A Distant Voice in the Darkness

In 1972 Wales, Eleanor Larsen-Bruun, a headstrong young student with a mind for science, finds herself caught in a smoky university kitchen with Alec Jenkins, a fellow first-year with untamed black hair, large NHS glasses, and a talent for chaos. What begins as a spontaneous attempt to salvage a burnt chicken sparks a surprising friendship – and a tender, complicated romance.

Their story unfolds across vibrant settings, from the mist-covered hills of Wales to the bustling markets of Nigeria and the timeless streets of Rome. As they confront challenges both personal and cultural, Eleanor and Alec navigate family expectations, career ambitions, and the weight of the past. With each new chapter, Eleanor must decide how much of herself to give, and what she may have to leave behind.

Leela Dutt is an outsider, brought up in Golders Green by an Indian father and a Danish mother. After grammar school and Oxford, she moved to Cardiff, Wales, where she has been a teacher, shop assistant, journalist, and also a proofreader for The Big Issue. After a degree in computing, she set up a database at Cardiff University on housing research. She is married to Robin Attfield, the philosopher; they have three children, seven grandchildren (of whom six survive), and one lively great-granddaughter. Leela and Robin are Quakers.

Leela’s earlier fiction includes two novels—Rubik’s Cube, the story of a Quaker meeting in 1980s South Wales as it confronts an American cruise missile base, and Mathison, a novel narrated by a computer (yes, they did have AI back in the day…) that is addressed to a baby born in 2000 about her ancestors through the twentieth century, starting in Kolkata in 1900 and in Nazi Germany.

She has published two collections of short stories, Kingfisher Blue and Fresh Beginnings.

Customer Reviews

5.0

5 reviews

Non53

I found this book to be an interesting read, it was fairly fast paced, had interesting characters and nicely rounded up all the loose ends into a happy conclusion.
Laura (TheBookishHermit)

This is a romance novel, the two main characters Eleanor and Alec meet in Wales in the year 1972 and begin a relationship. The story takes place from 1972 to 1999, during that time, we are taken to many different locations, including India, Rome, Nigeria and France plus many more. The story is told from both characters' points of view, which was quite interesting and was generally written well. Although I did feel that things moved a little bit too fast, one thing happened and then all of a sudden something else was happening, I would have liked the story and characters to have a little bit more depth. I did like the story but I feel it caters for a very particular audience, one that I don’t feel I am part of. I’m glad I read the book through to the end but the romance genre is simply just not for me! Romance fanatics, feel good grannies and travelers will eat this one up!
Megan C.

I found this a very interesting read following the life of Eleanor Larson - Bruun after her chance meeting with Alec Jenkins in 1972 until 1999. This was to the point and easy to follow. The backstory and how the other characters were connected to Eleanor and Alec was easy to understand and also relevant without any unnecessary details. There are chance meetings and some planned between the two, all in various places. I liked the way this was written and how each character was explored. It is essentially a love story that spans decades but one where you can't predict the outcome.
Brian

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. The book takes you on a journey around the globe where you follow the roller coaster of the relationship of the two main characters. The author having visited the places in the book gives authenticity to her writing. The only thing missing were prints of the sketches. You will understand this comment if you buy the beek. One person found this helpful
prdg

My Thoughts: this is a lovely story spanning a couple of decades, of first love and the fact that when the heart decides what it wants you just can’t fight it.. We travel the world watching Eleanor and Alec fall in love & separate but then their paths continually cross throughout the book in the most unlikeliest of places. The descriptions of the places were beautiful and made me want to visit them all so I can experience it for myself. The story was told from both perspectives which I loved, because you got to see what both of them were up to during their time apart and experience the emotions and inside thoughts of both of them which gave the story a well rounded feel. The story was a little too fast paced for me, things happened very quickly, you’d get used to one thing and then before you know it the tables had turned again which left me feeling like I’d missed something sometimes and I found myself going back a few pages just to double check! Overall an enjoyable read and one I would recommend!