The Lamplighters by Emma Stonex. Really enjoyed it. Its about three light housekeepers who disappear from their rock tower in 1972. The tower is just that, no island, just tower miles out to sea. The door is locked from the inside and all three keepers are missing.

The book really manages to capture the atmosphere and feel of a working lighthouse. It gives a wonderful view of a now-lost world of lighthouse keeping. The world painted is both accurate and captivating. It also captures the living nature of the sea. A Dangerous creature you never should take for granted or turn your back on. The character is well filled out and interesting and are very much of the world created,

The mystery is slowly unravelled and there are some surprises in the journey that keep you guessing until the very end. I did not see the ending, but it was fitting and gave closure. A really enjoyable Journey. I would give this a good four stars out of five. Wel Written and a good read.

Emma took inspiration from the Eilean Mor lighthouse, which still today its a mystery of what happened to the three lightkeepers that disappeared.

Emma sets the story in Cornwall and tells the story of three lighthouse keepers who go missing but also looks at the people they left behind.

"Some mysteries just aren't meant to be know."

There is a mystery through out the book with each keeper with his own story, background and secrets. And living together in a remote lighthouse surrounded by sea.

"The sea will turn on you if you're not paying attention: it changes its mind in the snap of a finger and it doesn't care who you are."

I liked how the story was written given us the light keepers stories, and then 20years on looking back from the loved ones they left behind point of view and memories.

Thank you netgallery and publishers allowing me to read this delight for a honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy.
I was always going to like this book. The sea, a lighthouse and Cornwall. Ingredients for a great story and this one doesn't disappoint. It's a locked room mystery with a twist.
In classic fashion we are presented with the impossible in the first few pages. Is it a crime, and accident, or supernatural? The rest of the book winds between times and characters as the story unfolds.
It's a slow burn, but one that keeps you on edge wondering what comes next. The ending manages to surprise and yet make sense. A good read and an interesting one given the isolation we've all been put through over the last year.

A dark and mesmerising mystery told by all of the characters. I loved this book, it wasn’t what I expected but I loved how the author chose a historical mystery and interpreted her own story.

I couldn't get on with this and skipped huge sections. Sorry, not sure why, it just seemed to jump around too much with apparent progress.

If you are familiar with the Eilean Mor (aka Flannan Isles) mystery, where back in 1900 three lighthouse keepers mysteriously disappeared then this book may interest you. It has been inspired by the events of 1900 and takes us forward in time to 1972 where off the coast of Cornwall a proud lighthouse stands guard.

Straight away you know the lighthouse keepers are gone. The story starts with the relief crews discovery of an empty tower which should be manned by three men but is empty, they have vanished without a trace with no clue to their fates.

The story flits forward between 1972 and 1992, it is told from the POVs of all of the men and all of their partners. Of course the men’s tale stops in 1972, they tell the story of the days leading up to their disappearance, they are a tight knit group but slowly start to unravel.

Their partners are approached in 1992 by an author who wants to know their sides of the story, he wants them to tell their tale as he feels everyone has closed ranks over the years giving the distinct impression of hiding something. What are they hiding and will it reveal the fate of the men?

As the book progresses you learn about the lives, loves and losses of these men and women. You also learn that the job of lighthouse keeper is not an easy one, the lighthouse is an imposing character in this book. It is known as the Maiden and it gives off a slightly claustrophobic air. I don’t think I could spend weeks and weeks stuck there.

This book was such a good read, it was highly atmospheric with the sea and the lighthouse being the most atmospheric. The story is spooky but not in a supernatural way, just the remoteness of the lighthouse and the fact that they are stuck out there with only each other for company.

Thank you to NetGalley and Picador for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review

Three lighthouse keepers disappear with no trace, doors locked, no sign of where they have gone.

Each leaves a woman behind and, twenty years on, each is still struggling with the disappearances and the lack of knowledge of what has happened.

This mystery novel switches between stories - that of the lighthouse and the strange goings on, and that of a novelist’s attempts to solve the mystery through interviewing the wives and girlfriend of the men involved. Whilst the women’s stories were interesting, it is the moodiness and atmosphere within the lighthouse that is the main, gripping storyline.

Apparently loosely based on a true story, the writing is evocative and emotive, bringing to life the characters and the sea.

A very good read.

Absolutely loved the scope and breadth of research that the author has undertaken in this book. The multiple viewpoints worked really effectively, giving the feeling that the story could go anywhere and masking the possible outcome. Wonderful and vivid characterisation and an excellent sense of place and atmosphere. Highly recommended.

Amazing how you can write a book about a lighthouse, but Ms Stonex has done it!

Based on a true story from around 1900 when 3 lighthouse keepers disappeared from a Scottish manned lighthouse at sea with the access doors locked from the inside and food and drink still set on the table . This was discovered when the next supply boat landed.

The setting moves from Scotland to Cornwall. However, the important thing is the beautiful descriptions of the way the lives of the 3 men - how they work, cook and interact ( banana beds!)..

The whole mystery is then explored some 70 years later by a shadowy author trying to see if there were ghosts, murders or any other explanations. Nothing seems to clarify the whole episode, but no more spoilers from me.

Is Ms Stonex off to Bermuda next?

Thanks to Net Galley and Pan Macmillan Picador for the chance to read and review.

This was a compelling mystery based around 3 men that disappeared from a lighthouse. The book is mainly set in 1972 when the incident happened and 1992 where a writer is trying to put together the story. The atmosphere feels very authentic as some of the accounts are based on actual memoirs of lighthouse keepers.
I really enjoyed this book and found it difficult to put down.
Thank you to Netgalley uk and Pan Macmillan for an arc of this book.

A dazzling literary delight, The Lamplighters took me on an intriguing journey into the lives and loves of these three isolated men, and the women they leave behind.

Inspired by the real life disappearance of three lighthouse keepers in Scotland in 1900, I really enjoyed this beautifully written and atmospheric debut novel. Set in Cornwall, it begins when a relief crew arrives at the lighthouse and find the three keepers have disappeared in something of a ‘locked room’ mystery. The narrative moves to some 20 years later, in 1972, when a writer arrives to interview the women left behind.

The tense and somewhat unsettling narrative, with hints of the supernatural, kept me intrigued throughout. Told from all the characters points of view, this is powerful storytelling indeed. For me, the vivid and detailed descriptions of the sea in all its power, were most definitely a highlight., as was the feeling of claustrophobia evoked by the setting. The intricate and complex relationships and tensions between the men are beautifully portrayed and cleverly mirrored by those of the women.

I definitely look forward to reading more from this author and would like to thank Pan Macmillan and NetGalley for the ARC of the book and I confirm this is my honest review.

Dark, intriguing and impossible to predict. This novel is unmissable.

Out on a tower light house, three lighthouse keepers vanish without a trace. The door is locked from the inside, the table has been laid for an uneaten meal, and the clocks have stopped. Two decades later, as those left behind still struggle to come to terms with what might happened, a young writer sets out to unravel the mystery.

The narrative jumps back and forth between the men on the tower and the women on shore. Despite multiple timelines, protagonists and writing styles, this novel flows effortlessly. Every character is of central importance, with their own story to tell and secrets to spill.

It's so hard for a story like this to have a satisfying conclusion, because you work through so many different theories as you read. The Lamplighters, however, met my every expectation. It really was superb.

It was so difficult to guess what was going to happen next and there were plenty of twists, but the narrative never felt too far fetched, or the conclusion a stretch.

Oh gosh, this was stunning! This ticked so many boxes for me: I love a locked room mystery, stories told from multiple times in history. And the prose! SO beautifully written: rich, atmospheric without ever becoming style over substance. I am so glad I read it and will definitely keep an eye out for future books by Stonex.

It's hard to find the word to describe this book as I loved it so much.
Great storytelling and style of writing, atmospheric and gripping plot, great characters.
I hope to read another book by this author soon as this one was so good.
Strongly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

The Lamplighters is a beautifully atmospheric and tense account of the power of the sea, loneliness and grief. The story isn't just about three lighthouse keepers that go missing. It addresses many important issues around grief, how it can lead to loneliness and isolation and the levels people will go to to help deal with loss and tragedy.
Lighthouse keeping isn't something I had ever really thought about before but as soon as I started this book, I realised the pressure there must have been in that occupation. Not only are you likely isolated and cut off, living in an extremely cramped environment, but your responsibility goes beyond just keeping a light lit. Their are lives depending on you to do your job right and be on the look out for sailors and people out in the open sea. In a way, it's sad that it is all automised now but after reading this and getting an insight into how difficult it can be, maybe it is best that things have changed. It isn't natural for people to spend so much time alone or confined in such a small space with one or two others and this story clearly illustrates what it can do to a person.
I thought the writing was just beautiful. I was hooked from the very beginning and the way Stonex describes the Maiden and its surroundings, you could so clearly picture this menacing lighthouse and the vast sea that surrounds it. The story evolves around 6 key people; the lighthouse keepers and their wives. There is of course the author as well but we don't get any narrative from him, which I found interesting. We really get to know the others through their story, both on the lighthouse before the disappearance and 20 years later. The characters are very strong and each brought their own key angles and narrative to the overall story.
I also liked how the narrative changed from first person to third person and then the conversations with the author were all one sided. I would have thought it would be confusing but in fact, I thought it gave the whole story some really interesting angles that helped paint the whole picture.
With regards to the plot itself, Stonex builds up this fascinating and powerful story that really immerses the reader into the world of the lighthouse keepers. Very quickly you realise the strains that are forming between them and the various struggles they are facing, which become a lot clearer as the story develops. The backstories to each of the keepers were really well depicted and helped explain why they were the way they were and why they were in a profession such as this.
I did find the ending a little underwhelming and predictable but I had a feeling that it would be the case, so it didn't leave me too disappointed.
Overall, I really enjoyed it and just loved how atmospheric the whole story was. I could so clearly picture myself looking at the Maiden with the sea air surrounding me. Big thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this before publication.

Firstly, huge thanks to Pan Macmillan and NetGalley for providing me a copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review.

The Lamplighters begins in Cornwall, 1972 on the night where three lighthouse keepers go missing. Twenty years later none of the mysteries have been solved, why did the Principal Keepers log show a storm yet the skies were clear that night? Why was the door locked from the inside? Where did the men go? In 1992 the women they left behind are beginning to reconnect when a writer approaches them wanting to hear their stories. For the first time in twenty years, will the truth of that fateful night finally come to light…?

In this novel we get to know Helen, Jenny and Michelle as well as their men, Arthur, Bill and Vince who disappeared twenty years ago. I loved the way that this novel would alternate between the men of the past and the women of the present. Each character is incredibly complex with a lot to uncover as the novel continues. By having the alternating narratives the reader is simultaneously in a positron where they know more than some of the characters, but also filled with even more questions from gaining that information. I also really tried how different the characters were to each over even though they all have similar experiences.

In particular I really liked Helen and Vince, two very different characters. Helen. is Arthur’s wife who is very headstrong and independent. I liked how much of a realist she was, yet she had a really interesting view of the lighthouse tower. Vince was very different from the other men in the lighthouse. He is very new to the job therefore he had a very different perspective compared to the other two who were much more subdued. Although, I did still enjoy Bill’s cynicism and how Arthur felt relief when he was there.

The alternating perspectives that tell this story do an excellent job of building tension and suspense which kept the hooked and unable to put the book down. Not only does Stonex alternate perspectives but she also changes the style of narrative too, as well as the letters and articles I especially loved how the interview scenes were written. I thought by addressing the readers as if they are the author writing about this mysterious and tragic event, was a very clever and engaging way of avoiding what could be just endless dialogue.

Overall, I really enjoyed this novel and can totally understand all the hype surrounding this novel, it is a great mystery that will keep you guessing. If you haven’t proved this novel up yet, what are you waiting for? This should definitely be your next read.

4.5⭐

I was fortunate to receive a copy of this ARC from NetGalley and Pan MacMillan (Picador).

The author based this on a true story of events and I felt really captured the feelings of isolation such a role could lead to.

I loved how the lighthouse and the sea were almost characters in their own right. The sea is my happy place, and having not been able to go during lockdown(s), it was lovely to be transported for a while!

I thought it was interesting how Helen's story was told through conversations with the man planning to write a book about the lighthouse keepers.

My favourite quote:
"When I'm putting in my lights and extinguishing my lights, the whole world relies on me. Dawn and dusk are mine alone, to do with as I please."

Can anyone explain to me the meaning of the white bird that Michelle kept seeing, and was referenced during the book?!

There was so much to think about and digest within Soldier Boy that I was unsure my review would do it justice, but i have had a go.

I will start with the characters. Liam, husband, father, son, two years out of the army, struggling with PTSD, life in general and in a suspended state of denial, unwilling to seek help.

Emma, wife, mother, the one left at home to get on with it, the one who tried to hold it together, as she threw herself into a swirl of superstitious rituals to keep Liam safe and poured all her love and energy into daughter Alannah.

Alannah, the young girl, the one stuck in the middle, obsessed with body image, with ballet, with the way she looked, her feelings hidden, her parents oblivious.

It was not until Emma walked out the door that Parkin unleashed a myriad of simmering emotions, and psychological trauma’s that commanded you attention.

Perhaps the most shocking was that of Alannah, one very mixed up young girl, who grappled with not only body image but gender, impending puberty a real fear. I so admired Parkin’s ability to understand her thought process, her utter torment that shocked but also educated, Alannah’s ultimate act of defiance one of pure anguish, one that I will never forget.

Whilst Alannah’s issues were an important part of the novel, it was Liam’s that cast a shadow, that had an impact on the family. Here was a proud man, drafted out of the army with PTSD, a man in total and utter denial. Parkin once again dug so deep within Liam, that you became immersed in Liam’s battle with himself. You felt his overriding need to control absolutely everything within his world, the obsessive tidying, the need to control his own emotions and those of others. You watched as he shifted the blame for the family break up and his daughter’s issues to wife, Emma, you felt immensely frustrated as you looked for chinks, glimmers of hope that he would finally accept defeat and seek help.

Emma was the absent one, the one who got away from it all, took herself to a hotel to have that freedom to think, to work out exactly what would make her life better. Did she find the answers? Of course not, it merely opened up the years of having to cope, of supporting a young child, of accommodating a largely absent husband, of making space on his return, turning her routine upside down to fit in with his wants and needs. Yet Emma knew it wasn’t enough, his permanent presence an ever increasing dark cloud, that suffocated and pushed her to the edge.

Before we could catch our breath, Parkin delivered a punch that shocked, not only us but also the characters and she cleverly turned their thoughts outward, to a realisation they would have to emerge from their own personal dramas and concentrate on the one thing that really mattered, their daughter.

You truly wanted that happy ending but Parkin wasn’t writing a novel to make it comfortable for the reader or necessarily to give us what we wanted and this was what I truly admired. She was immensely brave, but also brilliantly skillful in navigating such a complex novel of difficult and controversial themes, and her ability to turn it all into an utterly awe inspiring piece of writing.

What an intriguing and almost hypnotic novel - I never thought I’d be so hooked on a story about lighthouse keepers!

Inspired by a true story, this is a tale of three lighthouse keepers who mysteriously disappear in 1972, and we follow both their narratives at the time, and that of their wives and partners twenty years later as they try to piece it together.

This was definitely one of the most interesting mysteries I’ve read - I was hooked immediately, and didn’t have a clue what happened until it was finally revealed! With so many secrets and betrayals between characters who are physically so close together (the men especially), the tension is ramped right up and there’s a sense of foreboding from the very beginning.

Then there’s the power of the sea, and the lighthouse itself - I can’t even explain the beauty of the way the author describes these. It’s completely mesmerising, and could quite honestly make me up sticks and move to a lighthouse, especially when reading Arthur’s passion for it. I could almost smell the sea air and hear the waves crashing - it’s so vivid and raw.

This is an incredibly tragic story - not just the disappearance but the losses, lies and misunderstandings which lead to it. It shows us how the things left unsaid can destroy us just as easily as things spoken. At times I wanted to reach into the story and try to fix things, seeing the inevitable coming long before our characters.

I just found this absolutely breathtaking in a way I wasn’t prepared for when imagining three gruff lighthouse keepers - and that is all down to the incredible writing and captivating story. Highly recommend this gorgeous book!