Description

Sometimes we must look to the past to survive the future. A novel about what really matters in life from the bestselling author of Captain Corelli’s Mandolin

Q wants a simpler and safer life. His work as a quantum cryptographer for the government has led him to believe a crisis is imminent for civilisation and he’s looking for somewhere to ride out what’s ahead.

He buys a ruined farmhouse in Cornwall and begins to build his own self-sufficient haven. Over the course of this quest he meets the eccentric characters who already live on the moors nearby – including the park ranger in charge of the reintroduced lynxes and aurochs that roam the area; a holy man waiting for the second coming on top of a nearby hill; an Arthurian knight on horseback and the amorous ghost of an Edwardian woman who haunts the farmhouse.

As life in the cities gets more complicated, and our systems of electronic control begin to fall apart, Q flourishes in the wild Cornish countryside. His new way of life brings him back in tune with his teenage children, his ex-wife, and his own sense of who he is. He also grows close to Eva, energetic and enchanting, who is committed to her own quest for love and meaning.

In this entertaining and heart-warming novel Louis de Bernieres pokes fun at modern mores, and makes us reconsider what is really precious in our short and precarious lives.

*SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2024 WILBUR SMITH ADVENTURE WRITING PRIZE*

‘Beguiling’ Observer

‘A feelgood story about friendship and love – vintage de Bernieres’ Daily Mirror

‘A wonder… wry, wise’ Daily Mail

‘Heaps of old-fashioned adventure’ The Times

Publisher Review

Beguiling…Set in a jollier dystopia than the norm, it tells the tale of “Q”, a cryptographer who takes refuge from the madding crowd in Cornwall * Observer * Marked by de Bernieres’ customary light touch and wry humour…This quirky novel is timely… a feelgood story about friendship and love – vintage de Bernieres. * Daily Mirror * A knockabout satire with twists aplenty * Mail on Sunday * A wonder worthy of Wyndham…wry, wise * Daily Mail * Heaps of old-fashioned adventure * The Times *