Sail Away is a light-hearted Mystery set aboard a cruise ship written by actress and author Celia Imrie. Suzy the once famous actress is struggling to find work and accepts a role in a suspiciously amateur production of ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ with a small acting troupe that leaves her stranded in Zurich with her bank balanced cleaned out, with a job on a cruise ship her only option.
Meanwhile, Amanda is preparing to downsize. As the removal van is pulling away from her new home, disaster! The purchase of her new flat has fallen through. Her two fully grown children can’t see past the end of their own noses to help offer any kind of support, leaving Amanda homeless. Thankfully a resolution is found but there is a delay of a few weeks before Amanda can move in, the perfect amount of time to (rightfully, in my opinion) spend some of the money set aside for her children from the sale on a holiday until she has somewhere to live.
The stories of these two strangers become intertwined on the Blue Mermaid, a cruise ship that is larger than a small town, with just as many people on board. In an Oscar Wilde-esque case of mistaken identity takes place with a more serious crime and mystery undertone. The plot contains a number of twists and turns which leaves you guessing all of the particular nuances until the very end. The cruise ship is filled with a variety of nice and not so nice characters in order to diversify the story and offer some extra detail. In all, I enjoyed the book and would recommend. ~ Charlotte Walker
'Anything written by Celia Imrie is guaranteed to put a smile on our faces and her latest book is no exception'- Good Housekeeping
'A dashing roller coaster. She is extraordinary' - Joanna Lumley
'A very witty woman. Hugely entertaining' - Julian Fellowes __________________
The deliciously witty, irresistible new novel from the top ten Sunday Times bestselling author of Not Quite Nice follows the exploits of two women on an Atlantic cruise ship.
The phone hasn't rung for months. Suzy Marshall is discovering that work can be sluggish for an actress over sixty - even for the former star of a 1980s TV series. So when she's offered the plum role of Lady Bracknell in The Importance of Being Earnest in Zurich, it seems like a godsend. Until, that is, the play is abruptly cancelled in suspicious circumstances, and Suzy is forced to take a job on a cruise ship to get home.
Meanwhile Amanda Herbert finds herself homeless in rainy Clapham. Her flat purchase has fallen through, and her children are absorbed in their own dramas. Then she spots an advertisement for an Atlantic cruise, and realises a few weeks on-board would tide her over - and save her money - until the crisis is solved.
As the two women set sail on a new adventure, neither can possibly predict the strange characters and dodgy dealings they will encounter - nor the unexpected rewards they will reap.
Vividly evoking the old-world glamour of a cruise ship - and the complex politics of its staff quarters - Sail Away is at once a hilarious romp and a thrilling tale of intrigue, from the acclaimed pen of Celia Imrie.
