First published 2007
Alice feels the weight of secrets pressing around her. Her grandmother has died, leaving her with awkward visits to comfort David, her recently widowed grandfather. She barely knows this cold, distant man the way she knew her grandmother. Meanwhile, her relationship with Joseph deepens, but she senses he conceals something important about his past. This stings particularly because Alice has opened herself to him completely, sharing how her father abandoned her and how her adult attempts to reconnect through letters failed. As Alice pushes Joseph for answers and spends more time with David, the truth begins to surface. Both men carry the burden of having killed while serving in the British army. David's trauma stems from the Mau Mau rebellion in Kenya, where he met his late wife. Joseph's comes from his deployment in Northern Ireland. Family discussions grow heated as Alice draws closer to understanding what shaped these men and why they cannot speak of their experiences.
Genres: literary-fiction, historical-fiction, contemporary, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Kenya, Northern Ireland
Period: 20th-century
392 pages · Paperback · W.F. Howes
Content warnings: war