Space Hopper by Helen Fisher

 

Space Hopper by Helen Fisher.

Published 4th February 2021 by Simon and Schuster UK.

From the cover of the book:

This is a story about taking a leap of faith
And believing the unbelievable

They say those we love never truly leave us, and I’ve found that to be true. But not in the way you might expect. In fact, none of this is what you’d expect.

I’ve been visiting my mother who died when I was eight.

And I’m talking about flesh and blood, tea-and-biscuits-on-the-table visiting here.

Right now, you probably think I’m going mad.
Let me explain…

Although Faye is happy with her life, the loss of her mother as a child weighs on her mind even more now that she is a mother herself. So she is amazed when, in an extraordinary turn of events, she finds herself back in her childhood home in the 1970s. Faced with the chance to finally seek answers to her questions – but away from her own family – how much is she willing to give up for another moment with her mother?

Space Hopper is an original and poignant story about mothers, memories and moments that shape life.

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Tell me a book is about time travel and I'm there... but Space Hopper turned out to be so much more than I was hoping for.

Our narrator, Faye, is a woman who considers herself lucky. She has two lovely daughters, a caring husband and wonderful friends, with very little to wish for, but the loss of her mother, Jeanie, when she was a young child is something she has found hard to deal with - especially as she has grown older. Then, one afternoon, a very strange thing happens... she finds herself travelling back in time to her childhood home and being given the chance to spend time with her mother (and herself as a child) and get answers to many of her questions. But her desire to repeat the process begins to have unforeseen effects on the happy life she has made for herself in the present - should she continue to long for the past or finally make the decision to say goodbye to her mother?

It turns out that Space Hopper is not so much a book about time travel, even though there are shades of the The Time Traveller's Wife here, but one about mothers and daughters, yearning to recapture what has been lost, faith, love, the fleeting nature of existence, and making peace with your past. It is achingly nostalgic for anyone who remembers being a child in the 1970s, like myself, full of warmth and humour, and will tug mercilessly on your heartstrings.

There is a lovely element of the blurring of lines between childhood and being an adult in this book that is so poignant. Faye sees herself as a responsible grown-up and yet there are times when she reverts to being childlike, sometimes within the safety of her relationship with her husband, but especially with her mother. All these years she has been yearning for her mother's touch and the need to have her cuts and bruises kissed better has never left her, but at the same time she is given the opportunity to look at her mother from an adult perspective and see her as a real person too. This blurring is also nicely picked up in the allusion that the imagination and sense of fun of childhood should be fed and nurtured, and allowed to carry over into adulthood.

I think it's fair to say that this is a book that is going to divide the crowd, particularly when it comes to the magical ending. The crux of the matter lies in the ever so subtle, almost imperceptible, thread of the fairy tale that runs seductively throughout this book. It's one that tugs ever so gently at your imagination, dropping hints with a suggestive trail of breadcrumbs that leads exactly where Helen Fisher has been guiding us all along, and I found it enchanting. I leave it up to you to discover the clues for yourself...

This is a beautifully conceived, emotional corker of a novel that I read in a single sitting, hanging on to every single word. It's one that defies being put in a box - apologies for the pun to anyone who has read this one - except perhaps the one labelled 'outstanding debut'!

Space Hopper is available to pre-order now from your favourite book retailer, and will be published in hardcover and e-book formats on 4th February 2021. Also available in audio book format.

About the author:

Helen Fisher spent her early life in America, but grew up mainly in Suffolk where she now lives with her two children. She studied Psychology at Westminster University and Ergonomics at UCL and worked as a senior evaluator in research at the RNIB. She is now a full-time author.

Space Hopper is her first novel. She is currently working on her second novel.