The Long Weekend

As usual with a Clare Lydon book, this is very well written, with lots of humour and well drawn characters with sufficient backstory for each of them.I found it a bit confusing in the first half of the book as there were eight main characters so it was hard to remember who was with who (apart from the two token gay guys, Stuart and Darren, obviously!).On the subject of Darren, he is the reason I gave this 4 stars instead of 5. He turned up for the weekend away with several packs of cocaine, and then dealt them to his boyfriend and Kat, despite being aware that she had a previously known drink and drugs problem, she had just lost her job 3 months earlier, and one of the other girls, Geri, is a detective sergeant with the Metropolitan Police.Darren is not the sort of person anybody should want as a friend, and I could not understand why nobody blamed him for what happened to Kat.I was also a bit disappointed that Geri didn't leave a humorous note in the visitors' book (all these places have them!) to thank the owner of the house for a marvellous night and an even more marvellous morning. Now that would have been sweet revenge.This book is crying out for a sequel - how will Geri cope with her new lodger? Where will Geri and Rachel go? Will Geri stitch Darren up to the local Drugs Squad? Too many unanswered questions..................

I'll start by saying that I really like Clare Lydon's writing style. It's eminently readable, well paced and the character's conversations are natural and believable. Some of the analogies and descriptive passages are little gems. For instance, "...watched her wife go, feeling the familiar distance settle on her like morning dew," is just deliciously evocative and there are scores of these little diamonds scattered throughout.I did have a problem with following which character was which until quite a way into the book. That might just be me of course but they felt a little too similar to distinguish. It was however nice to read a book that was centred on a group of lesbian characters and that didn't have a predictable romance at its heart. I also liked that it didn't have a contrived ending and it didn't rely on the characters having some neat change of personality or heart. Throughout, the women are real and flawed and they remain so, which is very heartening.I look forward to reading more from Clare Lydon in the future.

Claire has done it again. Like a magician she has pulled out another rabbit out the hat.Group of University friends go on their "Long Weekend" reunion and it has now reached 20 years. Having been on one or 2 myself I can relate to all these characters.From the outsider everything looks fine but with the way that this book has been written we have a window on each relationship and how it is or is not working. I also like the way that the chapters have been separated out as though you are reading a diary.I loved the description of the house and would love to stay there.This book is far deeper than "London Calling, but is just as enjoyable and with 8 different stories going on at the same time I was still amazed how it all came together.Finally I would recommend this book because Clare mentioned my favorite film, you will have to read the book to find out what it is??

I'll keep it short as others have commented in depth, but what I liked about this was the believable characters and lack of perfection. The characters here were ordinary people that you could easily imagine knowing and being friends with. The fact is that people aren't perfect and things often don't work out exactly as you might hope or expect. So this story is much more 'real' than the bulk of lesfic you might find and read. If you want happy ever after then this may not be for you, but if you'd prefer a dose of reality then you may enjoy this.

I actually downloaded this book by accident whilst on holiday. It turned out to be a pretty good read. It was well written with likable characters which you can relate to. Reminded me of my crazy group of friends. I did find at times, with my limited attention span, it was hard to keep up with the who was who of the many couples / characters. It was different to the usual predictable storylines of most lesbian fiction books I've read in the past. I'd say it's worth a read and will probably check out some other books by this author.

This book is fabulous. It pulls you in from page one and has you laughing, crying and smiling at different stages. I fell in love with the alluring, charming characters and felt like I could relate to many of them. I read the book within 2 days as I couldn’t put it down. Looking forward to starting my next Clare Lydon book. Thank you for such enjoyment and making me eager to turn every page.

This is a MUST read book for everyone. Clare Lydon's ability to write books that have characters you can really connect with continues in her 2nd published book. I have been waiting (impatiently) for the release of The Long Weekend, an wasn't disappointed at all.The setting, a gorgeous Devon cottage that I actually want to hire for myself, the characters, an odd mixture of people (some who know each other, some who don't) and a lot of history amongst the friends. You feel as if you are actually there with them at the reunion. Its a definite page turner, and one of those books that make you laugh, think and reminisce about your own group of friends and life experiences.Clare Lydon is definitely in my top 3 authors - and once again I wait (impatiently) for another novel.