Apple Tree Yard - Hardcover

Doughty, Louise

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0571297889 ISBN 13: 9780571297887

Publisher: Faber & Faber Fiction, 2013

Synopsis

This is shortlisted for the Specsavers National Book Awards Crime & Thriller of the Year. "There can't be a woman alive who hasn't once realised, in a moment of panic, that she's in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong man. Louise Doughty, more sure-footed with each novel, leads her unnerved reader into dark territory. A compelling and bravely-written book". (Hilary Mantel). "A superb novel. Grown-up, genuinely suspenseful, wonderfully well-constructed, intelligent and provocative. I really didn't want to finish it. And I don't say that very often". (Julie Myerson). "Once you start you can't stop reading. Terrific". (Helen Dunmore). Yvonne Carmichael has worked hard to achieve the life she always wanted: a high-flying career in genetics, a beautiful home, a good relationship with her husband and their two grown-up children. Then one day she meets a stranger at the Houses of Parliament and, on impulse, begins a passionate affair with him - a decision that will put everything she values at risk. At first she believes she can keep the relationship separate from the rest of her life, but she can't control what happens next. All of her careful plans spiral into greater deceit and, eventually, a life-changing act of violence. Apple Tree Yard is a psychological thriller about one woman's adultery and an insightful examination of the values we live by and the choices we make, from an acclaimed writer at the height of her powers.

About this title

Review

An Amazon Best Book of the Month, January 2014: A 52-year-old woman begins an affair with a mysterious man she meets by chance, and soon both she and the lover are on trial for murder. How does such a thing happen to a married woman of maturity and gravitas, a renowned scientist whose first encounter with her lover took place in the halls of Parliament, where she had just testified before a government committee? In this masterful novel by British journalist/novelist/playwright Louise Doughty, every page builds the case that it’s often the smartest among us who invent the most unreliable stories about ourselves, and how it’s possible--likely, even--for essentially good solid people to do bad and stupid things. Less about torturous plot twists than slow, dawning revelations--and mercifully short on moralizing--this intelligent, sexy, grown-up thriller explores the power of desire and its consequences. --Sara Nelson

About the Author

Louise Doughty is the author of six novels, most recently Whatever You Love, which was shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award and longlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction. She has won awards for radio drama and short stories, along with publishing one work of non-fiction, A Novel in a Year, based on her hugely popular newspaper column. She is a critic and cultural commentator for UK and international newspapers and broadcasts regularly for the BBC. She lives in London.

About this edition

• Publisher: Faber & Faber Fiction
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 0571297889
• ISBN 13: 9780571297887
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 320