Rough Road South Book

I borrowed this book from the school library when I was about 13. It fascinated and haunted me, and then stayed with me over the years. With the advent of the internet, I managed to track down an old library copy from the US, and re-read it. It's a lovely story, perfect for adolescent girls. I can't be truly objective about it--when I read it now, I'm thirteen again. I can see that it's not the most original story in the world, but that really doesn't matter, because it's so gently and ably told.

The descriptions of the natural world are particularly evocative.

The 'ghost', John Hollis, is loosely based on Keats, and I started reading Keats' poetry as a direct result of this novel.