The Shell Seekers

This is Pilcher's best known work. It reads like a wonderful family saga. All of the characters have the same thing in common: family issues. Pilcher explores jealousy, kindness, greed, laziness, and so much more. The characters I liked best were the narrator, Penelope, and Olivia, orphaned by her father's death, and turning to his ex girlfriend for family. Those two were the wisest and most likeable. Penelope takes charge of her life. Olivia finds comfort in Penelope's home, falls in love for the first time, and it tuns out the gardener she falls for has secrets himself. The story moves from present day to back before WWII. The losses of wartime seem to bring that life-and-death, day-in-day-out sense of urgency. The little town works within that framework, too, and rationing and lines to stand in are heart breakingly real. There is also the blending of "class" that during war time makes them all citizens in an extended family that I enjoyed very much. The title is the name of a painting done by the narrator's father, and worth millions. One of things I like best about her novels is they contain real women who depend on themselves. The mother of the 2 bad children disappoint her, but she never slams them. Instead, she thinks up a plan to execute by herself, that will leave all her children with the same thing: The painting given to a museum. Her description of England, Scotland and Cornwall make me eager to visit. I first read this book when I was in my 20s, and now I am 65 and her narrators are so interesting to me. She isn't bawdy or uncouth. Her characters are rich with secrets, desires, past events that they struggle to understand. All that makes for a realized life. She also has dogs in her books, which I love, because she takes walks on beaches with them, and you can feel the weather and hear the wind whistling past. This is a book for a precocious tween, and from then on, their reading lives will be so different, so much richer.

It's the story of Penelope Keeling, an older woman raised by artists, who meets 2 young people who trigger memories of her life during World War II. Her 3 adult children for reasons of their own won't take a trip to Cornwall with her. So, she decides to take Antonia Hamilton and Danus Muir instead. Her memories are intertwined with her present life and actions. It is a wonderful novel. I first read The Shell Seekers when it was first published and have enjoyed reading it again and again over the ensuing years. I always learn something worth learning.

As this book was written so many years ago, when I first started reading it I didn't think I would enjoy it as the old style English writing was not what I have been used to reading. Found myself constantly referring to definitions of words I was not familiar with. However I found that I became very interested in the various characters and time periods covered. Not knowing much about the World War, I found it very interesting how the people lived with blackout curtains, rationing, etc., and hard times that they went through. The characters, all from one family, were all so different from one another that it held my interest as how a "free spirit" of a mother managed through tough times and how unappreciative her children were. You felt like you were living with the characters through their tears, laughter, heartbreaks, disappointments and family trials. This is the first book in a long time that I spent an afternoon reading as was so near the ending, had to finish it. It is truly a classic.

This is the second time I have read The Shell Seekers. It is a brilliant family saga that is rich in all the things I find important in leisure reading. Set in London and a coastal town in Cornwall, it is centered on the life of the heroine Penelope and her family. I don’t want to give anything away, but this is a timeless story that I totally enjoyed reading again.

I read this book when it first came out. It had been weeks on the best-seller list and I thought I'd better check it out. It is one of these books that you cannot believe it must end. It made me a Rosamunde Pilcher fan from then on - buying every book she ever wrote, and enjoying every one. I just bought it again as I lent my original book to a friend, and I never saw it again. So pleased to once again complete my Rosamunde library. I have read her books again after a few years, and enjoyed them as if it was the first time.

This book is an expertly written classic story, and should, in my opinion, be eligible for a Pulitzer prize. The writing style is smooth, beautiful, and definitely above a basic reading level (I found myself looking up several words for definition). The development of characters is such that the reader will be able to picture each one, and to identify with some according to their preference. The descriptive talent of the author is evident; I felt placed in the environment surrounding the story and could visualise the different settings even though I have not visited them all myself. The plot management is well organized, even suspenseful in places, which, given that it is classified as part of the romance novel genre, is surprising and pleasurable. A magical journey to the UK with memorable characters; I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a serious read with a lighter touch.

When I first started the Shell Seekers, I wasn't convinced I was going to like it. It took me a few chapters before I realized that it was a book I would enjoy.I loved the way the author developed each of the main characters as well as describe the scenery and landscape of all the places which take place in the story.Penelope is the protagonist and we see her in the various stages of her life.I'm so happy that I decided to continue with the book and I'm happy to give this author a five star rating. It is a marvelous story.

I’ve seen both the film and the mini-series based on “The Shell Seekers” by Rosamunde Pilcher.Although I bought this book back in 2009 I’ve only just read it due to it being loaned out for family members.Penelope Keeling hadn’t had a happy life, what with a husband that didn’t love her, losing her mother, the love of her life dying and then the sad loss of her father, she’d decided to live on her own.After a recent operation for a heart attack, her daughter Nancy had started to nag her to get someone to live with her.Then her selfish and scheming son Noel found out that her father’s paintings were selling for large amounts of money. He got in touch with his sisterNancy and told her about what he’d found out, so they both started trying to convince her to sell what she had left of her father’s works. Penelope told them “No”, as she knew what they both wanted, they wanted the money for themselves as they both lived far beyond their means.When Nancy and Noel got in touch with their other sibling Olivia, she told them to back off leave her alone, but they had other ideas, as did both Penelope and Olivia.That’s all I’m going to say about the story as I don’t want to spoil it for anyone that wants to read it.The author has written a compelling story, (as she did with all her other books). I love her descriptive work as she makes you feel like you’re actually there with her characters. She’s given her characters lots of depth, and you can easily connect with them.The book grabs your attention on page one and keeps it untill the last page. Not only is this an enjoyable read, it’s also a compelling read. I really struggled to put this book down.I can highly recommend this book to any of the author’s fans, to someone who loves a good compelling read and to anyone who enjoys family sagas.

This is a really heart warming story. The sort of book you want on a cold damp winter day while you are lying on the world's most comfortable sofa in front of a coal fire, with perhaps a large glass of wine. This is a story really well told, with characters that come to life and become people that you feel are almost family.It is a very long read but that just adds to its worth.There are books that I am happy to read on my kindle, that get filed away probably never to be seen again, and there are books that I really want to own in their physical form. This is one of those books, and I will keep it forever.

I first read this book when it was first published and I love reading it again. Penelope, the main character, is a warm, kindly person wise in the worn, slightly scruffy generosity of Bohemia. Her father's a famous artist, her mother's French. If you've never met Penelope, her father and mother, her children and her Cornish cottage with the beautiful fragrant garden, you should. If you've met her before, she'd love to see you again and, if she adds that tin of beans to the stew, of course it would stretch so you could stay for tea. There is a bit of a plot but it's not nearly so important as the people who circle Penelope like moths round a particularly loving candle. All the description and characters are good, but Penelope and her garden will stay in your memory long after you close the book.

Half way through the first chapter I thought it was not the kind of novel I enjoy greatly but, with not a lot of effort, I carried on and by the end of the first chapter I was on the hook. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The characters are interesting and well portrayed. One or two things are slightly predictable from the moment the character concerned appears but even so, the story is enjoyable. The writing style is easy and appealing. Enjoyed all the more because I did not think I was going to enjoy it.

A beautiful read, especially nice for a cold winters evening with a warm fire and cosy chair to sink into. This is the first book I have read by Rosamunde Pilcher but it definitely won't be the last. The story follows the life of Penelope and her family, friends and acquaintances. Each chapter is devoted to a particular character and their part in Penelope's life. Some of these chapters are very long but this isn't a problem at all as there are divisions which allow you to easily to take a break. Each chapter revealed a bit more of the jigsaw linking the past to the modern day and by the end of the book everything in it draws to a very appropriate conclusion.