Angel at the Paradise Hotel by Teresa O’Driscoll

This book has an intriguing premise – you’ll have to read it to find out what I mean. We encounter a diverse cast of individuals – both Corfu locals and holidaymakers from afar – each burdened by unique anxieties and unresolved issues. As their interactions unfold, their individual quirks and weaknesses drag them into increasingly precarious situations.

The Plot

We soon realise the players’ choices are not entirely their own. Mysterious forces constantly influence their actions, be they beneficial or detrimental, selfish or kind. Yet they never compel them toward any specific behaviour. And their pain, their cravings, their worries, and their deep yearnings come over as profoundly real. As do the consequences of their decisions.

The writer skilfully immerses the reader in the setting and social dynamics of a small Corfu fishing village inundated by somewhat unruly tourists. We feel the raw emotion of a mother grieving her dead child. And the passionate anger of a jilted teenager. People facing financial crises and broken marriages stir us.

The sheer number of players with their unfamiliar names prove somewhat challenging for the reader to keep track, and we are left to speculate on the outcomes for certain characters we’ve grown fond of, who vanish from the story. More thorough editing would have improved the book.

Conclusion

This first novel by Teresa O’Driscoll presents a captivating core idea that offers both an exhilarating read as well as a thought-provoking exploration of a world previously unknown to us.