by Jean Stubbs
First published 1995
Sybil Malpas watches her family drift apart and makes a decision. She invites everyone to spend Christmas at Minions, their Cornish holiday home, hoping the familiar setting will bring them back together. Her husband and eldest daughter Blanche barely speak to each other, leaving Sybil to navigate the tension that threatens to ruin the gathering. On Christmas Eve, three unexpected visitors arrive at their door, disrupting Sybil's carefully planned reunion. The uninvited guests force buried secrets into the open, and the family's polite holiday facade begins to crumble. Each member of the Malpas clan must face truths they have avoided for years. Set in the English countryside during the 1980s, this family drama explores how the past shapes the present and whether love can survive long-held grievances.
Genres: literary-fiction, mystery, contemporary, family-drama
Vibes: emotional-atmospheric, intimate, suspenseful
Tropes: family-drama, secrets-and-lies
Setting: Cornwall, England
Period: 1980s
384 pages · Paperback · Pan Books