It starts somewhere near the middle, when in 2010 Daniel Sullivan, an American on a flying visit to pick up his twenty-years deceased grandfather’s ashes, meets in the wilds of Ireland, a striking but enigmatic woman. There is an immediate connection, but it takes Daniel some time to realise that she is Claudette Wells, one-time film star who dramatically and mysteriously dropped off the radar some years previously and now lives as a recluse in Donegal with her young son.
From that point, the novel spills out in twenty-eight time-shuffled chapters, told from fifteen separate character points of view, with locations across four continents. It sounds crazy but it works magnificently as Daniel’s and Claudette’s back stories emerge and their unfolding relationship moves forward. While the narrations of Daniel and Claudette are predominant, the vignettes provided by their families, ex-partners, friends, and employees are beautifully framed and give a depth of perspective that is mesmerising.
To say more on the plot would spoil the pleasure of second-guessing the mysteries and hidden corners of the various characters’ lives as they are revealed.
Simply brilliant and
highly recommended.
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