The Fifth Summer (by Titia Sutherland)

(Amazon UK link)

Titia Sutherland is a little-known author without a web presence, as far as I can find. But I was buying books by writers I had never heard of before, and her books sounded interesting.

'The Fifth Summer' features Will, Lorna and their two teenagers who go for their fifth summer to stay in a villa in Italy. The villa is owned by the eccentric Phoebe, who has a succession of other guests.

Underpinning their holiday is Will's newly-diagnosed illness, which he has not yet mentioned to his wife. This leads to Lorna becoming frustrated, as she realises that Will is keeping some secret, and it seems as if he is withdrawing from her.

Added to this, their daughter Debbie is very worried about being overweight and ugly, and their son Fergus falls in love for the first time.

Just as Will has to leave for home for a few days, the dashing womaniser Bruno arrives...

The book follows all the varying relationships that develop, with very believable main characters, although the others are rather flat and caricatured.

There's a very dramatic climax to the book, followed by a positive ending. Overall I found this very enjoyable and will be looking for other books by Titia Sutherland, though unfortunately they all seem to be out of print.

Definitely recommended.