Kate Long (1) (1964–)

I was uncertain about this one to start with, but it was an enjoyable holiday read. Though I tend to be uncomfortable when characters take unnecessary risks by telling lies, I was unexpectedly able to sympathize with Kat as she struggles with being overweight, bulimic, unpopular, unfashionable, and possibly lesbian, and negotiates relationships with a dead father, an absent mother, the unpleasant grandmother who brought her up, and her (the grandmother's) odorous boyfriend. When a boy turns up claiming to be a cousin, Kat is simultaneously repelled and fascinated; and the local librarians turn out to be more than simply lenders of books. MB 1-ix-2018… (mehr)