Background:
I ended up picking this book for the Take A Chance Challenge#5. You might have noticed that in my original book selection, I had opted for Mary Higgins Clark's Just Take My Heart. However, that book is not out in paperback yet, so... I went back to the phone book and found the name "Hill".
With Howard's End Is On The Landing out recently, and loads of bloggers reviewing it, I figured Susan Hill was the sensible choice! And so, here it is... Susan Hill's The Beacon. Just for the record, this is the first Susan Hill I've read....
The book opens with Mrs. Prime's peaceful death at The Beacon, where she lives with one of her children, May. Two of the others have married locally, and quiet, almost reticent Frank lives in London. May had gone to London to study to escape from the bleak country-life, but, hallucinations and nightmares drove her to return to the safety of home within the year.
While May is contemplating making the call to her siblings, she tries to figure out if she should call Frank - Frank who betrayed the entire family, and who they haven't spoken to since. This leads to retrospection: looking back at how events unfolded, and the impact it had on the family as a whole.
Mostly written in May's voice, this book does explore a very interesting topic. Frank's ultimate betrayal is writing a book in first person, entitled The Story Of One Boy's Brutal Childhood, where he talks of his life in the "cupboard under the stairs" (very Harry Potter-like), and the abuse he suffered at the hands of his older siblings and father. However, as the other children (now adults) remember it, this is mere fabrication, and none of it ever happened. However, as they live in a small village in Ireland, the family name has been tarnished, and it's almost impossible for them to vindicate themselves. Also, a doubt has formed in everyone's mind, and the siblings themselves cannot determine what's the truth, and what they have deleted from their memories.
While the premise is interesting, i.e. how a memoir like Frank's victimises the family, the book in itself fell flat. It started off being interesting, but as it progressed, it left a lot to be desired... specially the ending, which was at best ambiguous. Based on this, I don't think I'll be seeking out more of Susan Hill's works.
Rating: 2.5