Time is out of joint. Something odd’s going on this summer. Everyone can feel it, even if no one knows exactly what it is. Why do the village and the marsh and the broad feel as if they are under some kind of spell? Where did all these flies and bees come from? Why are the house martins’ nests falling from the eaves? Nick is 15 and fed up. When his father gets a job in California, he persuades his half-sister to have her nephew to stay for the holidays in her remote cottage on the edge of a marsh, a couple of miles from the sea. Initially angry and hostile, Nick gradually begins to feel welcomed by Dina and her neighbours—particularly Dina’s boyfriend Gerry, warden at the nearby nature reserve, famous drinker and teller of tales that may or may not be true; Charley Maddox, 92 year old ex-novelist, retired school teacher and columnist for the East Norfolk Gazette; Moon, a twenty-first century hippy in serious danger of forgetting her own name; Harry the dog; the lovely Rachel who, like Nick, could have chosen better parents; and an assortment of new age loonies who spend their evenings in The Strangled Ferret, setting records for drinking too much and talking rubbish. There’s also young Sam, every social worker’s nightmare. How could anyone neglect a child in such a way? He’s dirty and smelly and has terrible clothes and a terrible haircut. He seems to know little about the world of mobiles and iPods, but rather a lot about how to catch eels and shoot coots. He also has an annoying habit of turning up when and where he’s least expected and a talent for getting on everyone’s nerves. In just a few short weeks, Nick has to learn to deal with them all. He’s got some growing up to do and a lot to learn—about himself and about the world.