A “companion” novel rather than a sequel to Joyce’s previous The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry (which was shortlisted for the Booker), this tells the story of Harold Fry’s pilgrimage from the point of view of Queenie, Harold’s cancer-ridden ex-colleague whose short letter moved him impulsively to walk the 600-odd miles out of his stale, outwardly comfortable married life in Kingsbridge, Devon, to her hospice in Berwick-upon-Tweed.

As Harold – and death – get closer, Queenie writes her own side of the story, giving a new dimension to Harold’s memory of the sweet-laden spinster in tweed who could sing backwards. Queenie is a Cambridge classics scholar who, disappointed in love, arrived in Kingsbridge secretly pregnant — but not for long. Under those circumstances it is not surprising she developed a repressed and unrequited passion for decent, quiet, married Harold Fry. While the surroundings of Queenie’s hospice make this a more confined novel than its predecessor, Queenie’s memories open out the story, drawing a touching picture of her relationship with Harold’s son, David, and sketching out her latter years spent creating a “sea garden” on an isolated stretch of Northumberland coast. It’s a garden that brings as many intriguing visitors as Harold meets on his pilgrimage.

Although this quiet, gentle, moving novel occasionally tips into sentimentality, Joyce’s writing at moments has a simplicity that sings. She captures hope best of all: “You don’t have to keep being the thing you have become. It is never too late.”

The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy is published by Doubleday (£14.99). Click here to buy it for £9.74