Lost by Lucy Wadham

Lost

Lucy Wadham

I found this first novel is a bit bleak and claustrophobic. Set in Corsica where a child is kidnapped, gangland and incompetent police add to the atmosphere. Readable but - phew I was glad to finish it.

Extract
'Have you seen a little boy? Blond.' She held out her hand to indicate his height. The two women registered Alice's anxiety and began to try to calm her. They had not seen him. But Alice was already looking up the hill, her eyes, scanning the narrow street, and she moved on, pulling Dan behind her, leaving the two women staring after her.
'Sam!' Her voice echoed against the parched, shuttered houses. She lifted Dan onto her hip and began to run up the hill, the full heat of the day pressing down on her.
She reached the dusty promenade in front of the church. She could not call because she was out of breath. She sat Dan down on a green metal bench and straightened up, heaving for breath. A few paces away three men were playing boules. 'Stay there' she said harshly pointing at Dan 'Don't move.' She walked up to the men and stood before them, hooking her hair behind her ears, still out of breath.
'Have you seen a little boy? About this tall? Blonde hair?'

Parallels
  • Seesaw by Deborah Moggach
  • News of a Kidnapping by Gabriel Garcia Marquez