I think I should begin by telling you that this was not the uplifting tale I was expecting it to be. If you are looking for a light and fluffy story, dear reader, this is not going to be it.

Still here...? Ok, we shall begin.

This is the story of Romilly, the Illustrated Child herself, who lives in a dilapidated country house with her eccentric father, and becomes somewhat of celebrity after he writes a series of intricately decorated books with her as the central character.

On the surface, her childhood may seem free and rather romantic as she wanders the countryside in the company of her one enigma of a friend, Stacey, having adventures that would make the Famous Five proud, and living in a moated "castle" filled with echoes of its previous inhabitants. Her life is filled with nature, and the love and magical tales of her larger than life father. But appearances can be deceptive, as we find out all too well.

For Romilly's past is filled with goings on that she does not understand, and only has vague memories of. There are secrets in her past and her father does not seem keen to tell her what they are. Where is her mother, and why does she not live with them? Why is her father so distracted and reticent about why they are living the way they are? Why is he compelled to portray her as a Peter Pan character that never grows up? And all this is only complicated by the fame and intrusive attention that comes their way as a result of the books - because the public are convinced that they hold clues to the whereabouts of treasure and Romilly has become their own public property.

As Romilly grows up, she begins to realise that things are not quite right. What did happen when she was four years old that changed their lives so much? It is down to her to follow the clues laid down in her father's books and see if she can find out the truth, and the truth when it comes is terribly sad - and I did not see it coming, which I take my hat off to Polly Crosby for! Superb story writing!

Polly Crosby's decision to tell this story through the eyes of Romilly is rather clever, as everything becomes coloured by her pervading sense of bewilderment versus dawning understanding that is appropriate to her age at each stage of the book - and we are with her every step of the heart breaking voyage through time, which makes it all the more emotional.

This book takes us to some dark and distressing places. It is the kind of story that does not simply tug on the heart strings - instead it grips your heart like a vice and rips it from your body, leaving you broken and bleeding on the ground.

There are some very heavy subjects explored in these pages: love, lies, secrets, abandonment, grief, loss, guilt, neglect, anger, sexuality, dementia and the fragility of mental health. It is fair to say that I found much of this very upsetting and difficult to read, but it is compelling reading - beware if you are of a sensitive nature!

Polly Crosby's writing is outstanding and she handles the smorgasbord of difficult subjects beautifully, with both compassion and sensitivity. Interestingly, she makes no judgement on the adults in this tale, even though Romilly bears the brunt of their compulsion to work through their own problems at her expense, but I did struggle with this, as the effect of their behaviour on an innocent child is no less shocking for being able to understand the reasons why they have acted in this way. Is it enough to love your child, however fiercely, if you are complicit in hurting them through your own actions, errors and omissions? I leave you to make up your own minds on this one.

As a debut, this is mighty impressive work. Our author has managed to combine elements of a kitchen sink drama; a dark, haunting fairy tale; a supernatural ghost story; a mystery; and a coming of age story into one heart rending novel. It's one that does leave you with questions and the need to talk about the experience you have just gone through, and for this reason I think it would a perfect book club book. I promise you, there is plenty to talk about in these pages, if you are bold enough to make the journey.

Compelling tale of loneliness, loss and neglect. A dark magical fairytale of slow abandonment.
Felt very connected to Romilly and her father and cared very much for them both. This is an astonishing debut.
I felt very sad for Romilly and worried about her present and future.
Beautiful prose with vivid sensory descriptions make this sad tale a joy to read.
A book that will haunt your thoughts long after the last page.

This book is one of my most anticipated books of 2020. I've been green with envy at others receiving the gorgeous proofs and am so glad I've finally had the chance to read it.

From the title and cover I had imagined a lighthearted and uplifting read, but thankfully I'd read a few reviews and been warned that it is a darker book than you expect. That being said, it's one that's best read blind so I'm not going to reveal much about the plot.

I absolutely adored this book. I was immediately captivated by the beautiful prose and lost in Romilly's strange world. The author has crafted an intricate, layered novel that has so much hidden beneath its surface. She holds the reader captive as she slowly unveils the truths waiting to be discovered, like the rumoured clues to the hidden treasure in Tobias' stories.

I loved Romilly. She is a fantastic and fascinating heroine who is a paradox in the way many children are: independent but vulnerable, strong but weak, daring but afraid. She hasn't had the easiest life and I couldn't help but feel for her, especially as the story went on. From the start I felt an affinity with her as I also had a part-siamese cat with a kink in its tail when I was younger, though he didn't have a name nearly as important.

This story consumed me. I didn't want to put it down, not even to go to sleep, I was so immersed in its pages. Emotionally resonant, there wasn't a feeling it didn't make me feel as I lived every moment with Romilly. I needed to know what her future held, where she ended up, if my predictions were right.

Evocative, dark, haunting and mesmerising, this is one of my favourite books this year. A sensational debut from an extraordinary new talent that you don't want to miss.

READ. THIS. BOOK.

https://thecaffeinatedreader.com/2020...

Crosby’s debut novel is both haunting and innocent all at once.

The writing is done with the sort of care that deeply pulls you into the story and somehow keeps you on edge from the outsider’s perspective, you know that something is being hidden, and it is what ‘taints’ the innocence of Romilly.

There is a hunt hidden in the pages of the books Romilly's father writes. But it’s not for gold or jewels, and he’s done it all for Romilly. Whatever the hunt will reveal, it’s for her to find out, not the readers.

It was breathtaking and sorrowful watching Romilly grow up and have things revealed, not just the scavenger hunt which happens later on, but revelations about her father, and her mother who reappears at one point.

The truth can be a very hard pill to swallow and the truths Romilly must deal with also make her grow up before her time. Though she has the help of her friend, something is still not right as things keep being revealed.

Truly, heartbreaking and sad, this book was a very emotional read. Romilly is a perfect MC for a novel, and it is an impressive work for a debut book.

I give this 4/5 full cups of coffee and recommend this to any fans of contemporary lit or any looking for a dark coming of age tale with a hint of whimsy. Thank you to HQ for an eARC in exchange for my honest review as part of the blog tour.

Romilly is the child star of a series of much loved children's books by her father, who also illustrates them. Because the books contain a treasure hunt Romilly has fame thrust upon her. She has a highly unusual childhood as a result, not going to school and her mother and grandmother drift in and out of her life. The writing was very evocative, I could really picture Romilly and Braer, the tumbledown cottage where she lives but there were so many unreliable characters by the end I felt like Peeta in the Hunger Games constantly asking "Real or not real?".

An atmospheric story about a young girl being brought up by her father, who write intriguing books about her. His stories led his readers to believe there is treasure to be found.

Romilly and her father Tobias move in to a run-down house in the countryside when she is 9 years old. Her father is an eccentric artist, and she doesn’t know anything about her mother. Later, Monty the cat joins Romilly and her friend Stacey on adventures in the local countryside, in what seems to be an idyllic childhood.

Tobias creates a series of beautifully illustrated books starring both Romilly and Monty, and their lives are changed. They find fame, as readers believe that the books are a kind of treasure hunt - which, incidentally, reminded me of the Kit Williams book, Masquerade, published in the late 1970’s. Strangers start to camp out in their garden, digging holes all over their land to find the treasure - meaning that Romilly is unable to leave the house.

Life changes again when Tobias’ behaviour becomes more and more erratic, Romilly’s mother comes back in to her life, and she meets her grandmother. Things seem to be continuously changing, and nothing is consistent - there’s no stability in Romilly’s life.

This book was not at all what I expected. It started out as something of an idyllic childhood, but as time went on, Romilly’s life is irrevocably changed. I felt so much sadness for her, and there were times when I was almost in tears (you might need a hanky!). This deals with some pretty serious themes: dementia, mental illness, death and child abuse. All the way through I was rooting for Romilly and hoping that she would get the help that she needed and deserved. This is such a beautifully written book, and I would have no hesitation in recommending it.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for my e-ARC.

Great if you liked Lanny, or Hamnet, but those weren’t for me and nor was this sadly.
I guessed where it was going and as such I needed it to just hurry up and get there, that also meant the clues were a confusing addition when it’s kind of clear from the start.
The writing was good in that Lanny type way, but I like something a little more descriptive, though that’s not for everyone so depends on who this falls on I guess, though I do think it didn’t engage me because of such. .

This is a hard to categorize novel, as it crosses various genres. It's first a fairy tale. And by that I mean a dark, cautionary tale, just as fairy tales used to be, not the "happy ever after" shit Disney promotes. Secondly it's a magical yet full of heartbreak coming of age. Thirdly is a story of immeasurable love and bottomless loss. A story of grief.

I couldn't not be touched by Romilly's story. Her world is magic. A very imaginative child, allowed to have a rich inner world fed by her papa, but also left to her own devices, roaming free and being wild. In my view this comes firstly from a place of deep love, a desire to keep her from suffering; but it also comes from deep grief and it's where it crosses the line into what modern readers would see as neglect. But at the crossroad between inner magical world and harsh reality it's bound to be a lot of heartbreak. And when your entire world comes crashing down, would there be a silver lining?

Despite the complexity of the story and the intensity of emotions it raised, there where quite a few things that annoyed me and took away from my enjoyment of the novel. First and foremost the pace: soooooooooooooo slow....as slow as those snails racing, I bet. I was bored many a time, and the novel seemed endless...I've been beyond happy when I've managed to finish it. Secondly the treasure hunt inside the book felt as an appropriation of Kit William's Masquerade and the craziness that ensued. Also Williams was a recluse himself, so Tobias seems somewhat built on him too. Thirdly I am rather cross to see home education being once again associated with what the media would call "unseen children". Please, can we move on from this stereotypes? And last but not least, there are clues all throughout the book about what happened to Romilly and her family. That's not necessary a problem, but in my case I have managed to anticipate some of the mystery and was a bit of a waiting game...and paired with the slow pace ...it felt unsatisfactory when everything was finally revealed.

But... those who have the patience will be rewarded. Put up with it and you'll get a very touching story.

As for the rating, I have mixed feelings: I would give at least four if not five stars for the complex layers of the story, but I would give it just 2 stars if I would let my annoyance talk. So I've settled on 3 stars, because at the end of the day this is a strong debut novel.

Thank you for the opportunity to read it.

Well this book certainly wasn't what I expected it to be, I was hoping for a magical treasure hunt, but instead got something dark and weird and with horrible scenes that I struggled to read. So I should probably read the synopsis a bit better.
Maybe I should have put it down, but trusted friends have read and enjoyed it so I kept going and I can see from the writing style that the author is good, but this definitely wasn't for me.
The depiction of dementia was written well and the character of Romilly was cleverly done, the whole thing left me on edge, but that didn't pull it back and nothing was keeping me wanting to read it.
Please do not let me put you off this book, other people have loved it, but unfortunately I wasn't one of them.

I found this a very strange book and never really felt like I was following the true story.It was the story of a wild child, an eccentric father and many supernatural and bizarre events that never seemed to meld together. I ended up wanting full answers to so many questions.
It is a story of a fathers love for his daughter but this was expressed in the form of child abuse as he did not look after her, in fact to the contrary she looked after him.Her mother comes and goes throughout but no real understanding of why she goes away, where she goes and why Tobias thoought she would be there for Romilly in the end.Was Stacey real or imaginary? Lidya was portrayed as someone important to Tobias but her story is just abandoned. I thought that the Panther mentioned throughout the book did not bring anything to the story and it just added confusion.
I found the whole book meandering , not gripping and could only feel sorry for Roimlly as everyone seems to have let her down.
A strange book which did not suit my taste but it obviously is good reading for others. I fear this is a love or not book with no happy medium.

Do you remember the Kit Williams book “Masquerade”? Published in 1979 it was a picture book which sparked a national treasure hunt when it became known that the author had created and buried a gold bejewelled hare and the clues to its whereabouts were hidden in the book. It became a worldwide bestseller, caused a boom in the sale of metal detectors and led to sudden mounds appearing in the countryside as treasure hunters began digging up public and private property in the belief they had located the hare. The whole thing ended in confusion and a hint of scandal which was documented by ex-University Challenge host Bamber Gascoine (“The Quest For The Golden Hare”). Both Kit Williams and his most famous work is the undoubted inspiration for Polly Crosby’s debut novel.

Romilly and her father live in a large ramshackle country house with a moat which will bring comparisons to Dodie Smith’s outstanding “I Capture The Castle” (1949). I wasn’t too disappointed by this as I love that novel and Smith’s main character Cassandra is one of my favourites in fiction so I settled in for a comforting read. Romilly’s father, an illustrator and craftsman begins a series of best-selling picture books with a promise of treasure featuring Romilly and her kitten, Monty, both of whom become fictional celebrities which attracts groups of treasure seekers to their property. I felt at this point I knew what type of read this would be but this is a novel of distinctly shifting tones becoming increasingly bleak and at times horrific. Although I love unpredictability in my fiction it did feel as if the author was a little unclear as to what sort of book she was writing and I wonder if this would alienate readers. There were times when I really liked it and times when I didn’t. If you like the father/daughter relationship aspects and the treasure hunt you will find the turn into darker territory disturbing. If the more bleak supernatural elements appeal you might find the first half overly twee. There’s definite mixed feelings from me on this occasion.

The Illustrated Child is published in hardback on 29th October 2020 by HQ. Many thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for the advance review copy

The Illustrated Child is a story of the relationship between a father and his daughter. It isn't always an easy one as Tobias Kemp and his nine year old daughter Romilly move into the ramshackle Braer House in a small Norfolk village. To Romilly it feels like there are ghosts there but even that does not phase her. It is an unconventional household with Tobias being a rather eccentric painter and Romilly's mother living in an institution after a breakdown. She lives a rather wild existence befriending a village child called Stacey who is "homeschooled" but essentially just does as she likes.

Their life is turned upside down when Tobias publishes an illustrated children's book featuring Romilly and her cat Monty. It becomes a huge success and soon they are besieged by treasure hunters who are convinced that Tobias has hidden messages in the book which will lead to big rewards.

The book follows their lives from Romilly aged 9 through to age 16. It is an unconventional childhood and some people may be disturbed by the conditions that they are living in as well as some descriptions of animal torture. It also deals with issues such as mental health and dementia so it isn't a fluffy relaxing read.

It has been a week since I finished The Illustrated Child and I've had to have a little time to mull it over. It is quite a hefty tome at 400 pages and I do have to confess that there was a point when I was considering not finishing it. It is a book that meanders through a timeline and for a little while in the middle of the book that meandering doesn't feel like it is going anywhere. The end of the book is worth persevering for though and is a surprising outcome.

Supplied by Net Galley and HQ in exchange for an honest review.

TW: child neglect, child abuse, death of a child, dementia

Firstly i'd like to say thank you to HQ Stories and NetGalley for gifting me an eARC of this book. All views and opinions discussed here are my own and are entirely my own.

Wow. I don't even know where I start with this book; there are so many moments where I just sat there in shock about what I was reading and couldn't fathom how there were many positive reviews of this book because I just couldn't see what was enjoyable about it. I thought this book was going to be a whimsical and magical tale instead what I got was a rather horrific story about child abuse and neglect and countless amounts of adults who just let Romily down and let her alone... I honestly cannot find one thing I loved about this book because I couldn't get past how much abuse and neglect she went through with no-one to help her.

I honestly considered DNF'ing but because I had been sent it by the publisher I wanted to commit to it and finish it. The reveal at the end was intriguing but because of the rest of the book it just had no impact for me; I just felt so sorry for Romily throughout and i'm so glad she ended up reaching out for help and support from the Social Worker.

Sadly this was just not one for me or one that I enjoyed. But it's one that you'll need to make your own mind up on!

wow this was a very deep book, quite scary in parts, i was gripped form start to finish, quite a haunting read...

A beautifully written book that deals with mental health, dementia, and the struggles of a young girl who finds herself dealing with these issues.
Romily Kemp and her artist father move to an old ramshackle house in the country. He begins to write and illustrate a series of books starring his daughter and her kitten.
While at times it was a little slow, there were also times where I couldn’t put it down. Why is Romily’s mum not around, why is her father acting stranger and stranger and what is the treasure hidden inside his books?
We follow Romily as she grows up and learns about life and death, dealing with issues that are hard for anyone let alone a young girl. We see how her father tries to protect and yet lead her to the truth gently.
The story is complex and at times deals with tough issues but is so well written would recommend
Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read

Very beautiful, caring and well-written story. I really enjoyed it. It makes you care for the characters, go through the journey with them.

Definietly recommended. Thanks a lot to NG and the publisher for this copy.

What a fantastic debut by Polly Crosby. Being old enough to remember the excitement over Kit Williams's "Masquerade" and wondering at the amazing artwork I could see the inspiration behind the books within this book from the outset. It is a wonderful story, at first delightful then ever darker and quite distrubing towards the end. The treasure is real and sometihng I expected quite early on. It was a fast paced read with very well described characters who I am sure will stay with me for quite a while. With thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this title.

This book was a strange one.
I felt that at the start it went quite slow and I found it hard to get through.

Also the dad was almost creepy at parts, I didn't like him a character!

Overall, a decent book! Perhaps not my ideal genre, but that was my mistake!

Romilly lives with her dad and Monty the cat in a ramshackled house in the country. Her dad is an artist and writes several books featuring Romilly and her adventures. Suddenly there is money to be spent but with it becomes unwelcome fame.
Her father becomes increasingly strange and Romilly becomes aware the books hold answers to her past. The past which she has forgotton.