Petra's beloved clifftop 'used to be bright with blossoming gorse, but now it was a grey, thorny wilderness of metal and concrete' and is often hurled around by a 'fierce and blustering wind'.

The coastal setting, with all its wildness and unpredictability, heightens the sense of precariousness felt by a nation at war.

Petra talks of her father's 'ocean-blue eyes' and of her own 'slippery-fish hands', of 'a whole shoal of secrets, writhing in my mind like fish in a net'. Our Castle by the Sea is stunningly written, peppered with glorious sea imagery. Over the course of such events Petra uncovers the layers of mystery that exist within both her family and her own community, whilst all the while enduring various crucial moments of World War Two, including the Twighlight War and the Dunkirk evacuation. The potent blend of hope and fear is central to the events that transpire to alter the lives of Petra and her family forever. Whilst lighthouses are traditionally symbols of hope for ships looking to reach land, within the context of a world war they are also rather dangerous. Along with her parents and sister Magda, Petra lives at the local lighthouse - the eponymous 'castle by the sea'. Set in a coastal village in Kent during the Second World War, Our Castle by the Sea tells the story of Petra and her experiences during the early years of the conflict. But now the clifftops are a terrifying battleground, and her family is torn apart.' Growing up in a lighthouse, eleven-year old Pet's world has been one of storms, secret tunnels and stories about sea monsters.

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Our castle by the sea by lucy strange