The Secret Talker
"The Secret Talker is a profound meditation on love, the difficulties of communication and the agonizing joy and brutality of commitment." -- THE NEW YORK TIMES
A NEW YORK TIMES BEST THRILLER OF 2021 AND "GLOBETROTTING" PICK!
A woman reclaims her own story in this taut and wholly original literary tale from one of China's literary superstars.
Hongmei is the perfect Chinese wife: beautiful, diligent, passive. Glen is the perfect American husband: intelligent, caring, well-off. From the outside, Hongmei and Glen's life in the San Francisco Bay Area seems perfect. But at home, their marriage is falling apart. Post-its left on the fridge are their primary form of communication.
When Hongmei receives a beguiling email from a secret admirer, naturally she's intrigued. But what starts out as harmless flirting with an internet stranger quickly turns into an all-consuming emotional affair. As Hongmei spills more and more about her dark past as a military intelligence officer-in-training in China, she falls deeper and deeper into a tense cat-and-mouse game. Desperate and self-destructive, she embarks on an investigation into her emailer's secret history...one that may tear her life and marriage apart forever.
A psychological story at its core, The Secret Talker elegantly examines how repressed desire and simmering silence can upend even the most idyllic marriage. As Hongmei pursues her stalker, her identity and agency come into question, and the chase curveballs into a captivating journey of self-actualization. Yan Geling pierces the human psyche to reveal devastating and emotional truths - and an ending that will leave readers speechless.
Translated from the Chinese by Jeremy Tiang
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严歌苓，女，生于上海，少年从军，二十岁从文。1986年出版第一本长篇小说，同年加入中国作家协会。代表作有：《扶桑》,《人寰》,《白蛇》，《少女小渔》，《第九个寡妇》、《小姨多鹤》、《金陵十三钗》、《穗子物语》《陆犯焉识》等作品。严于1989年出国留学，就读于芝加哥哥伦比亚艺术学院，获文学创作艺术硕士学位。自1990年严陆续在海外发表了近百篇文学作品，曾获得台湾和香港十项文学奖，在国内也获得多项文学奖。根据严的小说改编、并由严参加编剧的电影《少女小渔》、《天浴》、分别获得亚太电影节六项大奖和金马奖七项大奖，根据严的长篇小说《金陵十三钗》、《陆犯焉识》改编、由张艺谋导演执导的影片分别参展于柏林和嘎纳电影节。严的小说被译为21种语言。
A suspenseful, intriguing tale of a woman in her psychological crisis.--The Millions
Geling Yan has crafted a slow-burn psychological thriller in The Secret Talker . . . a cat and mouse game that will keep you guessing to the last page.--CrimeReads
[A] masterful tale driven by Yan's brisk pacing and evocative writing and details that pulse with truth. . . . An adventurous and emotionally engaging story, which ultimately unlocks the transformative power of listening and honesty for recovery and redemption from tribulations of the past.--New York Journal of Books
