Age 10+

The previous volumes of McKay’s Casson family series — Saffy’s Angel, Indigo’s Star and Permanent Rose — concentrated on three of the four siblings in this eccentric household. By now, fans of the Cassons have to know the romantic destiny of Caddy and her former driving instructor and fiancé, Michael. This book may or may not reveal it. What it does do is intersperse the narratives of all four youngsters, and it is a joy to hear more of Saffy, Rose and Indigo, even when some of their stories tell of small crises in their lives — an embarrassing incident at school, moments of unintentional betrayal, unfortunate matchmaking at the school disco, the ups and downs of first love.

Hilary McKay is always funny, touching and surprising, and has depths of wisdom despite her lightness of touch. She makes us care about these characters as we would about what happens to members of our own family. There is a chance that this book may not be the last, which is fortunate, because we just don’t want to say goodbye to the Cassons.

(Hodder £10.99)

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