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Windmill Hill
- Narrated by: Maggie Ollerenshaw
- Length: 13 hrs and 28 mins
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Windmill Hill
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Publisher's Summary
One night in a remote hunting lodge with a Hollywood director causes an international scandal that wrecks Astrid's glittering stage career, and her marriage. Her ex-husband, the charismatic Scottish actor Magnus Fellowes, goes on to find global fame, while Astrid retreats to a disintegrating Sussex windmill.
Now 82, she lives there still, with a troupe of dachshunds and her long-suffering friend, Mrs Baker, who came to clean twenty years ago and never left. But the past is catching up with them. There has been an 'Awful Incident' at the windmill; the women are in shock. Then Astrid hears that Magnus, now on his death bed, is writing a tell-all memoir. Outraged, she sets off for Scotland, determined to stop him.
Windmill Hill is the story of two very different women, both with painful pasts, and their eccentric friendship - deep, enduring, and loyal to the last.
Critic Reviews
"It was an utter joy to relish Atkins's wonderfully skilled and unobtrusive writing and lose myself in the mystery." (Sarah Perry)
"An utterly compelling read." (Claire Fuller)
"Sly, witty and gripping.... I loved it." (Naomi Alderman)
What listeners say about Windmill Hill
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Heidi (but books are better)
- 27-10-2023
Wonderful octogenarian main character
If you enjoyed Frederick Backman's A MAN CALLED OVE, then you are going to love Atkin's eccentric 82-year-old heroine Astrid. Ever since the breakdown of her marriage to famous actor Magnus thirty odd years ago, Astrid has been living in a derelict old windmill with only her housekeeper cum friend Mrs Baker and three miniature dachshunds for company. It's merely by chance that Astrid spots an article in the paper announcing that her terminally ill ex-husband Magnus is about to publish his much awaited autobiography. She knows that she will have to stop him at all costs, because of an incident in their past that destroyed Astrid’s own acting career and has altered her life irrevocably. She simply cannot face having to relive the shame. So, this reclusive octogenarian embarks on a journey to Scotland to confront her dying ex-lover.
Atkins tells her story through multiple timelines, jumping back and forth between the past and the present. Whilst Astrid is the main POV, excerpts from letters written by an earlier owner of the windmill to her husband also reveal some of the windmill's tragic past. I admit that initially there were many threads and mysteries that didn't seem connected and didn’t come together until the very end, but it was all worth the wait!
What wonderful characters Atkins has created with her two elderly ladies. Astrid might be over eighty and not as sprightly as she used to be, but she constantly reminds us that she is NDY (not dead yet). As the past threatens her reclusive and humble existence in the windmill, she must face up to one of her life's biggest regrets- with surprising consequences. It's a rare story that can evoke such a range of emotion - I laughed, I cried, and at one point I could hear my heart breaking clean in half. There were so many themes in this book that resonated with me, and I won't forget Astrid in a hurry. There aren't many novels out there that feature old women, especially ones that focus on the present, which made WINDMILL HILL even more special.
WINDMILL HILL has definitely earned a place on my favourites list. Atkins is a master at creating complex characters and intriguing stories (both her previous novels THE NIGHT VISITOR and MAGPIE LANE were also 5-star reads for me). Very highly recommended!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Jo Ryan
- 21-02-2024
Wonderful
Maggie Ollerenshaw does a wonderful job of reading this creating Astrid’s character as well as all.
I found this to be a delight on all levels.
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