The Radleys - Matt Haig

 

I don't know about you but my TBR is heaving and shows no signs of diminishing. And that's just the physical copies of books. I have my handwritten lists too that seem to multiply faster than a colony of rabbits. Sometimes I despair because there are books on the list that I fear I will never get to read. Trust me, the older you get the worse that fear becomes, and yikes,  I'm getting old. Matt Haig's The Radleys was one of the books on that list. Originally published in 2010 I always had Boo Radley in my mind ( a character in To Kill a Mockingbird) which was the motivation for my wanting to read the book! As it turns out there is little to link the two other than, perhaps, a sense of mystery. Precipitated by the screen adaptation of the story and a republication of the paperback edition with a movie tie in cover those lovely folk at Canongate Book sent me a copy. I have now triumphantly crossed it off my TBR list! It was worth the wait!

'Life with a Radleys: Radio 4, dinner parties with the Bishopthorpe neighbours and self denial. Loads of self denial. But all hell is about to break loose. When teenage daughter Clara gets attacked on the way home from a party, she and her brother Rowan finally discover why they can't sleep, can't eat a Thai salad without fear of asphyxiation and can't go outside unless they're smothered in factor 50.

With a visit from their lethally louche Uncle Will and an increasingly suspicious police force, life in Bishopthorpe is about to change. Drastically.'

Funny and entertaining in a quite gruesome way on occasions! I loved the juxtaposition of this family desperately trying to be 'normal' when they were anything but. I don't want to give away the premise for anyone who doesn't know because the gradual exposition of exactly who and what the Radleys are is delightfully done. 

If you're a fan of Matt Haig and you've read any of his other books -  I can't say you know what to expect because his books are all so different - but you will recognise the overall flavour. 

This paperback edition published on October 10th so I'm a little tardy with this review. I apologise.