Cornwall.... a storytellers paradise

St Anthony Lighthouse, Cornwall

Cornwall is very primeval: great black, jutting cliffs and rocks,…and a pale sea breaking in, like dawn.
- D.H. Lawrence

I am drawn to books with a strong sense of place, where the landscape is almost another character in the story. A landscape that has a special place in my life is that of Cornwall, a county on the south west tip of the UK, stretching out into the Atlantic Ocean. Cornwall is such a beautiful, rugged and mysterious place with its own special character. I am lucky to get to spend quite a lot of time there, it is my happy place, my grounding place. Even though I have only discovered Cornwall in the last 20 years, I miss it deep down when I am not there. A way that I can conjure up that special Cornish feeling when back in London is to read books about Cornwall, they transport me back, relax my shoulders and inspire my creativity.

Luckily for me there are lots of novels and memoirs based in Cornwall. Cornwall is steeped in folklore and legend, from King Arthur, to giants, sea creatures and piskies, inspiring many generations of story tellers. Its mystery, ruggedness, and unpredictable weather lends itself as a great backdrop to a mystery or crime novel. Its small communities that swell so much in summer months, create a tension between locals and outsiders (or ‘emmets’ as the Cornish call us), which is a great device for murder.

Crantock Beach from the South West Coastal Path

As a summer holiday destination, with remote communities far from many peoples busy lives, and with gorgeous beaches it also inspires lots of escapist and romantic novels. You know the ones where someone is running away from a bad relationship or toxic career, hoping to hide or find a new start, probably working in a quirky cafe, or bookshop!? I have inhaled lots of these books over the years, I sometimes just need that injection of positivity, an easy read I can just get lost in for a few hours, perfect. Equally as a multigenerational holiday destination, it can be a great device for family dramas, playing out overs the years.

However for all the mystical and romanticism, Cornwall is a place which suffers from severe poverty and inequality. It may be a playground for the rich, but it also has some of the most deprived communities in Northern Europe, and this inequality has only been made worse by Brexit, as those communities no longer receive EU grants. In recent years I have sought out memoirs that help me to understand this side of the county that I love.

Drolla - The Storytelling Bench

This week whilst in Cornwall I visited Trebah Garden, near Falmouth. It is a beautiful spot and because of the sheltered location the gardens have a tropical feel (even in winter), with lots of exotic plants, my favourite being a glade of tree ferns. Currently at the garden (until 27th April 2025) you can find Drolla - The Storytelling Bench. Drolla means folk tale, narrative, or plot in Cornish. The bench was commissioned by Cornwall National Landscape and is beautifully made from copper plate and Cornish Oak, depicting the cultural heritage of Cornwall from legend to fauna. The bench is intended to be a gathering place to inspire health and wellbeing by connecting people to nature and heritage through the art and culture. Having almost finished this piece when visiting I felt I needed to include it here, as it summed up the importance of Cornwall’s rich literary heritage, but also the importance of stories to wellbeing, by connecting us to our surroundings..

So that you can share the magic of Cornwall with me, I am sharing some of my favourite books and authors from this most special of places, ones I have read and ones on my tbr list.

• Ordinary Time by Cathy Rentzenbrink. Cathy is a resident of Cornwall and this brilliant novel mainly set in a small parish in Cornwall where the main character is married to the local vicar. You can find a longer review here.

• The Feast by Margaret Kennedy, first published in 1950, this novel gives a fascinating window into the post WW2 era of Cornwall’s tourist industry and Britain’s class system, being based in a guest house that is about to be swallowed up by the cliff above it, (that isn’t a spoiler). A really good clever book, that has so many layers.

• The Salt Path & The Wild Silence by Raynor Winn. You have probably heard of The Salt Path, the memoir of Raynor’s and her husbands’ walk around the South West Coastal path after being made homeless. It has recently been made into a film with Gillian Anderson and Jason Isaacs which I haven’t watched yet. I loved the book, and I have recommended and bought it for many. The Wild Silence is the sequel which follows the pair after they settle down after the walk. The Salt Path in particular I found very moving and profound. I loved picking out the parts of the coastal path that I have walked.

I loved the cover of The Salt Path by Angela Harding so much I bought the puzzle!

• A Perfectly Good Man by Patrick Gale. Patrick is based in Cornwall and most of his novels are set or feature Cornwall. I find his descriptions of place so evocative, and I love being swept away to the Cornwall that I adore.

• Glittering a Turd by Kris Hallenga, whilst not entirely based in Cornwall, this novel is about how Kris embraced life with her terminal cancer diagnosis. Moving to Cornwall and the life it gave her was a big part of her story. Kris sadly died last year, but her campaigning legacy lives on with the Charity Coppafeel and this book is very inspiring and uplifting.

Here are two series of crime books that are set in Cornwall, (The genre is cosy crime? A question mark because I am not sure how how I feel about that term, but you will know what I mean) that I am totally invested in:

• The Shell House Detectives by Emylia Hall, which pairs a local Cornish woman with an ex police officer solving crimes in a small seaside town. Emilia, has just released the 5th book in the series, so lots to get stuck into if you love a series.

  

• The Summer Suspense Series by LJ Ross, although these are a series, each book (there are currently four) is completely separate, different location, different characters, what links them is they all ‘romantic suspense novels set amidst the beautiful landscapes of Cornwall’. I have read The Cove and The Bay, and The Creek is on my tbr pile. They are books you can inhale really quickly and leave you with that feel good vibe!

And of course I can’t talk about Cornwall literature and miss out the novels of Daphne Du Maurier, most of which are set in Cornwall, most famously Rebecca and Jamaica Inn, as she spent much of her life there. Rebecca is one of the few books I have read more than once!

I walked this land with a dreamer’s freedom
- Daphne du Maurier

My ‘to be read’ pile of Cornwall books:

• The Poldark Series by Winston Graham, these are all set on the north Cornish coast near to the part of Cornwall that I spend time. I was bought the books as a present, and whilst I have watched the TV series, I am looking forward to the descriptions of the Cornish landscapes, whilst picturing the gorgeous Aidan Turner.

• Growing Goats and Girls by Rosanne Godin, A memoir with tales from the good life on a Cornish farm.

• Under Current by Natasha Carthew, A Cornish memoir of poverty, nature and resilience. This book was shortlisted for the Nero Book Awards Non-Fiction in 2023.

• A Year of Marvellous Ways by Sarah Winman, the author of Still Life, (a novel that I loved). This book is about an 89 year old woman who sits by a creak in Cornwall, waiting for a last adventure. It sounds magical and I was excited to pick a copy up of this in a local charity shop.

• The Salt Bind by Rebecca Ferrier, a novel. ‘Discover a world of forgotten sirens, sea gods and the alchemy of the old ways.’ I have a proof I was given at Cheltenham Literature Festival, it is being published in September 2025, so I am planning to read it in the summer whilst in Cornwall.

• Adrift, the curious tale of the Lego lost at sea, by Tracey Williams (with Dr Curtis Ebbesmeyer and Mario Cacciottolo). This is a photographic book that looks a cargo spill in 1997, which has left Lego still washing up on the shores in Cornwall. It considers the legacy of such spills, as well as the joy of beachcombing.

Books that I want to add to my tbr pile that I came across whilst researching this piece:

Zennor in Darkness by Helen Dunmore

The White Hare by Jane Johnson

The Lip by Charlie Carroll

If you have read any of these books please share your thoughts, I would love to hear them x