I must start by saying a huge thank you to fellow blogger Tracy Shepard. After reading her review I just knew this was a book I had to read and she very kindly put me in touch with Caitlin Raynor at Headline who sent me a copy for review. So thank you both!
About this book…
Week after week, the postcards arrive, addressed to a name Ellie does not know, with no return address, each signed with an initial: A.
With their bright skies, blue seas and alluring images of Greece, these cartes postales brighten her life. After six months, to her disappointment, they cease. But the montage she has created on the wall of her flat has cast a spell. She must see this country for herself.
On the morning Ellie leaves for Athens, a notebook arrives. Its pages tell the story of a man’s odyssey through Greece. Moving, surprising and sometimes dark, A‘s tale unfolds with the discovery not only of a culture but also of a desire to live life to the full once more.
Beloved, bestselling author Victoria Hislop’s Cartes Postales from Greece is fiction illustrated with photographs that make this journey around Greece, already alive in the imagination, linger forever in the mind.
My review…
I don’t know why we chose Corfu as our honeymoon destination in 1988 but that first trip to Greece for both of us has led to a yearly holiday to a country that has adopted us as the years have gone by and welcomed our family as it has expanded. We just seem to fit there and now our grandchildren are also experiencing the culture and way of life-capturing the hearts of the Greek people with their willingness to try their food and their language. So I was overjoyed to see that a favourite author had written this absolutely stunning book that is written in one of the most unusual formats I have ever seen. Does it work? Totally!
This is really a series of short stories set within a story…that is set within a story! And it is accompanied by the most stunning photographs throughout that lift this book to another level! When Ellie starts to receive a series of postcards from Greece she becomes obsessed by them. Although obviously for a previous tenant of her flat, she keeps them on her pin-board to gaze upon as they lift her spirit daily and she makes a life changing decision to go to Greece. On the day she leaves for the airport she finds a notebook in her post box which she hurriedly picks up to take with her. Once in Tolon, on her self contained holiday, she starts to read. It’s the story of A and his love for S and how, after she stands him up, he travels the country meeting interesting locals who tell him stories.
I just loved these little snatches showing the real Greek people. In such a beautiful country they really do seem to have struck on some terrible hardships both economically and socially. But this strips back the recent revelations to the core with its mix of darkly atmospheric conversations and historical observations, like a set of Greek fables. My personal favourite was In Love With Love which I found rather mournful and brought in an archaeological twist. And I loved the mention of the funeral notices as well as I have only just learned of them after spending half an hour this year trying to translate them for my family when we visited one of the oldest villages in Crete. I found them fascinating!
This would make a beautiful present for any lover of Greece. The whole concept of the photographs within a fictional novel is just genius especially when combined with the natural storytelling of Victoria Hislop. This is a country that always seems to have its people at its heart as much as its stunning countryside and scenery so both are photographed to great effect here. It has also encouraged me to maybe move off the beaten track a little more next time (although possible not to the village mentioned in one of the tales!) and just take it all in. There’s nothing more relaxing than an ice cold Mythos and a plate of fresh olives as you watch the world go by.
Thank you to Headline for providing my review copy of this glorious book.
Cartes Postales from Greece
About the author…
Inspired by a visit to Spinalonga, the abandoned Greek leprosy colony, Victoria Hislop wrote The Islandin 2005. It became an international bestseller and a 26-part Greek TV series. She was named Newcomer of the Year at the British Book Awards and is now an ambassador for Lepra.
Her affection for the Mediterranean then took her to Spain, and in The Return (also a number one bestseller) she wrote about the painful secrets of its civil war.
In her third novel, The Thread, Victoria returned to Greece to tell the turbulent tale of Thessaloniki and its people across the 20th century. It was shortlisted for a British Book Award, and confirmed her reputation as an inspirational storyteller. It was followed by her much-admired Greece-set short story collection, The Last Dance and Other Stories.
Her next novel, The Sunrise, was published to widespread acclaim. It was a Sunday Times hardback bestseller and debuted at number one in the Sunday Times paperback chart.
Victoria divides her time between England and Greece.
is published by Carina and available to buy here at Amazon UK
is available to buy now from Amazon UK
is available here to buy at Amazon UK
is available to purchase here from Amazon UK
After graduating from Leeds University, S E Lynes lived in London for a couple of years before moving to Aberdeen to be with her husband. In Aberdeen, she worked as a producer at the BBC Radio Scotland before moving with her husband and two young children to Rome. There, she began to write while her children attended nursery. After the birth of her third child and upon her return to the UK, she gained an MA in Creative Writing from Kingston University. She now combines writing with lecturing at Richmond Adult Community College and bringing up her three children. She lives in Teddington.
is available here to buy at Amazon UK
was published on 14th July in the UK by MacMillan and on 26th July in the U.S. by Kensington Books.
is published by Headline in e-book on 28th August 2016 and is available to buy from Amazon UK here.
is available to buy now from Amazon UK here.
is available to buy now from Amazon UK.
mychestnutreadingtree 
You must be logged in to post a comment.