Domov ztracených ptáčat (2026)

This Czech-language novel follows painter Elise as she arrives on the rugged yet captivating coast of North Norfolk, seeking refuge from the pain of losing her only son in a wild landscape scented with sea lavender. Her hope of a new beginning rests on House in the Marshes, a neglected estate surrounded by romantic salt marshes and battered by sea winds. She immediately feels a deep, almost magical bond with the house, and within its cold walls decorated with faded paintings by its original owner, Lilias, she discovers more than traces of the past. When she finds an old yellowed photograph, the past comes alive and draws her back to the fateful year 1939. On the eve of a devastating war, courageous Lilias turns the house into a refuge, sheltering a mother and young son who have fled threatened London. When the boy’s father, Harry, arrives, an unexpected love enters Lilias’s life, but before their feelings can fully blossom, Harry suddenly disappears without a trace. As Elise restores the house, she finds support in Sam, a charismatic carpenter. Together they search for the truth about Harry’s disappearance and gradually piece together the story of a forbidden wartime love. Elise soon realizes that her work and walks through the magical countryside are healing not only the old walls but also her own wounds. Can she finally bury the shadows of the past and find the courage to love fully again?