This, My Second Life

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What to expect

Brought to you by Penguin.

After a near-death experience and life-changing injury, twenty-year-old Jago Trevarno goes to stay with his uncle on his small coastal farm a few miles from St Ives in Cornwall.

Their existence is a simple one, their lives measured by the span of the days, the rhythms of the seasons and the animals they care for.

But lurking in the shadows is local villain, Bill Sligo, who has designs on Jacob's farm and in particular on a field near the cliffs housing a derelict mineshaft.

Wanting to repay his uncle’s kindness, Jago determines to find out what Bill Sligo is up to.

Jago is still vulnerable though, and in pursuing Sligo he delves into a murky world that he is ill-equipped to deal with. How far will Bill Sligo go to get what he wants? Jago doesn’t know it yet, but once again he is in grave danger.

Beautifully written, spare and elegiac, filled with shafts of light and darkness as well as the beauty and harshness of the Cornish landscape, Jago's journey is one of hope, renewal and resilience as he comes to terms with this, his second life.

'A remarkable debut novel’ Patrick Gale
'A moving must-read’ Jennie Godfrey
‘Thrilling and tender, I enjoyed every word' Julie Myerson

© Patrick Charnley 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026

Critics Review

An astonishing debut of recovery…The prose is spare and beautiful, the narrative simple but sound – it is as finely wrought as poetry… Jago’s distinctive voice emerges, a true and clear and entirely convincing creation, always reaching towards the light and life
The Guardian
A beautifully written, authentic and deeply affecting portrait of adversity, care and hope that will appeal to fans of Benjamin Myers' The Offing and Claire Keegan's Small Things Like These.
Daily Mail
[A] powerful debut ... Charnley has created his own world in this impressive debut, and it possesses its own unique magic
The Telegraph
The tension of a thriller and the tenderness of a recovery story ... a hypnotic read, gentle, generous and compelling.
Mail on Sunday
[An] elegant, infinitely touching debut novel
Saga Magazine
Touching, richly evocative. A remarkable debut novel
Patrick Gale
Utterly absorbing, beautifully written and insightful in unexpected ways. This, My Second Life is a moving must-read
Jennie Godfrey
An intense and unexpected debut. A beautiful piece of writing
Amanda Craig
An unexpectedly life affirming story woven into the fabric of a thriller
Esther Freud
Thrilling and tender, I enjoyed every word. Jago is a very original memorable narrator, full of warmth and optimism
Julie Myerson

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