Becoming Strangers

Becoming Strangers

by Louise Dean (Author)

Synopsis

Jan has been dying for six years, bringing his unhappy marriage with Annemieke to an end in middle age. Their sons have given them one last gift, a holiday in the Caribbean. Dorothy and George have also been given a holiday, by their granddaughter - their first and probably last trip overseas. In the rain of Bexhill-on-Sea, two weeks at a beach resort seems irresistible. Alone together, in perfect surroundings, they are unable to escape their troubles, until a few chance events - a disappearance, an assault and a man called Bill Moloney - allow them to make something out of the ashes of their love. This is a different love story - about how there's seldom a 'happily ever after', but sometimes a chance to redeem a life together half-lived.

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More Information

Format: Paperback
Pages: 320
Publisher: Scribner
Published: 02 Feb 2004

ISBN 10: 0743239997
ISBN 13: 9780743239998

Media Reviews
Very accomplished . . . Dean has a deliciously lucid and seemingly effortless style, as well as the gift of being able to write about each character from the inside, making their motives and actions clear. She has an unerring ear for dialogue, particularly between married couples . . . An exceptionally enjoyable book. -- Daily Mail (London) What keeps an unhappily married couple together? [This] impressive debut [answers that question] . . . Dean is at her best in interior moments, when characters ponder their lives with private, brutal candor . . . Adept at sharp dialogue and brisk plotting, Dean is also attentive to character development, choosing authenticity over sentimentality . . . [Her book] is poignant, often funny, and unexpectedly redemptive. -- Publishers Weekly Caribbean resorts bring together all manner of people in all stages and conditions of life . . . This rich story, replete with well-drawn characters . . . is a masterpiece about the human condition that will rile the reader' s emotions. -- Library Journal Travel can broaden the mind, but it can also [underscore] old habits and prejudices if, as is the case with the Europeans populating this novel, emotional baggage is lugged along with the suitcases . . . Dean suffuses [ Becoming Strangers ] with a comic touch and handles her several narrative threads with skill. Give [this novel] to readers who enjoy thoughtful, character-centered fiction. -- Booklist