The freshest and most poignant observer of human foibles and heroic hearts since Anita Brookner, Mary Wesley and Alice Thomas Ellis.

When Lydia sees Simon late at night driving down Westbourne Grove her suspicions are aroused. Simon, a TV film director, lives in Hammersmith with his wife Flora and their three children, what need has he for the dubious attractions of Bayswater? The attraction is Gillian, an accountant, whom Simon met at a dinner party while Flora and the children were away in la douce France. Flora struggles with her re-found Christian faith, though Anglican now rather than Roman Catholic, as Simon falls into a hopelessly passionate and sexual affair that brings its own burden and guilt.

The smart world of middle-class West London is depicted with savage wit and a needle-sharp intelligence that will remind readers of the novels of Muriel Spark.

About the Author

Madeleine St John was born in Sydney and graduated from the University there in 1963. She has spent most of the intervening years living in London. This is the author's second novel, her first being Women in Black.

Reviews

'A triumph of the minimalist, it appraises love, both sacred and profane, desire, pain and the disappointments of this earth with a laser eye.'
The Times

'Graceful and charming... If there are tears in the eyes, they will be tears of pure pleasure at the resolution and consummate workmanship of a small masterpiece.'
Shena Mackay, Independent (on The Woman in Black)

Book Information
ISBN 9780007306909
Author Madeleine St. John
Format Paperback
Page Count 224
Imprint Fourth Estate Ltd
Publisher HarperCollins Publishers
Weight(grams) 125g
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 129mm * 15mm