NEW RELEASE
A Single Breath - Lucy Clarke (2014)
Eva has been with Jackson for two years, married for 10 months, when he's presumed drowned whilst fishing. It's hardly enough time for them to really get to know one another and as Eva struggles to share her sense of loss over Jackson, she realises she needs to be with his family, a family she's never met and barely even spoken to, in Tasmania. They will know what she's going through and can help her to stay connected with Jackson's memory. However, when Eva arrives unannounced, Jackson's father Dirk and brother Saul don't seem to want her around. But as circumstances keep her in Tasmania, she begins to break through to Saul but what she learns about Jackson is not at all what she was expecting. A terrifically gripping read, the mystery, drama and suspense of this novel really makes you want to rush through to the end in a single sitting to get to the bottom of the story. Clarke does superbly well to put the reader in Eva's shoes and to drip-feed the facts at a carefully measured pace. Some of the twists and turns are quite easy to anticipate and it's possible to see the ending quite early on. The ending itself opens up a whole new range of complexities and issues, and rather than neatly wrapping these up or creating a definitive conclusion, for me it only made things messier, less certain, less clear. And I would have liked more from the finale. Nevertheless the journey to the ending is fascinating and overall it's an absorbing read that I would recommend. Definitely one to share and discuss. (JC)
A Single Breath, by Lucy Clarke, asks is lying to yourself the worse lie of all? The summary says: "Eva's husband, Jackson, is swept to his death while fishing. Weighed down by confusion and sorrow, Eva decides to take leave of her midwifery practice and visit Jackson's estranged family with the hope of grieving together. Instead, she discovers that the man she loved so deeply is not the man she thought she knew. Jackson's father and brother reveal a dark past, exposing the lies her marriage was built upon. As Eva struggles to come to terms with the depth of Jackson's deception, she must also confront her growing attraction to Jackson's brother, Saul, who offers her intimacy, passion, and answers to her most troubling questions. Will Eva be able to move forward, or will she be caught up in a romance with Saul, haunted by her husband's past?"