Night Music by Jojo Moyes

 Intriguing, Engaging, Absorbing

Genre: Contemporary Fiction/Family Drama/Psychological Suspense Thriller

Night Music by Jojo Moyes

The Spanish House, originally built by the Pottisworth’s still stood at the edge of the lake, a short walk from the edge of the woods, where it had been for decades, but was now in an extremely bad state of repair. Mr Pottisworth Junior still resided there but was now confined to one room as he was now believed to be bed bound. Just outside that same wood lived Mr Pottisworth’s closest neighbours, Matt and Laura McCarthy and their teenage son, Anthony. The house had belonged to Matt’s parents, and as such the two families had a long tumultuous history. Matt, a builder by trade had always dreamt of owning the Spanish House and had voiced as much to the old man who had said that as long they saw him right until he died, he would see to it that they got the house once he had passed. Therefore, Laura had spent the last ten years taking food back and forth to the Spanish House and doing her best to ensure that every need of the cantankerous letch was met. However, they were blissfully unaware, and hadn’t thought to confirm, that Mr Pottisworth had no intention of putting anything in writing, never mind instructing a solicitor or making a will. Therefore when he falls and hits his head on the bare floorboards whilst retrieving something sweet from his hidden stash, not only did the following events have the effect on Laura and Matt that he had desired, but the consequences of his action were set to be catastrophic and far reaching influencing the immediate future of relatives that he hadn’t even known…..

Isobel Delancey’s world had been turned upside down with the sudden and unexpected death of her husband Laurent, leaving her with their two children in their large London home. She is a violinist with an orchestra, her husband was a banker and kept her firmly in the lifestyle to which she had become accustomed. But, now with him gone and her not earning anywhere near the amount that he was, she is told by her solicitor that she can no longer afford the upkeep of Maida Vale. She pleads with him to find a way to prevent the need to uproot her, Thierry and Kitty and he says that her only option, is to sell her beloved violin. As fifteen year old Kitty, is sifting through the mellèè of post that has arrived since the passing of her father, she finds an envelope addressed to her mother. In it, are details of a house that she has been left as the last living relative of a Mr Pottingsworth.

Byron, an old farm hand who used to work for Mr Pottingsworth, is now requested by Matt to ensure that there is no suspicious activity on the land surrounding the Spanish House, land that he did manage to secure when the former resident of the now derelict property was still alive. Byron is surprised when he sees a woman and her children after dark making their way up to the house, closely followed by a large removal van and he makes it his business to impart this to his employer, surely knowing the disruption that this will cause.

How will Matt react when he realises that the Spanish House will not be his after all, and will Laura be able to cope with a husband who, on top of his philandering ways of the past and the present, is now harbouring a growing obsession over a property he feels should have been rightly his and is willing to do anything to get it, even convincing himself that the family within the Spanish House are his? Will Isobel and the children be able to make the transition from their comfortable abode in the capital to a run down three storey house complete with outbuildings in a similar state and little money to correct their poor surroundings? No one could have predicted the chain of events set off by a mean, bitter old man, hell bent on seeking the retribution that his father before him succeeded in vanquishing.

I really enjoyed Night Music, as I do with all Jojo’s novels as they all contain plots of a psychological nature. Matt’s behaviour made for very uncomfortable reading, as he really does lose the plot. The progression of Isobel and her children was lovely to read as Isobel went from a mother who was distant with her children to one who realised she was soul provider and had to do things she would never have considered in order for Kitty and Thierry to get through such a harrowing time in their young lives, she really became a very admirable person after all she had had to cope with, and I’m really glad that she gets a happy ever after. The closure to Laura’s story was the only one I was disappointed with. I didn’t expect her to react in the way she did to the unfortunate turn of events with Matt and the house at the end, but can see why. My favourite characters were Henry and Asad known as ‘the cousins’ to protect the sensibility of those in the village who disagreed with their lifestyle. Their dialogue was a joy to read. The dialogue of all the characters and the descriptions of the various settings were so vivid and well written, it really did take me away from reality. I thoroughly recommend this book and others by Jojo if you are a fan of the genres above.