isabel Ashdown appears to be a good writer, and the story was engaging enough at first but as it progressed, I found the characters harder and harder to engage with, and the relationship between Robert, Laura and Wren just didn't ring true. I didn't feel that the different viewpoint technique worked in this novel, and the constant flipping between the present and the past became tiresome and detracted from the story rather than adding to it. I rarely do a DNF with any novel but in some cases life's just too short. Next!
September 23, 2018
I found the actions of these characters quite inexplicable. Wren’s running away when she found herself pregnant again,she was to my mind suffering from postnatal depression. Laura’s almost saintlike behaviour, except that she ran away when Rob needed her most. Phoebe’s desire to have a baby? Ava’s desire to reconnect with her biological parents is understandable but her joyous acceptance of Wren is a bit hard to take.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 4, 2019
Bloody terrible. One of the most boring and drawn out books ever. The author really had a great opportunity to draw some light on post-natal depression, but instead blew over it and went into so much detail about the most inane of things. Honestly, this is a few hours of my life I’m never getting back. I actually feel depressed from having wasted my life reading this dribble.
Do yourself a favour, don’t read it.... nothing happens. You’re welcome. Xx
Do yourself a favour, don’t read it.... nothing happens. You’re welcome. Xx
March 30, 2020
I picked this randomly up from the library but it ended up being an easy read.
Has a mix of relationship realities, slight mental health struggles and reverting back to simple livelihoods.
The reason I didn't give it 5 stars was that sometimes it was hard to tell if the paragraphs were in the past or present tense as it jumped around between the 2 quite often.
All in all, it was an easy read with some slight twists to keep me hooked on reading it.
Has a mix of relationship realities, slight mental health struggles and reverting back to simple livelihoods.
The reason I didn't give it 5 stars was that sometimes it was hard to tell if the paragraphs were in the past or present tense as it jumped around between the 2 quite often.
All in all, it was an easy read with some slight twists to keep me hooked on reading it.
May 15, 2018
This is a complex beautifully written story. The cast is small but make up for it by their different co defendant needs. In many ways Wren, Robert and Laura are made for each other. But Wren goes...
Well worth the read. Some parts are tough but as it is written sensitively and so well it is always compelling and interesting.
Well worth the read. Some parts are tough but as it is written sensitively and so well it is always compelling and interesting.
October 17, 2017
Good read
I enjoyed this book, the characters were interesting. A good plot and well written.
I would recommend this book and would read another by this author.
I enjoyed this book, the characters were interesting. A good plot and well written.
I would recommend this book and would read another by this author.
August 11, 2018
Couldn't put it down
Another brilliant book by Isabel Ashdown. I won't spoil the plot but it's an excellent story that I couldn't stop reading.
Another brilliant book by Isabel Ashdown. I won't spoil the plot but it's an excellent story that I couldn't stop reading.
August 30, 2018
This is a good, solid book. The author did an amazing job on character development. The story was engaging and intriguing.
May 31, 2020
This was very well-written and began well, but I felt the pace in the last third. And I also don't understand everything from the last chapters, but maybe that's brain fog.
April 26, 2018
A mystery novel, no crime, no police but just a mostly satisfying story of human behaviour. Wren, Robert and Laura are firm friends. When Robert and Wren marry and have a baby, Phoebe, Laura couldn't have been happier. And the love Wren and Laura have for one another is at least as great as the love Robert has for them. This is not the human behaviour we have been led to expect.
So when Wren has a lottery win and leaves her baby and husband and best friend there is a mystery. Why? Where? Everyone behaves well. There is no unpleasant character who has been pulling the strings behind the scenes. It was nice to read a book full of such attractive characters. The tension comes from trying to work out Wren's motives.
And we have a case of a woman overwhelmed with marriage and parenthood who just needs to live a solitary life with few needs. It is revealed slowly with POV chapters from all three characters and from 20 year old Phoebe as Wren's privacy is suddenly exposed. Even then everyone behaves with sensitivity and care for one another. It was intriguing, and tense and there were secrets and revelations and it was good to read a book that managed all this with no real dark side.
So when Wren has a lottery win and leaves her baby and husband and best friend there is a mystery. Why? Where? Everyone behaves well. There is no unpleasant character who has been pulling the strings behind the scenes. It was nice to read a book full of such attractive characters. The tension comes from trying to work out Wren's motives.
And we have a case of a woman overwhelmed with marriage and parenthood who just needs to live a solitary life with few needs. It is revealed slowly with POV chapters from all three characters and from 20 year old Phoebe as Wren's privacy is suddenly exposed. Even then everyone behaves with sensitivity and care for one another. It was intriguing, and tense and there were secrets and revelations and it was good to read a book that managed all this with no real dark side.
September 29, 2016
quite likeable characters but the plot just got too daft and i ended up disliking the whole thing.
June 15, 2015
The prologue sets the scene but more importantly, from Wren's body language we can tell where she is emotionally in her life with husband Rob and baby Phoebe.
Each character narrates and we learn different things from each of them. I love how this provokes different emotions as we see the character through someone else's eyes.
Moving between the past and the present, we come to understand that Robert and Laura were inseparable growing up as children. The friendship keeps strong, despite all the traumas of college/adult life and their bond is important in so many ways. When Laura has to do something on her own, the impact on Rob is devastating... Wren's bond with Laura goes deeper than friendship and I was eager to see what would happen at one point in the story.
One of my favourite scenes has to be Rob going back to the house they shared in Uni. I wondered what the impact would be on him and what he would take from the experience to move the story forward - how did it fit with what we already knew?
There is another layer of intrigue and I was totally wrong in my assumption. I have to say this threw me and I had to stop reading to re-evaluate my thoughts. Don't you just love it when this happens!
I had a vested interest in Wren's character and I wasn't disappointed in the depth Isabel Ashdown goes into her psyche. I found her complex personality fascinating and she is my favourite character. This is unusual for me as she isn't the character we see 'grow' the most, however, she is the character that took me to the shadows, I have no hesitation in saying I understood her.
The Cornwall portrayed in Flight is isolated and I often felt desolate here. The outer reflected the inner - there had to be something that happened to force a change (or so I believe).
I read the ending through tears (such an emotional scene). It was a month ago that I read Flight but I'm still thinking about what will happen next ... what I hope would happen (but it wouldn't be easy).
I've been a fan of Isabel's since I bought Glasshopper in 2011. You can read my reviews of Glasshopper, Hurry Up and Wait and Summer of '76 on JJ's WP blog. They all have something in common - not only leaving me thinking about the story long after it's ended ... but also the way Isabel lays bare emotions we don't want to acknowledge or own up to feeling. She is skilled at getting behind the reasons for behaviours and giving that all important hope.
I'm offering an International giveaway on the blog http://www.jerasjamboree.co.uk/2015/0...
Each character narrates and we learn different things from each of them. I love how this provokes different emotions as we see the character through someone else's eyes.
Moving between the past and the present, we come to understand that Robert and Laura were inseparable growing up as children. The friendship keeps strong, despite all the traumas of college/adult life and their bond is important in so many ways. When Laura has to do something on her own, the impact on Rob is devastating... Wren's bond with Laura goes deeper than friendship and I was eager to see what would happen at one point in the story.
One of my favourite scenes has to be Rob going back to the house they shared in Uni. I wondered what the impact would be on him and what he would take from the experience to move the story forward - how did it fit with what we already knew?
There is another layer of intrigue and I was totally wrong in my assumption. I have to say this threw me and I had to stop reading to re-evaluate my thoughts. Don't you just love it when this happens!
I had a vested interest in Wren's character and I wasn't disappointed in the depth Isabel Ashdown goes into her psyche. I found her complex personality fascinating and she is my favourite character. This is unusual for me as she isn't the character we see 'grow' the most, however, she is the character that took me to the shadows, I have no hesitation in saying I understood her.
The Cornwall portrayed in Flight is isolated and I often felt desolate here. The outer reflected the inner - there had to be something that happened to force a change (or so I believe).
I read the ending through tears (such an emotional scene). It was a month ago that I read Flight but I'm still thinking about what will happen next ... what I hope would happen (but it wouldn't be easy).
I've been a fan of Isabel's since I bought Glasshopper in 2011. You can read my reviews of Glasshopper, Hurry Up and Wait and Summer of '76 on JJ's WP blog. They all have something in common - not only leaving me thinking about the story long after it's ended ... but also the way Isabel lays bare emotions we don't want to acknowledge or own up to feeling. She is skilled at getting behind the reasons for behaviours and giving that all important hope.
I'm offering an International giveaway on the blog http://www.jerasjamboree.co.uk/2015/0...
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews