A literary mystery full of secrets and lies in which an art teacher at a psychiatric hospital in 1960s England finds her life turned upside down by the arrival of a mysterious patient who has spent decades living in complete isolation with his elderly aunts in a decrepit Victorian house.
Chambers occupies a historical novelist’s vantage point, looking back on the mid-20th century with a bifocal perspective of immediacy and retrospect ... Pym’s drama is subtle, plot secondary to character, the events small-scale though of seismic importance. The tone is gentle, the observations shrewd and ironic as she explores the illusions and disillusionments, disappointments and victories, of her at least superficially decorous women ... Clare Chambers is an author to read, enjoy, and watch out for.
Confirms her as one of our most talented writers ... Just as quirky, acutely observed and beautifully written as its predecessor ... Chambers is a superb historian, but the earlier flashbacks that establish William’s existence of poverty and depression among eccentric aunts are a slow build that can be overloaded with period detail, for all the quiet irony and accurately portrayed despair ... The accuracy of Chambers’s observational skills can be almost uncanny, especially her descriptions of human emotions ... Infinitely moving.
I am now eager to devour all her other works – as soon as possible. This novel captured my attention from the very start. With its beautifully developed characters and rich storytelling, it is a story that is sure to linger in any reader’s mind ... Helen is a wonderfully flawed protagonist, and her choices are not always faultless; but she is sure to evoke sympathy and understanding, as we all know that being human sometimes means making the wrong decisions.
