The Broken Hearts Book Club. Lynsey James

that. I’d loved Rose Cottage growing up and it had been the scene of so many happy childhood memories. Under normal circumstances I’d have been happy to inherit it. But given that I wasn’t planning to stick around in Luna Bay, Rose Cottage was a beautiful spanner in the works. I also wondered what ‘conditions’ could possibly be attached. Nana Lily had always been full of surprises, but they usually involved an unexpected plate of fairy cakes or an extra tenner when Mum wasn’t looking. This was a whole other ball game.

      ‘What conditions are they?’

      He handed me an envelope as a macabre grin spread across his crinkly face. ‘Perhaps this will explain it better.’

      I held the letter in trembling hands and looked at Nana Lily’s wispy, fancy handwriting on the front. A lump rose in my throat; I remembered it so well from my childhood, from Christmas cards and birthdays… my nana. She’d been such a huge part of my life and had influenced me a lot when I was growing up. There were hardly any childhood memories that didn’t have her in them, from baking cakes with her to trips to the beach looking for seashells. They came filtering back into my mind, drenched in a dreamy haze. It was so good to remember them again. I turned the envelope over in my hands, all too aware that things would irrevocably change when I opened it. What I didn’t know was if it was for better or for worse.

      ‘Open it then!’ Mum urged, breaking through my thoughts. ‘Let’s see what’s inside.’

      As my heart raced and pulse quickened, I tore open the envelope and pulled out the slightly crumpled letter.

       My darling Lucy,

       If you’re reading this, then I’m no longer with you. I’ll be nothing but a collection of memories (and a pot of ashes on the mantelpiece, if your mum’s listened to me! None of that burial lark for me). The day you were born was one of the happiest days of my life and I had the immense privilege of watching you grow up from a beautiful little girl into an even more beautiful woman whose kindness and morals made me proud every single day. I know what happened all those years ago was hard for you darling, but I always believed it wasn’t your fault. You were never to blame for what occurred and I hope you know that. I hated you being so far away from Luna Bay; that London can’t possibly be all it’s cracked up to be!

       That’s why I’m leaving you my house. I know you’ve always loved it and you made so many happy memories there. I’d love to think of you making some more. I have some stipulations though: one is that I want YOU to live there. Luna Bay is your home and it’s not been the same since you left. I don’t want you renting it out to some bugger who won’t appreciate it; I want YOU to live there, Lucy. This village needs someone with your kindness – and that bright smile of yours will cheer the place up no end.

       There’s one more thing darling: I’d like you to run my book club for three months.

      I reached the end of the page and had to do a double take. A book club?! That couldn’t be right, surely! I turned the page to find out more.

       You’re probably wondering what on earth I’m on about, so let me explain. You might not know this, but I founded a book club after your Granddad Jack died. We call ourselves the Broken Hearts Book Club and we use books as a means of dealing with the awful things that have happened to us. They’re a lovely bunch and they’ll need someone to lead them after I’m gone. My challenge to you is to lead them, be there for them as I was and help them find a way through their grief. If you choose to pick up where I left off, you’ll choose the books, run the meetings and lead the discussions. You’re more than up to the challenge, my beautiful brave girl.

       You’re an incredibly loving and giving person, darling. You just need to be reminded of that and stop being bogged down in the past. The thought of you taking the members into your heart and making them smile again is such a lovely one. I know you can do it.

       Love Nana Lily

      ‘What?!’ I stared at the letter in front of me, unable to believe what I’d just read. ‘This is bloody insane!’

      The idea was absurd; too much had happened for me to come back. Nana Lily had been extremely generous in leaving me the cottage and I knew I should’ve been in an excited daze, picking out paint samples and making plans.

      But I wasn’t; I was in a complete tailspin about the contents of the letter and trying to find some sense or logic in them. I was utterly taken aback by what I’d just seen and scanned the letter again to see if my eyes had played a nasty trick on me.

      ‘What is it?’ Mum asked.

      I handed her the letter and watched her take the words on the page in, hoping and praying she’d agree that me coming back to live in Luna Bay was the worst idea in the world.

      ‘I think it’s a wonderful idea.’ She passed the letter back to me and smiled.

       Bollocks.

      ‘Mum, this place hasn’t been my home for eight bloody years! I can’t just come back. And what the hell do I know about running a book club? I didn’t even know it existed until a few seconds ago! Did you?’

      She stared into the middle distance and pursed her lips while she prepared her answer.

      ‘Well I knew she had a group of people she liked to meet up with of a Wednesday night. I think I even remember her mentioning it was a book club a few times. If you want my opinion, I think you’d be great at leading them. Judging by the name and from what I saw in the letter, they’re all going through pretty tough times. You could spread a bit of cheer and get them feeling good again, just like Nana Lily mentioned. And you’re so good at making people like you and finding out what makes them happy. People just warm to you Lucy, and that means you could really make a go of this. You can come up with some creative ways of getting the members feeling good again too. Won’t that be fun? It might even help you get past what happened with… well, you know what I’m talking about.’

      People warm to me, do they, I thought, I don’t think so. I’m Public Enemy Number One as far as the residents of Luna Bay are concerned and I’ll never get past what happened. Never.

      ‘Mum, I can’t think of a worse person to “get people feeling good again” than me! I’ve got a life in London to get back to and I can’t do that if I’m stuck here leading a, what was it called, a Broken Hearts Book Club?’

      Mr Shields reached over the desk and took the letter from Mum, peering at it from behind his glasses.

      ‘If I could bring your attention to your nana’s will, it says that in order to fully inherit Rose Cottage, you must lead the book club for a minimum period of three months.’

      I threw my head into my hands. ‘Shit.’

      Mum picked up the will and looked carefully at the paragraph Mr Shields had pointed out.

      ‘He’s right,’ she said. ‘You have to be chairwoman of the book club, run all the meetings, choose the books and lead the discussions. She says if you decide to do it, Mr Shields will call round every so often to check you’re doing OK, that you’re living in the cottage and running the club. If you don’t, Rose Cottage goes on the market.’

      She handed the letter to me, making me feel like I was in a particularly bad game of Pass the Parcel. I saw it there in black and white and wanted to scream.

      ‘Do let me know what you decide to do, won’t you Miss Harper? Shall we say, oh, a week to make your mind up? If at the end of the week, you don’t want to act on your grandmother’s wishes, the house will go on the market and the proceeds will be split between your parents and the various charities she was devoted to.’ He bore his teeth at me and I felt more than a little creeped out. He looked so much like Mr Burns from The Simpsons.

      I nodded and left the office as fast as I could. I was now faced with a straight choice: go back to the mess I made in London or stay and face the mess I’d made here.

      Brilliant,