Description

Iris Murdoch’s extraordinary exploration of human nature shines with intricate detail.

WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY JOHN BURNSIDE

When Charles Arrowby retires from his glittering career in the London theatre, he buys a remote house on the rocks by the sea. He hopes to escape from his tumultuous love affairs but unexpectedly bumps into his childhood sweetheart and sets his heart on destroying her marriage. His equilibrium is further disturbed when his friends all decide to come and keep him company and Charles finds his seaside idyll severely threatened by his obsessions.

Publisher Review

"Dazzlingly entertaining and inventive" * The Times * "One of the most ambitious tours de force in many years... There are pages one races through to see what happens. She is a virtuoso at description" * Daily Mail * "She was a brilliantly clever woman" -- Dame Judi Dench "There is no doubt in my mind that Iris Murdoch is one of the most important novelists now writing in English...The power of her imaginative vision, her intelligence and her awareness and revelation of human truth are quite remarkable" * The Times * "A fabulous novel...funny and poignant and is arguably Murdoch's finest hour" -- Gary Kemp * Daily Express *