Having read the inspiration for Orkney Twilight straight after finishing the book, I realised just what a personal account this was. Clare Carson has poured her heart and soul into these pages and I could almost feel her inner struggle as she has gone from not being able to talk about her Dad's job to publishing it in a book for the whole world to read. I actually felt like I was peeping into Clare's own teenage diary as I read about Sam spying on Jim.

This book is so dark and atmospheric, despite being set at the peak of the summer solstice when Orkney has continual daylight. The frequent references to Norse mythology kept me intrigued as the scene was being set and it proves how well researched this book was - I was not aware of Orkney's Viking history before reading this book, but it's something about which I am keen to read more about.

I could almost describe this as a book of two halves - the snooping and spying in Orkney was all very undercover and didn't get my heart racing but without doubt I was lulled into a false sense of security. On their return to London, the pace picked up to a million miles an hour and I felt like I had been thrust into a John le Carré spy thriller. Sam being chased across London was brilliant, I don't think I paused for breath and I was fearing the worst when the mysterious biker guy reappeared. Sam has no idea who she can trust which gives us readers such a conundrum as we try to work it out for ourselves.

I was fascinated with Sam and Jim's relationship. How can she get close to him when she doesn't know who he is? It is clear that Sam loved her father and there are moments when we see how much they love each other, but all of this is called into question when Sam uncovers Jim's secret life and alternative identity. I loved how Sam accepted Jim's other life and continued his mission into the Greenwich foot tunnel - the damp isolation added to the dark atmosphere of the book.

This was a really heartfelt impressive debut - I'm sure we'll be reading lots more from Clare Carson in the future.

I received this book from the publisher, Head of Zeus, in exchange for an honest review. ( )

The Cold War, the miners’ strike, and spy vs spy on the far northern island of Orkney under the Midnight sun; Orkney Twilight is a snapshot of Britain in 1984 when Margaret Thatcher ruled with an iron fist.

Sam is a normal teenager: despite being accepted at Oxford University, she likes to think of herself as a rebel, not realising her dad’s status as a special policeman and his establishment ties protect her from the consequences of her misdemeanours.

But before going up to university, she has to endure a summer holiday on Orkney with her irritating but mysterious father, Jim: Sam invites Tom, an aspirant journalist, and the two of them spend the midsummer twilight trying to discover what Jim is up to.

Despite the espionage theme this is not a secret agent story: rather, it describes a coming-of-age and how, in the end, love endures. ( )