May Day House sits, imposing and crumbling, on its own island in the Thames.

THE HOUSE IN THE WATER
by Victoria Darke
Boldwood Books, Summer 2024
(via Northbank Talent Management)

Only accessible by boat, the house has been sitting empty for two decades. It wasn’t always empty, of course. It’s a house that’s brimming with history. During WW2, it hosted hundreds of recuperating wounded soldiers. And now, there are the ghosts – staring out at those who sail past its windows.

In the autumn of 2013, and Philip and Meredith Holland are the proud new owners of May Day House. Following a string of tragedies, the couple have moved to the area in search of a new start. But all is not what it seems in this friendly, close-knit neighbourhood. Will shadows from the past darken their new-found happiness?

Victoria Darke is the pen name for Faber Academy graduate Victoria Scott. She has a degree in English from King’s College, London and a Postgraduate Diploma in Broadcast Journalism from City University, London. She lives near London with her husband and two children, and works as a freelance journalist, media trainer and journalism tutor.