About The Thousand Lights Hotel
A heartbreaking story of loss, betrayal, and redemption, told with all the warmth and beauty of an Italian summer.
My review of The Thousand Lights Hotel
I absolutely adored this beautiful 'summer read'. The Thousands Lights Hotel is a magical and breath-taking read about loss, identity, family and love. I found myself completely immersed in this fabulous Italian world and I never wanted to leave.
The novel revolves around a young woman, Kit Costa, who has recently lost her mother to cancer. Her mother's death makes Kit question her life, where she is and where she is headed, and as a result she decides to made contact with the father she has never met. What ensues is a story of love, friendship, longing and a journey of self discovery.
Kit's story is a most readable one. I found myself immersed in this strange world with her, learning about the local customs and its people. Although a travel writer, she has never been to Elba, and she soon finds herself feeling at home. This rubbed off on me, I also felt like I knew Elba, I could taste the wonderful Italian dishes and visualise the twinkling lights of the hotel. I too was lulled into the romance of the area and the story of Romeo and Juliet that the island thrived upon.
The Thousand Lights Hotel is a story of grief, but also one of hope. The author writes so beautifully and candidly about the grieving process. The emotions captured upon the page consumed me and invaded my thoughts. I felt so desperately sad for this young woman, in the fact that she now felt so alone in the world, the bond between her and her mother, Rosa was such a special one. This brings me onto Rosa. Although we only learn about her in the past tense, she has such a powerful voice within this novel. We learn about her through Kit and through Valentino, Kit's father. We learn about the decisions she made in life and of her relationship with her daughter.
This book is also about the role that fathers play. Valentino and Kit have never met, that is until she turns up at the hotel. I couldn't wait to read their encounters and how they would react to each other. Initially I thought that I wold despise Valenino, but I grew to love this man. A man I feel who was misunderstood, fiercely protective and incredibly lonely.
The writing is poetic, and simply beautiful, The author certainly knows that less is more, with each word carefully considered to evoke an entire set of emotions. The passages describing the Elba nightlife and the hotel are incredibly descriptive, and the dialogue between characters is incredibly direct upon the page. I adored this book, from the beautifully stunning cover with the sparking lights and sea views, right through to the final chapter.
This Thousand Lights Hotel is pure delight from beginning to end. Be transported to Elba, have faith in love and believe in yourself. It's such a magical read.
The Thousand Lights Hotel, published by Headline Review on 13 July 2017 is available to buy from Amazon here.
With thanks to Headline Review for a paperback copy of the book for review purposes.
About the author
Emylia was born in 1978 and grew up in the Devon countryside, the daughter of an English artist and a Hungarian quilt-maker. After studying English and Related Literature at the universities of York and Lausanne, she spent five years working in a London ad agency, before moving to the French Alps. It was there that she began to write. Emylia now lives in Bristol with her husband, the comic-book writer and children's author, Robin Etherington. Her first novel, The Book of Summers, was a Richard & Judy Bookclub pick in 2012.
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