Puccini's Ghosts - Tapa dura

'The former crime writer had avoided lapsing into the customary cliches, instead maintaining the pace and intrigue of a thriller with a complex exploration of adolescent yearning.' -- Scarborough Trader 'Joss writes with a vividness that captures exactly particular moods and atmospheres ... The darkness of her main themes, the sense of impending catastrophe that hangs over the story, is relieved by a lightness of touch - and the combined result is a very fine novel indeed' -- Sunday Herald 20050807 'The story of Lila's getting-of-wisdom is powerfully told, bristling with tension and horribly funny.' -- Kate Saunders, The Times 20050807 'A gripping and beautifully composed novel. It is both darkly hilarious and deeply moving' -- Herald 20050807 'Morag Joss's contribution to the coming-of-age genre is remarkable in its astuteness, humour and eloquence ... striking ... mesmerising' -- Katie Gould, Scotland on Sunday 20050807 'She is excellent at portraying a child's loss of innocence and the desperation of those who find themselves trapped in a small Scottish town. It will be very interesting to see what she does next.' -- Scotsman 20050807 'Written with insight and at times grim humour, this novel about conscience and consequence isa poignant journey into the dark heart of a family.' -- Reading Evening Post 20050807 'PUCCINI'S GHOSTS is refreshingly unique.' -- Marlborough & Pewsey Gazette 20050807 'Morag Joss's new novelPUCCINI'S GHOSTSis surely one of the discoveries of the year. It's set in west coast Scotland, and overhung with a sense of impending catastrophe that is relieved by an elegant lightness of touch. A truly magnificent novel.' -- Ron Butlin 20050807 'The story of Lila's getting-of-wisdom is powerfully told, bristling with tension and horribly funny.' -- Kate Saunders, The Times 'Morag Joss's contribution to the coming-of-age genre is remarkable in its astuteness, humour and eloquence ... mesmerising' -- Katie Gould, Scotland on Sunday 'She is excellent at portraying a child's loss of innocence and the desperation of those who find themselves trapped in a small Scottish town. It will be very interesting to see what she does next.' -- The Scotsman 'A very fine novel indeed' -- Sunday Herald 'A gripping and beautifully composed novel. It is both darkly hilarious and deeply moving' -- Herald 'Morag Joss's new novel PUCCINI'S GHOSTS is surely one of the discoveries of the year. It's set in west coast Scotland, and overhung with a sense of impending catastrophe that is relieved by an elegant lightness of touch. A truly magnificent novel.' -- Ron Butlin

It is the summer of 1960 and fifteen-year-old Lila's life is about to change forever. Set free from the confines of school, her prison is the small unremarkable town of Burnhead, on the west coast of Scotland. She dreams of escape: from Burnhead, from the damp, from her mother's hysterics, her father's stolidity, and her parents' loveless marriage. Salvation arrives in the form of her beloved Uncle George, a music teacher from London who decides to stage an amateur production of Puccini's Turandot. Lila, in love for the first time, maps out a future for herself in which reality and fantasy fuse to form a dangerous mixture, threatening to destroy herself and all those around her. Beautifully written novel and intently observed, Morag Joss's new novel about conscience and consequence is an stunning, complex journey into the dark, claustrophobic heart of a family in crisis.