The Secret Starling by Judith Eagle illustrated by Kim Geyer, review by Lynda Waterhouse

 My selection process for this blogpost was to walk into a bookshop, browse and see what happens….

 I was in Hatchards in St Pancras on the evening of a rail strike so it was pretty quiet when I picked up Judith Eagle’s debut novel. I liked the feel of the book both physically and subliminally; it felt substantial but not overwhelming. The silver stair rods of rain and the two windswept figures on the moors were intriguing as was the title, The Secret Starling, also picked out in silver. Emma Carroll and Hilary McKay recommended it. The book was signed by the author! There were echoes of Noel Streatfeild and I had recently been on a binge of her adult novels including her recently re-issued Susan Scarlett novels (shout out to the Furrowed Middlebrow series at Dean Street Press).

The top and bottom of it was that it felt like it was meant to be chosen by yours truly.

The story is set in the 1970s with orphan Clara Starling living with her cold and aloof Uncle Edward in the crumbling Braithwaite Manor. She has to follow a dull and boring routine with the only warmth coming from Cook and the books her mother had read as child. Then one day her uncle abandons her in the village with a wodge of ‘guilt’ money and a vague mention of going to Cook’s. Clara has other ideas and returns to the now up for sale, Braithwaite.

A visitor the same age as her, Peter, and his rescue cat, Stockwell, turn up unexpectedly to stay and now, with all adults nowhere in sight, the adventure truly begins. There are many mysteries to solve, not least the discovery of the ballet slipper underneath the floorboards.

There are so many classic mystery story elements and twisty plot points in the book that could have made the story clichéd and a mere Streatfeild pastiche but, in the hands of this accomplished author, that is not the case. The story is exciting, the characters all have real heart and the villains are cruel but also believably human with their jealousies and frailties.

Life in the 1970s is handled well with just enough period detail to resonate with those of us of a certain age and also to intrigue younger readers.

I particularly like the Cold War and ballet themes which dovetail around the story of Clara’s mother and also include a guest appearance from Rudolph Nureyev.

In her acknowledgement Judith says,

‘And last but not least, thank you, Reader, for choosing this book. The Secret Starling will be a tiny piece in the rich patchwork of books you will go on to read. I wish you all the best on your reading journey!’ Thank you for writing this Judith and I look forward to reading more.

This a perfect read for half-term.

 

ISBN 978-0-571-34630-1

Faber &Faber