Hotel Alpha

Product Information

Contributions should be appropriate for a global audience. Please avoid using profanity or attempts to approximate profanity with creative spelling, in any language. Comments and media that include hate speech, discriminatory remarks, threats, sexually explicit remarks, violence, or the promotion of illegal activity are not permitted.

The story of the hotel is told in alternating chapters by Graham and Chas and gradually a picture of the hotel and its guests and staff appears. Things are not quite what they seem and as events gradually work towards a climax the tension rises. I thought the author made each of the voices, Chas and Graham, distinctive and I really felt I could understand Chas's life and the problems he faced in his blindness. I liked Graham too and I felt the way his life was the hotel really stood out as did his pride in doing his job as well as he possibly could. I desperately wanted to like this book, and was sure that it was a solid four star, if not an illustrious five star rating, in the making. Early promotions about this novel gave me the impression that this would be Eleven but in the setting of a hotel. The constant narrative changes, a catalogue of unique voices and a plethora of individual stories that were all woven together to create a tense over-arching plot. I knew from Watson's previous novels that his talent as an author is superlative, and therefore my expectations were very high. Hotel is handy for train station and it’s easy to get train into Pompeii, Herculaneum, Sorrento etc.The issue was then in the concept. I wanted to see the world of the Hotel Alpha through the voices and eyes of those living within it's walls. I wanted to know how everyone felt, and was disappointed when the voices were only given to Graham and Chas. Anyone else who spots something suspicious can always report it to our Customer Service team, so our Fraud team can investigate. Watson always has a great style to his novels, a warmness. He makes the reader feel like they know the characters well. The first-person narratives do that effectively and Watson manages to make them feel like two very distinct voices. I think the cleverest thing though is that neither are really the main character- that comes in the form of hotel owner Howard York. It is him that the secrets surround and him that runs the hotel and plays a big hand in running the country. Yet at the same we rarely get up close and personal with him in the story, not really knowing what he is really like until the end.

Each review score is between 1 and 10. To get the overall score, we add up all the review scores and divide that total by the number of review scores we received. Guests can also give separate subscores in crucial areas, such as location, cleanliness, staff, comfort, facilities, value, and free WiFi. Guests submit their subscores and their overall scores independently – there’s no direct link between them. Poor disabled access with lots of steps at entrance- not an issue for us but certainly something the hotel management should consider. Clean and modern rooms on the second floor. Great showers with plenty of hot water and towels changed daily. This elegant, 19th-century villa has been completely restored and is now a welcoming, 4-star hotel. Surrounded by fragrant citrus groves, the garden is full of exotic flowers and plants and is a great place to relax. The swimming pool is especially inviting during hot summer days.I must admit that had I not been given a copy of this book, I probably wouldn't have come across it, as I don't tend to go for books by celebrities known for things other than writing. Breakfast was ok as long as you only ate the cold food plus toast. The hotel did offer bacon, sausage and scrambled eggs all kept warm using candles!! Inevitably they weren’t warm and very few people eating it- a bit of a clue that the staff and management should really be looking to improve.

Each review score is between 1-10. To get the overall score that you see, we add up all the review scores we’ve received and divide that total by the number of review scores we’ve received. In addition, guests can give separate ‘subscores’ in crucial areas, such as location, cleanliness, staff, comfort, facilities, value for money and free Wi-Fi. Note that guests submit their subscores and their overall scores independently, so there’s no direct link between them. I didn't read on to the 100 extra tales (told by other hotel guests), I liked the story standing on its own and didn't feel the need to explore further, though I liked the idea. Contributions should be appropriate for a global audience. Please avoid using profanity or attempts to approximate profanity with creative spelling, in any language. Comments and media that include 'hate speech', discriminatory remarks, threats, sexually explicit remarks, violence, and the promotion of illegal activity are not permitted.Watson is a very good writer. Assured, confident and funny, he also manages moments of emotion and warmth. Anyone who spots something suspicious can always report it to our Customer Service team so that our fraud team can investigate.