Part I Jack Lights Out, Chapters 1-3 Summary

At the beginning of the book, we meet Jack Sawyer and his widowed mother Lily Sawyer arriving at the Alahambra Inn and hotel on the New England Coast. They are retreating here 'on holiday' from the concerns of the entertainment agency that Lily ran with her deceased husband and friend of the family, Morgan Sloat. It also become apparent that Lily Sawyer, retired actress and single mother is also seriously ill.

The first three chapters introduce the reader to the world of the story and the character of Jack Sawyer and his mother. Jack is a tough, independent child of twelve at the start of the book who realises with a maturity far beyond his years that his mother is running from her past, her illness, and also from the increasing...