Absolutely and Forever
Published on 21. September 2023
Book
Hardback
192 pages
978-1-78474-520-2 (ISBN)
Description
'An electrifying, word-perfect tale... Gently devastating, devastatingly beautiful' Daily Mail
'Funny, piercing, and singular... I can't fathom the reason why you wouldn't rush straight out to buy it' Observer
Determined, rebellious Marianne Clifford is searching for love and freedom in 1960s London
How do you find the courage to make your own life?
Marianne Clifford, teenage daughter of a peppery army colonel and his vain wife, falls helplessly and absolutely for eighteen-year-old Simon Hurst, whose cleverness and physical beauty suggest that he will go forward into a successful and monied future, helped on by doting parents. But fate intervenes. Simon's plans are blown off course, he leaves for Paris and Marianne is forced to bury her dreams of a future together.
It is Marianne who tells this piercing story of first love, characterising herself as ignorant and unworthy, whilst her smart, ironic narration tellingly reveals so much more. Finding her way in 1960s Chelsea, and supported by her courageous Scottish friend, Petronella, she continues to seek the life she never stops craving. And in Paris, beneath his blithe exterior, Simon Hurst continues to nurse the secret which will alter everything.
'Tremain has always surprised and delighted her readers' Sunday Times, Best 23 Novels of 2023
** A THE TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR 2023**
READERS LOVE ABSOLUTELY AND FOREVER:
'Heartrending, funny, unputdownable' 5*****
'An undoubted modern classic' 5*****
'Marianne will remain with me as a friend' 5*****
'A masterclass in character and world building ... the writing is just sublime' 5*****
Sunday Times bestseller, September 2023
'Funny, piercing, and singular... I can't fathom the reason why you wouldn't rush straight out to buy it' Observer
Determined, rebellious Marianne Clifford is searching for love and freedom in 1960s London
How do you find the courage to make your own life?
Marianne Clifford, teenage daughter of a peppery army colonel and his vain wife, falls helplessly and absolutely for eighteen-year-old Simon Hurst, whose cleverness and physical beauty suggest that he will go forward into a successful and monied future, helped on by doting parents. But fate intervenes. Simon's plans are blown off course, he leaves for Paris and Marianne is forced to bury her dreams of a future together.
It is Marianne who tells this piercing story of first love, characterising herself as ignorant and unworthy, whilst her smart, ironic narration tellingly reveals so much more. Finding her way in 1960s Chelsea, and supported by her courageous Scottish friend, Petronella, she continues to seek the life she never stops craving. And in Paris, beneath his blithe exterior, Simon Hurst continues to nurse the secret which will alter everything.
'Tremain has always surprised and delighted her readers' Sunday Times, Best 23 Novels of 2023
** A THE TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR 2023**
READERS LOVE ABSOLUTELY AND FOREVER:
'Heartrending, funny, unputdownable' 5*****
'An undoubted modern classic' 5*****
'Marianne will remain with me as a friend' 5*****
'A masterclass in character and world building ... the writing is just sublime' 5*****
Sunday Times bestseller, September 2023
Reviews / Votes
PRAISE FOR ABSOLUTELY AND FOREVER:'Stunningly beautiful and deeply moving' * Simon Schama * A slim, funny, elegantly breezy coming-of-age story * Sunday Times * Written with piercing clarity and gentle humour, Absolutely And Forever is a study of the messiness of human relationships, the significance of secrets unspoken and the impact of the choices we make * Independent * This is a book about the comic, painful, life-long search for human understanding. Not a word is wasted; not a phrase trite. It is mesmerising, masterly and profoundly moving * Financial Times * [A] delicate, generous-hearted novel * Spectator *
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Vintage Publishing
Dimensions
Height: 223 mm
Width: 147 mm
Thickness: 25 mm
Weight
310 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-78474-520-2 (9781784745202)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Person
Rose Tremain's novels and short stories have been published in thirty countries and have won many awards, including the Orange Prize (The Road Home), the Dylan Thomas Award (The Colonel's Daughter and Other Stories), the Whitbread Novel of the Year (Music & Silence) the James Tait Black Memorial Prize and the Prix Femina in France (Sacred Country) and the South Bank Sky Arts Award (The Gustav Sonata). Her most recent novel is Lily, a Richard and Judy Book Club selection. Rose Tremain was made a CBE in 2007 and a Dame in 2020. She lives in Norfolk and London with the biographer, Richard Holmes.