All the fun of the fair

Meet the residents of number 73 Westminster Road. Alfie Gorman, the suicidal Park Keeper, transvestite landlord Gerald Grimman and former showgirl Edith Hird.

Alfie is at the centre of the story.His childhood was shattered by the death of his older brother and he has spent his entire adult life roaming the seaside resorts of Britain, trying to recapture the happiness he felt during the holidays he spent there with his family.

All the fun of the Fair is a novel which is broad in scope, encompassing several families and a host of characters, all linked via number 73, the park, Alfie, or the town itself. We follow them as they work through their various conflicts, each of them hoping for redemption and happiness.

In Happy Mount Park, where Alfie works, there is an ice cream van operated by Lee Etchman, a lothario with a beer belly and an obsession with his teenage assistant, Tania Streatham.

Lee's older wife, the rich and glamorous Loriana Cipriani, is sick of his affairs. One evening, while walking on the promenade, she meets Alfie. They learn that they share Italian roots and strike up a friendship which offers hope to both of them.

You will begin the novel pitying Alfie but his sheer determination and will to keep getting up when life knocks him down will have you rooting for him, urging him to succeed in his quest to leave his dark past behind.