Savour some juicy tittle-tattle while soaking up the sun...

Poolside Gossip

Victoria Kinsella €14.99

The pool in Poolside Gossip, Victoria Kinsella’s charming debut novel, is located in El Castille Spa and Villa Resort, a Canary Islands getaway hosted by the wise and benevolent Luciana and her husband Mateo. The couple, along with son Carlos, care for their guests with a personal dedication that sees them become fully entangled in their lives. And it is those guests, arriving from Ireland, who bring with them a collection of troubles they can’t manage to leave behind.

There is the gang of four young women who are out to have a good time in the sun, although one of them, air hostess Leyla, is carrying a secret with her – one that is unveiled in high comic fashion by her insightful pal Denise. The likeable friends spend their time at the pool making up stories about the other guests, hence the title. Among the fellow holidaymakers

is Veronica, a young woman made old by husband, Simon, a miser and control freak, who is the main villain of the piece.

Luciana and her friend and guest Sheila decide to take Veronica under their wing. They recruit the younger women to help out. What follows is a story about female friendship and support. It also a story about healing and forgiveness told in the guise of a breezy summer novel.

Ultimately, Leyla isn’t the only one packing a secret, as Sheila and Luciana tell their stories. Even if you don’t make it to a sunny poolside this summer, there is enough good feeling here to keep the reader warm.