To have rebranded the town as ‘Saltwash-on-Sea’ was such a simple bit of ingenuity, knowing that ‘sea’ promised things that ‘estuary’ never did. Fun. Romance. Adventure. Or the most modest incarnations of such excitements, at least. This was England after all.
Tom takes the train to Saltwash on a November Sunday afternoon, hoping to dodge the approaching storm. Run by the Paley family, the imposing Castle Hotel reflects the diminishing fortunes of the town. There’s no warm welcome, but Tom settles himself in the bar with a whiskey, eager to meet the man whose erudite, friendly letters he thinks hide loneliness, somewhat bemused by the crowds of excited old people arriving dressed in their finest. When he’s invited to join a table, it emerges that his fellow guests know and love Oliver who arranges this yearly get together which culminates in a lottery whose prize no one seems willing to divulge. They’re a mixed bunch but each, it seems, has a reason to feel guilt, as does Tom who knows that he denied his ex-wife the thing she most wanted. When Oliver finally arrives, he and Tom sit down to a meal, exchanging their life stories. Excitement mounts for the draw but the revelation of its prize shocks Tom.
There were restitutions to be made. Long standing offences to confess and atone for.
Hurley unfolds the evening’s events from Tom’s perspective, reminding us now and again that his condition has led to bouts of amnesia. The suitably dark and stormy backdrop is smartly evoked, with the hotel’s threadbare elegance echoed by the guests. Tom is enlightened by asides from one of the younger Paleys who has something to say about the guests’ various sins, some of them heinous. His own relatively mild behaviour and obvious remorse make Tom a likeable character although it doesn’t entirely fit the setup. Hurley kept me guessing about Oliver and this odd annual event for much of this atmospheric novel which would make a great film in the right hands.
John Murray: London 9781399817530 256 pages Hardback (read via NetGalley)
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Well, this sounds quite beguiling to another AMH refuser.
I approached it with caution and enjoyed it much more than I expected.
How enticing! I’ve added Saltwash to my own list. If it gets made into a film I’d watch it, too!
Excellent! Definitely a film not a series – it’s just the right length. Fingers crossed…
I’ve read all of Hurley’s previous work. I’m 20% into the Kindle book on this one and finding it slow going as it’s definitely a lot less suspenseful than his others. The Loney has been my favourite — very atmospheric and some interesting religious references. I’ll come back to your review when I’ve managed to finish.
That’s pretty well in line with other fans’ verdicts on Netgalley. I hope it gets better for you.
I read this last week (review incoming) and thought it a bit slow and not what I expected at all. It’s well written though and he does place and atmosphere really well.
I think it worked for me because I’d not read anything else by him. I found the atmosphere its main attraction.
A lottery makes me think of *The* Lottery, the Shirley Jackson one… can’t decide if it would be better for AMH to be doing an homage here or not! For some reason The Loney didn’t work well for me and I’ve avoided his stuff since, but I may be doing him an injustice.
I did wonder about that! This is the only one of his I’ve read but I gather it’s not very representative.
Intriguing! I’ve been avoiding him too, but you may have made me rethink!
I don’t think this one’s typical of his writing but I enjoyed it.
I’m not one for folk horror either but you have tempted me with this one. I was thinking as I read your review that I could see it being adapted, so your final line is affirming!
Lots of rundown estuary towns offering the right setting should any film makers be interested!
I rather like folk-horror so I should be reading Hurley – I’ve missed him as yet and this sounds very tempting indeed.
I gather from other reviews that fans were a bit disappointed with that aspect of Saltwash but I enjoyed it. The Loney seems to be the favourite.
In the past couple years I’ve made a reading friend who loves folk-horror and it has made me rethink a little. I’ll have to suggest this one to her: thanks!
I gather this is the least scary of his novels by far which suits me fine!