Best-Selling Beverley Author Val Wood made a triumphant return to the Beverley Literature Festival this weekend with an exclusive reading from her new novel The Harbour Girl.
The Harbour Girl is the award-winning author’s seventeenth novel. The romantic saga tells the story of sixteen year old Jeannie, a net mender and herring girl at Scarborough Harbour, just like her Scottish mother.
Jeannie meets and falls in love with Harry, a fisherman from Hull and becomes pregnant. Childhood friend Ethan is devastated – he too was in love with Jeannie but never found the courage to tell her.
Jeannie travels to Hull to find Harry and ask his intentions. Here she meets Harry’s strict and authoritarian grandmother Nan Carr, who insists that they marry despite Harry being out of work. They do so, and begin a life in the hub of Hull’s fishing community.
The novel features moments of great joy and great tragedy based on the true story of Scarborough’s storms of 1880, which were the worst in the seaside town’s history.
Val spoke of the inspiration behind her novel and her love of Scarborough before leaving the audience on the edge of their seat.
Audience member Prue Blake said, “This was my first visit to the literature festival and I thoroughly enjoyed Val’s reading. She told us a little about how her novel was researched and then summarised her novel by introducing us to the characters and then read key passages, giving us an example of how the story unfolds. Val finished her reading on a real cliff-hanger, leaving me eager to find out more. I will definitely be buying the book and I will look out for Val at the literature festival in the future.”
Another audience member Mrs Sherwood said “I’ve read all of Val’s books and because they’re set locally, it makes them more interesting as I am familiar with the locations. It makes me feel proud to have an author as talented as Val living in our town and it’s great that the literature festival presented us with this opportunity to celebrate such great local talent. I will be first in line to buy The Harbour Girl when it’s released as the reading left me eager to find out what happens next and I look forward to seeing Val again.”
The new novel The Harbour Girl is available from November 10th and the official launch takes place on this date at 5.30 – 6pm at Waterstone’s, Jameson street, Hull.
The Harbour Girl is now available to pre-order from all good bookshops.
Val will be signing copies of her new novel on the following dates…
- Thursday 10th November Launch of The Harbour Girl at Waterstone’s Jameson Street Hull at 5.30-6pm
- Friday 11th November WHSmith Prospect Centre Hull 12pm
- Saturday 12th November WHSmiths Books Beverley at 11 am
- Saturday 12th November Sokell’s Driffield at 2pm
- Saturday 19th November Hoppers of Malton at 2pm
- Saturday 10th December Waterstone’s Jameson Street Hull at 11 am
Photo by Leigh Clark
