Books & crossword

Joanna Czechowska read

The Hourglass by Tracy Rees, paperback £7.99, ebook £3.99 (Quercus)

nora is turning 40 and a strange urge leads her to move to the Welsh seaside town of tenby. back to the ’50s, nora’s mum chloe spends every summer in the same town, playing with her friend llew, an unusual boy with a love of photography. in the present day, chloe, now calling herself Jasmine, is in italy and has no wish to revisit her childhood home. nora wants to know why. the characters are so evocative and the descriptions of tenby give it the starring role.

Next week: Buy Paper Hearts & Summer Kisses by Carole matthews for £3.49

safe as Houses

The House On Bellevue Gardens by Rachel Hore one-time ’60s model leonie found sanctuary in 11 bellevue gardens after a bad marriage and now wants to help others. Rosa, Stef and Rick, all with their own problems, have found their way to the house, which is now under threat.

Hidden story

The Last Kiss Goodbye by Tasmina Perry in 1961, journalist Rosamund meets explorer dominic blake but, just as they find happiness together, something terrible happens. in 2014, archivist abby finds a faded photo of a man saying goodbye to the woman he loves, and seeks to discover the story behind it.

the outsiders

Summer At The Cornish Café by Phillipa ashley demi is waitressing in cornwall for the summer. She meets cal, also an outsider, and they decide to renovate his dilapidated holiday resort together. they grow close, but complications in cal’s past make demi wonder if they have a future.