The Second Son published by Clink Street Publishing on 5th October 2017.

I would like to thank  Rachel Gilbey for allowing me a spot on the tour for this amazing book.

Synopsis:

As the second son of the Duke of Hampshire, Grenville St John Hampton isn’t likely to inherit his family’s title or estate, leaving him pondering an empty, aimless future. During the summer break from university, he impulsively decides to go backpacking with one of his oldest friends, Johnathan; their destination is Belize.

One sultry night on the Central American coastline, Grenville and Johnathan meet Tom. A game of darts takes a vicious turn. Realising he has nothing to look forward to back at home, Grenville decides to stay on in Belize with Tom, in pursuit of adventure. Together, the new friends establish an import business, and for the rst time in his life, Grenville has a sense of purpose.

But back in England all is not well. The sudden death of his brother leaves Grenville with an unexpected – and now unwanted – inheritance, with new consequences and responsibilities. He will return to claim the family’s seat with a dark secret in tow.

Andy Blackman is the author of For the Love of Grace (published by Clink Street, 2016).

My Thoughts:

Occasionally you come across a book that exceeds all expectations, The Second Son is one of them.  The synopsis is alluring and at the same time vague and almost understated, it gives the basic details but what is told within the covers is quite an amazing story.

The main protagonist is Grenville St. Louis Hampton, second son of the Duke and Duchess of Hampshire.  He has a more carefree nature with no expectations piled on him, unlike his brother Stephen who will carry the mantle of family tradition.  This burden of a future title is Stephen’s, and he does not carry it well, he does not see the point of Greville and mostly ignores him.  Grenville follows the family tradition of schools that have always been attended by the family, but takes a gap year with best friend Jonathan and they visit Belize.  There they meet Tom, he becomes their saviour and when Jonathan returns homewithout his friend, Tom becomes Grenville’s mentor.  Tom teaches him about his import business as well as more practical survival skills, and his business is not completely above-board.  After spending a few years in Belize, Grenville is to go home, his brother killed in a car accident and so the title of successor falls to Grenville.

Grenville still wants to help Tom with his business, so the two form a sort of business plan that they will set up in the UK, this gives Grenville something useful, practical to do as well also helping his friend. When he returns to the UK he has his work cut out for him, not only dealing with the estate but also setting up a business.  This he does not do alone , he calls on two old school friends, Jonathan and also Hugo, they begin a journey, and what a journey it is.

When I began this book I was not really that taken with Grenville, I cannot put my finger on what exactly it was, but as his character grew and changed I started to warm to him and actually ended up really liking him.  The characters in this book are really well-developed, the bad guys are real sleazy, lowlife slime balls that I instantly loathed, the good guys, yes you guessed it, I really liked them, even when they have their shady moments.  The characters, their surroundings and the dialogue are very appropriate and are well worked.

The plot, well… I am keeping sch-tum on this one, it is impressive and is absolutely nothing like I expected.  Even now as I write this review (24 hours after reading) I still feel a little lost and really want to read more, yes I am suffering from “book hangover”, so my order for to Amazon for a copy of “For the Love of Grace” is now on its way.   For The Love Of Grace deals with Tom and his mother, and how Tom ends up in Belize.  I have read The Second Son without reading For The Love Of Grace, and I found that it works well as a stand alone, but curiosity of Tom and Grace’s story has intrigued me.  So because of this I would suggest reading both.

This is a book that I would recommend to readers of contemporary fiction who like mystery, intrigue and is very well written.

Book Details: 

About the Author:

After serving in the British Army for over twenty-five years in the Parachute Regiment, Andy Blackman today lives in Bedworth, Warwickshire and works within in the IT sector. In his spare time he can be found visiting his three daughters and grandchildren. His previous novel, For the Love of Grace, was published in 2016.

Many thanks for reading my post.