James is 10 and has just moved to the Lake District with his dad and his older sister, Jasmine. It is meant to be a fresh start for them all because five years earlier, Jasmine's twin sister Rose was killed by a bomb and subsequently James's mother left home. 

This is a terribly bleak start to a book for children, and you wonder where it can go other than into a maelstrom of angst and sorrow. However, while there is sadness, compounded by a catalogue of issues facing young people today, the book just seems to get better and better.

James doesn't really remember Rose but he does realise that her death is continuing to impact on their family. There is his mother's absence, his father's drinking problem, his sister's eating problem and pink hair. In his new school James has to cope with bullying and racism directed at his new best friend Sunya. And of course he has to hide this friendship because Sunya is a Muslim and Rose was killed by Muslims, according to James's father. James is desperate to bring his family together again and believes a television talent competition may be the answer.

I loved this book. I really thought I was going to hate it at the beginning, so it's worth persevering. James naivety grates a little at times to start with, but he soon becomes a credible narrator. There are rather a lot of issues, and throwing in the tv talent show was a little over-the-top for me, but the fact that it doesn't rain but it pours was sadly believable. (I don't want to give anything away but the cat pushed me over the edge).

It's a great book. And grown-ups should read it too!