The Last Lighthouse Keeper - Softcover

Titchmarsh, Alan

3.7

538 ratings by Goodreads

9780743478458: The Last Lighthouse Keeper

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0743478452 ISBN 13: 9780743478458

Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK, 2004

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Will Elliott is out of a job. The lighthouse he's been manning on Prince Albert Rock, off the wild Cornish coast, is about to become automated. So Will decides to fulfil his lifelong ambition - to sail round the coastline of Britain. Determined to continue his solitary existence, Will begins his preparations for his epic voyage. But before he has time to so much as paint his hull, he meets Amy Finn - a beautiful artist and fellow loner. And as if that isn't distraction enough, suddenly his sleepy Cornish village is rocked by the biggest scandal to hit Cornwall since Guenevere ran off with Launcelot. It seems as if Will will never get away, and even if he does will his journey be solo or is there hope that he and Amy could be embarking on a two-man voyage of discovery?

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Review:

"Viking, North Utsira, South Utsira, Dogger, Fisher, German Bight." The exotic names of the shipping forecast--the opening words of Alan Titchmarsh's second novel--never fail to evoke an annoyingly patriotic nostalgia in Brits: no matter what else changes, their country is still an island with miserable weather.

The fictional Cornish world of Pencurnow Cove seems at first sight to be the forecast's literary equivalent: the kind of village where the landmarks (pub and post office) are populated by obligingly eccentric locals; where Loaded and FHM are sold under the counter, as overly racy; and where borderline criminals are easily identified by hints of foreignness ("Len Gryler looked as if he was of Italian ancestry") or a loud London accent ("Bladdy hell, woman"). It's the kind of world only Enid Blyton ever lived in. But Titchmarsh's nostalgic Cornwall is no life-enhancing, organic community: it serves primarily as a retreat for battered victims of the real world. Will Elliott has spent the last six years in Prince Albert Rock Lighthouse, failing to grieve for his pregnant wife, killed in a hit-and-run; Amy Finn is a one-time Ballet Rambert ballerina, felled by a knee injury and plagued by her ex-lover and dance partner. When the lighthouse closes, Will buys a motor launch and attempts to build a new life; his attraction to Amy threatens to make him face his grief. Titchmarsh seems unsure what to make of the dilemmas facing the inhabitants of Pencurnow Cove. Though mourning the passing of the lighthouses, he appears to embrace the possibilities of the new world. Following his more upbeat bestseller Mr MacGregor, The Last Lighthouse Keeper is a gentle, well-written tale, whose picturesque setting will no doubt appeal to the tourist in us all--but in the sudden, deeply-felt sufferings of its hero, there's a glimpse of something much tougher. --Alan Stewart

About the Author:

Alan Titchmarsh is the author of four bestselling novels. He has been the main presenter on BBC2's GARDENER'S WORLD since 1996 and is also the main presenter on GROUND FORCE and his new series HOW TO BE A GARDENER.

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