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The Blackstone Key, Rose Melikan***
ALL works of historical fiction benefit from having their roots buried deep in the soil of fact, and Rose Melikan's impressive debut novel is no exception to the rule.
Set in 1795, it features a likeable heroine, Mary Finch, who becomes embroiled in an intriguing mixture of spies, smugglers and secrets.
It's a dramatic, highly-atmospheric story which the book's flyleaf optimistically compares to Daphne du Maurier's classic Jamaica Inn.
That's pushing it a bit, but I know what they mean. Melikan's prose style has a distinct between-the-wars feel, which perfectly complements her subject matter and soon becomes quite beguiling.
True, the wide reaches of the Suffolk coast where Melikan's plot unfolds are far removed from the smugglers' coves of Cornwall; but she still conjures up enough atmosphere to ensure the reader's interest never flags. RC
SPHERE, 10
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Weather for Leeds
Wednesday 23 May 2012
Today
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