‘Hij had achtenveertig uur voorbereidingstijd. Wij dachten er een jaar over na. Hij moest vierduizend man te voet organiseren, achthonderd man te paard, muilezels, voedsel en een kanon. Wij tweeën hebben alleen onze rugzakken. Hij liet zijn mannen ’s nachts in stilte lopen, vanwege vijandige legers. Onze vijanden zullen verkeer en hitte zijn, dus vertrekken we om half vijf, in de hoop dat we dertig kilometer afgelegd hebben voor de zon hoog staat.’

In de zomer van 2019 stapt Tim Parks ...

From the bestselling, Booker-shortlisted writer of Italian Ways and Europa, a classic novel about a man's emotional reckoning in a changed world far from home

Frank's reclusive existence in a leafy part of London is shattered when he is summoned to Milan for the funeral of an old friend. Preoccupied by this sudden intrusion of his past, he flies, oblivious, into the epicentre of a crisis he has barely registered on the news.

It is spring, his luxury hotel offers every imaginable comfort; perh...

Michael Burrow is on a walking holiday in Switzerland with his lover, Susan. They have had a long and secret love affair, but now that Susan’s two children have left school, they plan to start their life together. Michael has bought a house for them to live in and, when they return, Susan will break the news to her family. However, their plans are upended when Susan receives a phone call with news of a tragic death. She gets on the next plane back to London, and she and Michael never see ea...