by Sadie Jones
First published 2011
Hal Treherne arrives in Cyprus with his wife Clara and their daughters, ready to defend the British colony and advance his military career. The young soldier believes in his mission, his marriage, and the righteousness of the empire he serves. But Cyprus pulls him into brutal acts that transform him into someone Clara no longer recognizes. Each atrocity drives a deeper wedge between husband and wife. Hal discovers that the army he trusted, the country he serves, and the marriage he cherished can all disintegrate under the weight of violence. As his personal crisis unfolds, Hal must confront what remains when everything he believed in crumbles. Jones places a marriage under siege alongside a colonial conflict, showing how war destroys not just enemies but the soldiers who fight it.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, war, 21st-century
Vibes: atmospheric, dark, emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, marriage-under-siege, soldier-transformed
Setting: Cyprus
Period: 20th-Century, 21st-Century
Paperback · Vintage Books
Content warnings: colonialism, violence, war