The Moondish is the dark, imaginative, thought-provoking and enjoyable second novel by Isle of Wight writer Benjamin Roberts.
Set in the village of Bonchurch, near Ventnor, the plot takes place around the historic visit of author Charles Dickens to the Isle of Wight in 1849.
Jane Tench, a hard-up narrative therapist, has come to the Island to hide from her past. Her first client, troubled Adam Doe, is hard to fathom, producing strange stories about the Chinese opium trade and a shipwreck on the Isle of Wight coast, linked with a young Victorian woman called Rosie…
Could Adam’s narratives be more than just stories? Only the Moondish can help Jane find the truth, and the way to help Adam… even if she may not like the answer.
Roberts’ writing style is accessible, with flashes of particular beauty. The multi-layered plot is complicated and intriguing, and while the main characters are perhaps less sympathetic than they might be, that’s not necessarily a fault in this particular novel. However, in my view it could be argued that the character of Charles Dickens, well-researched though he is, ideally should play a more influential role in the final stages of the story.
Benjamin Roberts‘ first novel, The Girl I Knew, is also available on Amazon.