A week of winter

When Chicky Starr decides to restore the old Stone House, perched high on a cliff on the west coast of Ireland, and turn it into a hotel, everyone thinks she's gone mad. But with a renovation to give the house fireplaces, elegant bedrooms, and a cozy kitchen, it's not long before Chicky is ready to welcome her unlikely first group of guests. Winnie and Lillian don't get along, but find themselves forced to vacation together; John, an American film star, thinks he's arrived unnoticed; Nicola and Henry, doctors, are fed up with the deaths they've witnessed; Anders hates inheriting his father's business but has a natural talent for music; Miss Howe, an icy retired teacher, seems to be having a hard time; the Walls are disappointed to have placed second in a contest for a trip to Paris; and Freda, the librarian, is afraid of her own psychic gifts. Sharing a winter week with such engaging and unlikely characters will be pure delight.