Cobwebs and Cream Teas by Mary Mackie

This funny little volume follows author Mary Mackie as she moves into Felbrigg Hall, a National Trust property in Norfolk, with her husband Chris. Chris has recently scored the job of Houseman at Felbrigg and, little do they know, the experience is going to change their lives - not least since they'll be moving into Felbrigg itself, albeit into a converted flat within one wing (the majority of the house is open to the public). I love anything to do with English manor houses or country homes, so when I stumbled across this on Amazon and the reviews all gave it a thumbs up, I thought I'd give it a go.  It's a great little read; charming and amusing. Mary gives a great insight into what it's like to live and work for a National Trust property - Houseman must mean 'a bit of pretty much everything' in at least one language, because Chris is often attempting to fix the roof, politely removing trespassers, rearranging furniture, hosting late-night music events, mucking in with the washing up in the tea rooms....you get the idea. Although Mary isn't employed by the NT, living on site she can't help but get involved ....perhaps a little more than she'd like sometimes!

The result is a witty diary-style read that leaves you wanting to visit Felbrigg asap. Mary's tales of rude visitors who insist on ignoring the signs, excited school children and the foreign students who come to stay at the 'base camp' are all very light-hearted and can't fail to raise a smile. Although her tone is very dry, her love and enthusiasm for the property shines through - you can tell that both she and her husband adore Felbrigg.

Her writing style is slightly off at times but it didn't spoil my enjoyment. I genuinely felt envious when she described taking a walk in the acres of grounds in the freshly fallen snow...it conjured up such a romantic image that I felt quite sulky to be living in a flat in London!

I can't dash off to Felbrigg any time soon, so I've done the next best thing and ordered the sequel to Cobwebs and Cream Teas - Dry Rot and Daffodils. I'm sure you'll be hearing about it shortly....