St Michael’s Mount – the famous castle on its own island separated from the mainland by a causeway – is a must-visit. But make sure you also head into the lovely little town of Marazion, with its quirky shops, restaurants and the utterly brilliant Marazion Museum on the ground floor of the Town Hall (2 Market Place), which is a uniquely Cornish treasure trove of curiosities.
Miranda’s Top Ten Favourite
Foods in St Ives
Any visit to St Ives should definitely involve gorgeous local food. These are the must-have treats for Bob, Flo and me whenever we visit:
1. Ice cream from Moomaid of Zennor Ice Cream Parlour, 1 Wharf Road Quite simply the best ice cream in St Ives, produced locally in nearby Zennor with a dizzying array of delicious flavours. The coffee is great, too. You can even sit outside on the tiny covered terrace, snuggled up in red fleecy blankets watching the bustle of the harbour. And yes, we’ve had ice cream there in January. Why not!
2. Enormous cinnamon rolls at The Hub, 4 Wharf Road Overlooking St Ives Harbour and offering a fantastic menu all day and evening. We love The Hub for its atmosphere and family-friendliness. The cakes are amazing – and huge – too!
3. Stew, bread, cakes from St Ives Bakery, 52 Fore Street Known for its daily bakes, on our winter visits we’ve also adored their homemade stew and rosemary bread.
4. Pasties from The Cornish Bakery, 9 Fore Street A huge range, and every one freshly cooked and gorgeous.
5. Fish and chips from The Balancing Eel, 10 Back Lane for a takeaway treat – or eat in at Harbour Fish and Chips, Wharf Road. Both offer the freshest, tastiest fish you’ll ever have.
6. Crêpes at Pels of St Ives, The Wharf I may have had a few jam crêpes here when I visited to write Somewhere Beyond the Sea in May last year. A tiny cafe overlooking the harbour with a huge menu of crêpes and pizza.
7. Anything at Porthmeor Beach Cafe, Porthmeor Beach All the food here is absolutely delicious and you have that view . . .
8. Breakfast at Sky’s Diner, 43 Fore Street Flo’s favourite cafe in St Ives. Very family-friendly and lovely food. Their breakfasts are a staple of our visits to St Ives.
9. Hot chocolate at Porthminster Beach Cafe, Porthminster Beach The food and the views are glorious here, but it’s their lovely hot chocolate that we love best.
10. Cream teas from The Yellow Canary Cafe, 12 Fore Street The freshly made scones, clouds of clotted cream and scoops of local strawberry jam are heaven. You can even send a cream tea home by post. Also try their fruit and lemon tarts, which are delicious.
Somewhere Beyond the Sea
Book Soundtrack Playlist
I make a soundtrack playlist for every book I write, to create the right atmosphere and capture the characters’ journeys in the story. Here is the playlist I compiled for Somewhere Beyond the Sea:
1. ‘The Star That Guides You Home’, Emma Stevens (Waves)
2. ‘Tinseltown in the Rain’, The Blue Nile (A Walk Across the Rooftops)
3. ‘Going Nowhere’, Sally J. Johnson (The Beacon Field)
4. ‘Symphony’ (feat. Zara Larsson), Clean Bandit (‘Symphony’ – single)
5. ‘A Sky Full of Stars’, Coldplay (Ghost Stories)
6. ‘The Bold Knight’, Seth Lakeman (Kitty Jay)
7. ‘Nebraska’, Lucy Rose (Nebraska – Remixes)
8. ‘Glow’, Ella Henderson (‘Glow’ – single)
9. ‘If I Could Change Your Mind’, HAIM (Days Are Gone)
10. ‘I Wish You Well’, Cara Dillon (After the Morning)
11. ‘Chasing Shadows’, Sam Kelly & The Lost Boys (Pretty Peggy)
12. ‘The Greatest’ (feat. Kendrick Lamar), Sia (This Is Acting)
13. ‘Stop Crying Your Heart Out’, Oasis (Time Flies . . . 1994–2009)
14. ‘Breathe Me In’, Jared & The Mill (‘Breathe Me In’ – single)
15. ‘We Are Stars’, Callum Beattie (‘We Are Stars’ EP)
16. ‘What Do I Know?’ Ed Sheeran (Divide)
Plan Your Own
St Ives Adventure
All of the places in Somewhere Beyond the Sea are real and can be visited (apart from The Maidens and Bethel Parsonage, although both are inspired by real places in Cornwall and Bodmin Moor). So if you fancy treading in Seren, Jack and Nessie’s footsteps, these websites will help you plan your perfect Cornish adventure:
www.aspects-holidays.co.uk – a friendly, locally run self-catering cottage company offering lots of lovely places to stay right across Cornwall.
www.visitcornwall.com – the official Tourist Board website for Cornwall, packed with places to visit, events, guides and accommodation.
www.stayincornwall.co.uk – lots of information about visiting Cornwall, offers, events and accommodation listings.
Somewhere Beyond the Sea
Miranda Dickinson has always had a head full of stories. From an early age she dreamed of writing a book that would make the heady heights of Kingswinford Library and today she is a bestselling author. She began to write in earnest when a friend gave her The World’s Slowest PC, and has subsequently written the bestselling novels Fairytale of New York, Welcome to My World, It Started With a Kiss, When I Fall in Love, Take a Look at Me Now, I’ll Take New York, A Parcel for Anna Browne and Searching for a Silver Lining. Miranda lives with her husband Bob and daughter Flo in Dudley.
@wurdsmyth
MirandaDickinsonAuthor
www.miranda-dickinson.com
Also by Miranda Dickinson
Fairytale of New York
Welcome to My World
It Started With a Kiss
When I Fall in Love
Take a Look at Me Now
I’ll Take New York
A Parcel for Anna Browne
Searching for a Silver Lining
First published 2018 by Pan Books
This electronic edition published 2018 by Pan Books
an imprint of Pan Macmillan
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Associated companies throughout the world
www.panmacmillan.com
ISBN 978-1-4472-7608-1
Copyright © Miranda Dickinson 2018
Cover Images © landscape: BarbAnna / Getty Images, woman: Stuart Ashley / Getty Images
The right of Miranda Dickinson to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
Pan Macmillan does not have any control over, or any responsibility for, any author or third-party websites referred to in or on this book.
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A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
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