The Shell Seekers (by Rosamunde Pilcher)

(Amazon UK link)

The prologue to Rosamunde Pilcher's novel 'The Shell Seekers' introduces us to Penelope. She is a woman in her sixties who is returning home in a taxi after discharging herself from hospital. The first time I read it, I had an immediate image of a strong independent lady, and it was a little worrying to learn that she had been in hospital due to a suspected heart attack.

Penelope, we learn, has three grown-up children. As she ponders which one to phone, there is a brief word picture of each from her perspective. Nancy, the eldest, is a worrier. Noel, the youngest, is self-centred. So it's Olivia, the middle one, who Penelope rings to let her know that she's home.

The first proper chapter switches to Penelope's eldest daughter Nancy. We see her trying to deal with her pompous husband and two argumentative, demanding teenagers. Poor Nancy spends her life trying to keep up with the neighbours, sending her children to expensive private schools, mixing with the 'right' people - and yet becoming vastly overweight, struggling to keep out of debt, and complaining about all the things she has to do.

Throughout the book, each subsequent chapter concentrates primarily on a different character who is in some way connected with Penelope. While this could lead to confusion, Rosamunde Pilcher's skill at characterisation means that what actually happens is we gradually learn more and more about the family and their closest friends. Each different window on a character provides a new viewpoint, and frequently some surprises.

Several of the chapters are lengthy flashbacks starting with Penelope's teenage years. She lived in a rather bohemian household in Cornwall with an elderly artist father, and a young French mother. She grew up in the prelude to World War II, which plays an important part in her early adulthood. Whereas lengthy changes of time can be confusing or irritating in some novels, they fit so well into this one that I didn't find them at all intrusive - indeed, quite the reverse. It's during one of these sections that the title of the book is explained: 'The Shell Seekers' is the name of a painting by Penelope's father, which takes pride of place in her living room since he gave it to her for a wedding present.

Although technically this is a family saga, the way it's told makes it feel like a series of ever-expanding circles. We meet Penelope, her three children, her husband, her parents, her experiences in the war, her friends. Mid-way through the book other people are introduced - an art dealer, a gardener, an 18-year-old girl. All take their places in this beautifully choreographed book at exactly the right time.

'The Shell Seekers' was a ground-breaking book in more ways than one. For one thing, it was the book which lifted Rosamunde Pilcher from a little-known writer of short-stories to a best-selling novelist. For another, it broke just about every 'rule' of novel-writing and yet was a resounding success. Prior to this I had never read a novel that revolved around a grandmother, but despite being younger myself I could relate to Penelope strongly. Perhaps this is because the author was herself in her sixties when she wrote it.

The first time I read this book, I rushed through it, eager to find out what happened - as much as I could rush through a book of over 650 pages, anyway. There were parts which saddened me; inevitably with such a time-span there are a significant number of deaths, some of them a little shocking, although all foreshadowed in some way. There were places where I had tears in my eyes, and I'm not generally someone who experiences high emotion.

There were even places where I felt mild suspense - was Penelope right to trust certain people? What dark secret does her gardener have, meaning that he neither drinks nor drives? But overwhelmingly I was left with the impression of warmth, of hope for the future, and a deep reluctance to say goodbye to these people whose lives I had become part of for a few days.

I've re-read it twice in the past ten years or so, and enjoyed it more each time. The characters are so realistic that I feel almost a start of recognition now as I meet them afresh. At the same time, I find I've forgotten specific details, and am still eager to find out what happens, while being well aware of the overlying story and the main plot.

'The Shell Seekers' was the first Rosamunde Pilcher book I read, but it certainly wasn't the last. I now have copies of all her novels and short stories on my bookshelves, and re-read each one every few years. After reading 'The Shell Seekers', I could fully appreciate the blurb on the back of one of her novels quoting the New York Times saying, 'I don't know where Rosamunde Pilcher has been all my life - but now that I've found her, I'm not going to let her go'.

If you like saga novels, you'll probably love this book. If you don't - give it a try anyway when you have a few days to relax. It has depth and feeling, authentic backgrounds in London and Cornwall, delightful people, intriguing relationships, and a rather unusual climax.