Book A Bach With True Character

A second stay at Gabriel’s Bay reinforces what a refreshingly funny place it is.

- Catherine Woulfe

Lacking a bach, or the capacity to laze? Even more reason to read this book: it’s a holiday in itself, a very real, very Kiwi sort of getaway, full of Krispie biscuits, battered scallops, Bell tea and Swannies. The writing pretends to be laid-back, but it’s deeply accomplished and shot through with humour and emotional intelligence. There’s a sense that you’re in clever, safe hands. That the next page will be just as tight and funny as the last one.

This is the second instalment in the Gabriel’s Bay series by fellow Listener reviewer Catherine Robertson. It’s her sixth novel in a string of bestsellers. I knocked it off over a rainy weekend at home and felt restored, transported.