This week's good read................

Shortlisted for the Booker Prize, Rose Tremain's 'Restoration' is the story of a small life touched and destroyed by the presence of greatness. Robert Merival falls under the spell of Charles II to the point of obsession. He allows himself to be used to facilitate the promiscuous King's love life, at the cost of his already fragile self esteem. Robert is a complex character, capable of great humour, loyalty and bravery but totally lacking in self respect. In a time when ostentatious lust for life substitutes for good taste and constancy, Robert believes himself to be a man of his time. He's wrong, and therein lies his tragedy.

I loved this story. Robert's gentle character is quite enchanting and I found myself willing him to recognise his own strengths and to stand up for himself right to the very end of the book. Brilliant!