Beyond the rapids

HELEN anxiously closed her curtains. The wind was tearing around the house, slamming rain against the windows and harassing the trees. The rain hadn’t stopped since lunchtime. She’d spent this first d

THE Janus Inn’s sign swung ominously in the gathering wind as Mairi and her bundle stood outside. Waiting for the coachman to appear, she looked towards the stout, ancient building, glad of the carous

From the Apennine Mountains to ‘the end of the land’ at Cape Finisterre, Louis D Hall and his horse Sasha trekked untrodden partisan paths across four mountain ranges. Guided by strangers and nature’s clues, it was fulfilment of a childhood dream inspired by Don Quixote . Here, the author shares two extracts that give a glimpse into this wilder way of life

JANUARY 1. Hazel sat in the quiet cottage. It was one of two, semidetached, on the outskirts of the village, completely surrounded by fields. When she looked out of the window, all she saw was unrelen

THE wedding is a small affair. Issac had wanted something bigger, but Clara still felt a fraud, despite her brother Joseph’s assurances that Issac really loved her. She regularly pinches herself to se

I stood by the kitchen window; phone pressed to my ear. Outside, frost shimmered across the lawn, and the weak winter sun filtered through the trees. “So, what do you think?” I said to Phoebe. “A post