‘Her work merits comparison with that of Edna O’Brien or Muriel Spark’ New York Times
Stretching from war-torn 1940’s Liverpool to Oxford at the end of the century, this story explores the emotional landscape of the time and the impact tiny moments of betrayal can have on our relationships in the years that follow.
Malcolm has held on to a secret for more than fifty years: a letter his sister Sophy gave him just before she died. He had promised to give it to the young doctor she met one night during the Liverpool Blitz: a night that altered the course of her life.
But the letter was never delivered. Now, after so many years of uncertainty, Malcolm has decided to share Sophy’s secret with her daughter Agnes.
It is the day of Agnes’s daughter’s wedding party. The ghosts of Agnes’s past and all the powerful emotions of the family reunion wrap around her thoughts. Until she is distracted by a hand on her arm as her uncle Malcolm holds out an envelope for her to take . . .
Touching on the many different forms love can take and told from multiple perspectives, Interpretations of Love is the story of a letter and our endless search for the stories that we have lost.
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Reviews
The octogenarian's novel Interpretations of Love, set in the 1940s, has moving things to say about grief
Reminded me of Ian McEwan's Atonement . . . a haunting debut
For fans of Atonement
Astute, thought-provoking, and brilliantly constructed, this is an instant classic.
A perfectly poised, elegant debut from an octogenarian author who understands her characters better than they understand themselves.
Thoughtful, elegant, self-analytical, fluently offering vivid description and interesting thoughts . . .This suspenseful, morally complex plot reminded me a bit of Ian McEwan's 'Atonement.'
Wise and moving . . . stunning.