The Unknown Bridesmaid bookcover

The Unknown Bridesmaid

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Description

A child psychologist struggles to come to grips with her own dark childhood memories, in this "mesmerizing, unsettling novel" (The New York Times).

When eight-year-old Julia was asked to be a bridesmaid at her cousin's wedding, she was thrilled. Nothing, not even her mother's resentment of the expensive, inconvenient traveling, could dull her excitement. But when the day finally arrived and she took her cousin's baby on a secret stroll around the block in his pram, her entire world shifted. She couldn't possibly know the impact the fateful trip would have on her future.
A lifetime later, Julia is a child psychologist working with young girls at risk. In her sessions, Julia has a knack for determining which of her young patients are truly troubled, and which are simply at the mercy of the oppressive adults around them. In this quietly powerful story of the relationship between past and current reality, Julia's own troubled childhood begins to invade her present, and she is forced to confront the events of that day--and discover whether the truth about her past, and her guilt, is as devastating as she has always feared.

"The book it most reminded me of was Julian Barnes's The Sense of an Ending. There is the same sense of psychological detective story, of piecing together the fragments of an unresolved past."--The Guardian

"A gripping read."--The Observer

Product Details

PublisherEuropa Editions
Publish DateSeptember 02, 2014
Pages248
LanguageEnglish
TypeBook iconPaperback / softback
EAN/UPC9781609452223
Dimensions8.2 X 5.3 X 0.8 inches | 0.7 pounds

About the Author

Margaret Forster studied history at Somerville College, Oxford. She is the author of many successful and acclaimed novels, including Georgy Girl (made into a popular movie and Broadway musical) and Keeping the World Away, as well as two bestselling memoirs (Hidden Lives and Precious Lives) and biographies, including the award-winning Daphne du Maurier: The Secret Life of the Renowned Storyteller.

Reviews

Praise for The Unknown Bridesmaid

"For anyone who hasn't had the plesaure of reading Forster before, The Unknown Bridesmaid is one of her best."
--The Guardian

"The book it most reminded me of was Julian Barnes's The Sense of an Ending. There is the same sense of psychological detective story, of piecing together the fragments of an unresolved past. But unlike The Sense of an Ending, The Unknown Bridesmaid has a sustained momentum and a more satisfying resolution, while leaving enough unanswered questions to keep the mind ticking over long after the final page has been turned."
--The Guardian

"Margaret Forster is a brilliant and prolific writer... her latest novel is one of her best. It's a gripping read."
--The Observer

"Nobody is better then Margaret Forster, with her clear, calm prose, at delineating the fault lines of the ordinary, unexceptional and hidden lives."
--The Daily Express

"The stringent control with which Forster denies absolution is remarkable and, while disturbing, believable. That Julia remains unknown to all, not least to herself, is fascinating."
--The Independent
Praise for The Unknown Bridesmaid
-For anyone who hasn't had the plesaure of reading Forster before, The Unknown Bridesmaid is one of her best.-
--The Guardian
-The book it most reminded me of was Julian Barnes's The Sense of an Ending. There is the same sense of psychological detective story, of piecing together the fragments of an unresolved past. But unlike The Sense of an Ending, The Unknown Bridesmaid has a sustained momentum and a more satisfying resolution, while leaving enough unanswered questions to keep the mind ticking over long after the final page has been turned.-
--The Guardian
-Margaret Forster is a brilliant and prolific writer... her latest novel is one of her best. It's a gripping read.-
--The Observer
-Nobody is better then Margaret Forster, with her clear, calm prose, at delineating the fault lines of the ordinary, unexceptional and hidden lives.-
--The Daily Express
-The stringent control with which Forster denies absolution is remarkable and, while disturbing, believable. That Julia remains unknown to all, not least to herself, is fascinating.-
--The Independent

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