Psychological realism characterises The Death of Lomond Friel, which explores the impact of a father’s stroke on his extended family and close friends. As the story unfolds we take the vantage point of each of the main characters in turn, viewing Lomond, and life, through their eyes. In a sense, his stroke is the least important thing about the book; we are more concerned with the way that the other characters react and what we learn about their relationships in the process.

Lomond’s daughter Rosie is a borderline alcoholic and quasi-celebrity, struggling to deal with a, as yet unnamed, issue in the family past. Her brother Jacob is a somewhat cold alpha-male married to the timid lingerie shop owner April. Lomond’s sister Heath is a frail woman in her eighties who acts as a substitute mother for Rosie, as does Kitty, Lomond’s housekeeper, who harbours more than professional feelings for him. The minor characters are sketched just as intricately; from Cameron the reclusive stalker who is fascinated by Rosie, to William, Jacob’s twin in Ethiopia who only rarely ventures back to the family home. The Death of Lomond Friel is a snapshot of one family in crisis, in all its complexities and contradictions.

The appeal of the novel is largely the unravelling of the various secrets that hold the family together, and there are a few moments of real emotional lyricism encased within a dull domestic setting. There are elements of the characters we can recognise and there is something very real about this story. Peebles touches on a range of issues, examining suicide, mental illness, alcoholism and depression. She also engages with unhappiness of a more mundane sort like the silent suffering of a woman trapped in a loveless marriage, and the ritualised packing and unpacking of the suitcase which served as a vehicle for never-to-be-realised aspirations. Unhappiness and dissatisfaction permeate the book; making it, arguably, close to life, and of all the various relationships explored none are perfect. The serious subject matter is somewhat counteracted by Peebles’ light and easy style, making it easy to read. For a first novel it is relatively well written and I wouldn’t rule out reading anything by Peebles in the future.

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