First published 1997
Harry Gates stands at a crossroads. Born into wealth and raised by parents who live for pleasure, he and his American wife Melissa have spent years rejecting the shallow lifestyle of their circle. They've built their marriage as a refuge from the decadence that surrounds them. But now Melissa has returned to America, leaving Harry alone in London. Without her steadying presence, Harry finds himself drawn back to his old haunts. The familiar faces of Fleet Street beckon. The bars and clubs of Soho call to him. The very friends and lifestyle he once rejected with Melissa now offer comfort in his isolation. Harry must choose between the principles he shared with his wife and the easy pleasures of his past. His crisis deepens as he realizes how much his identity depended on their shared rebellion against privilege.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, contemporary, relationships
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: crisis-of-faith, crisis-of-identity, redemption
Setting: America, Fleet Street, London, Soho
Period: 20th-century
248 pages · Paperback · Minerva