The Swarts are an Afrikaans family who have owned and lived on the same large farm near Pretoria for several generations. The book opens just after the death of Rachel Swart, wife of Manie, mother to Anton, Astrid and Amor. Anton is the eldest child, on leave from the army where he recently shot dead […]
Cass is in her final year of school and is about to take her Leaving Cert; she’s hoping to get the grades to go to Trinty college with her best friend, Elaine. Elaine is beautiful and popular, but she quickly becomes jealous when their glamorous substitute teacher takes a shine to Cass’s poetry. Elaine begins […]
Elliot Chase narrates the story, and off the bat he admits that while he will try to be as objective as possible, there are times when his opinions and perceptions might interrupt the truth. He’s a playwright living in London, and he has had some mildly successful hits but has never rocketed to stardom, unlike his good […]
In the novel with alternating timelines, the story unfolds in two distinct threads. The first timeline takes place in 2062 at the Palm Meridian retirement home in Florida, where a group of retirees live in relative isolation from the outside world due to the harsh climate changes, including tornadoes and tropical rain. The residents of […]
The world is ending – slowly, and without much ceremony. It has been raining for a very long time, ferries are now the most sensible mode of transport in a city where the dams have broken. STEPHEN Carmichael the architect of this new world on stilts, floating above water – has died, leaving behind his […]
In the concise yet intricately woven narrative of Study for Obedience, we are introduced to an enigmatic and unnamed narrator who stands as the central figure of this brief novel. The story revolves around her profound sense of alienation and disconnection from her environment. The novel kicks off with the narrator reflecting on her life […]
Eilish Stack, a married generalist microbiologist, is living in Southern Ireland with her husband Larry Stack, e deputy general secretary of the Teachers’ Union of Ireland, and four children when they receive an evening knock on the door. Two men stand outside, inquiring after Larry, and tell him to call at his earliest convenience. The […]
The novel is a poignant and deeply moving story set in London, narrated by Gopi, the youngest daughter in a family of three sisters. Gopi reflects on a pivotal period in her life, which revolves around the profound loss of her mother and the transformative power of the sport of squash. The story is a […]
In this novel, the narrator, Khaled, is a middle-aged man wandering the streets of London just before the Arab Spring. He is reuniting with his old friend, Hosam Zowa, a restless spirit and former promising writer who has been on the move for years. Khaled reflects on their friendship and his own journey as he […]
The government now has access to time travel technology. The novel is told in the first person from the perspective of an unnamed female civil servant of Cambodian heritage (for the purposes of this report I’ll refer to her as P for protagonist) who passes a vigorous interview process for a special assignment. Her interviewer is an […]