Expectation

THE MUST-READ SUMMER 2020 RICHARD AND JUDY BOOK CLUB PICK 'If you wished Normal People had tackled female friendship, try Expectation ' GRAZIA ' Profoundly intelligent and humane. Deserves to feature on many a prize shortlist' GUARDIAN 'A brilliant exploration of friendship, feminism and thwarted ambition' PANDORA SYKES ______________________ What happened to the women we were supposed to become? Hannah, Cate and Lissa are young, vibrant and inseparable. Living on the edge of a common in East London, their shared world is ablaze with art and activism, romance and revelry - and the promise of everything to come. They are electric. They are the best of friends. Ten years on, they are not where they hoped to be. Amidst flailing careers and faltering marriages, each hungers for what the others have. And each wrestles with the same question: what does it take to lead a meaningful life? The most razor-sharp and heartbreaking novel of the year, EXPECTATION is a novel about finding your way: as a mother, a daughter, a wife, a rebel. ___________________ ' Thoughtful , beautifully written, honest . A sensual book . I URGE YOU TO READ IT' MARIAN KEYES 'Beautiful, sharp, moving. I urge you to read it' ' ELIZABETH DAY 'A brilliant exploration of friendship, feminism and thwarted ambition' PANDORA SYKES 'I loved it ... 10 out of 10' BRYONY GORDON 'Will resonate with approximately 99% of women' RED MAGAZINE summer pick ' One of the most intensely readable novels this year' METRO ' One of our most gifted contemporary writers' WATERSTONES 'SO GOOD. A 'What they did next' story of characters from a Sally Rooney novel' SARAH FRANKLIN ' The story of 3 college friends, if you're a fan of Sally Rooney , you'll love EXPECTATION' IRISH EXAMINER 'A must-read' FABULOUS MAGAZINE 'A generation-defining book on motherhood, ambition and sex. Like NORMAL PEOPLE with female friendship under the microscope.' ERIN KELLY 'Few novels leave me so genuinely breathless with their brilliance' HANNAH BECKERMAN ' Sublime' GOOD HOUSEKEEPING, Book of the Year 'A marvellously tangy London novel ' DAILY MAIL ' A grown-up, honest take on female camaraderie. Packed with talking points' MAIL ON SUNDAY ' Hugely absorbing, massively enjoyable' LISSA EVANS 'Totally unputdownable, immersive, sharp, FAB' HARRIET EVANS 'Beautifully observed study of female friendship and a moving account of the collision between aspiration and reality' DAILY MAIL MUST-READ 'Fantastically well-realised portrait of female friendship's joys and pains from an exciting new voice in British fiction' DAILY TELEGRAPH

THE MUST-READ SUMMER 2020 RICHARD AND JUDY BOOK CLUB PICK 'If you wished Normal People had tackled female friendship, try Expectation ' GRAZIA ' Profoundly intelligent and humane. Deserves to feature on many a prize shortlist' GUARDIAN 'A brilliant exploration of friendship, feminism and thwarted ambition' PANDORA SYKES ______________________ What happened to the women we were supposed to become? Hannah, Cate and Lissa are young, vibrant and inseparable. Living on the edge of a common in East London, their shared world is ablaze with art and activism, romance and revelry - and the promise of everything to come. They are electric. They are the best of friends. Ten years on, they are not where they hoped to be. Amidst flailing careers and faltering marriages, each hungers for what the others have. And each wrestles with the same question: what does it take to lead a meaningful life? The most razor-sharp and heartbreaking novel of the year, EXPECTATION is a novel about finding your way: as a mother, a daughter, a wife, a rebel. ___________________ ' Thoughtful , beautifully written, honest . A sensual book . I URGE YOU TO READ IT' MARIAN KEYES 'Beautiful, sharp, moving. I urge you to read it' ' ELIZABETH DAY 'A brilliant exploration of friendship, feminism and thwarted ambition' PANDORA SYKES 'I loved it ... 10 out of 10' BRYONY GORDON 'Will resonate with approximately 99% of women' RED MAGAZINE summer pick ' One of the most intensely readable novels this year' METRO ' One of our most gifted contemporary writers' WATERSTONES 'SO GOOD. A 'What they did next' story of characters from a Sally Rooney novel' SARAH FRANKLIN ' The story of 3 college friends, if you're a fan of Sally Rooney , you'll love EXPECTATION' IRISH EXAMINER 'A must-read' FABULOUS MAGAZINE 'A generation-defining book on motherhood, ambition and sex. Like NORMAL PEOPLE with female friendship under the microscope.' ERIN KELLY 'Few novels leave me so genuinely breathless with their brilliance' HANNAH BECKERMAN ' Sublime' GOOD HOUSEKEEPING, Book of the Year 'A marvellously tangy London novel ' DAILY MAIL ' A grown-up, honest take on female camaraderie. Packed with talking points' MAIL ON SUNDAY ' Hugely absorbing, massively enjoyable' LISSA EVANS 'Totally unputdownable, immersive, sharp, FAB' HARRIET EVANS 'Beautifully observed study of female friendship and a moving account of the collision between aspiration and reality' DAILY MAIL MUST-READ 'Fantastically well-realised portrait of female friendship's joys and pains from an exciting new voice in British fiction' DAILY TELEGRAPH

Also available in a library hardcover edition "The female friendships here are ones we'll all recognize, and in seeing myself in each of these women - their good moments and their bad - I felt implicated in their stories, and in this book. It's an outstanding novel."-- Mary Beth Keane, New York Times bestselling author of Ask Again, Yes In this sharply observed novel set in and around London, three college friends, now in their thirties, must come to terms with the gap between the lives they imagined for themselves and reality in the face of marriage, fertility struggles, and loss. In her first year of motherhood after an unplanned pregnancy, Cate is constantly exhausted, spiraling into self-doubt and postpartum anxiety. Her husband Sam seems oblivious, but maybe she'd prefer he remain in the dark. How can she admit the unthinkable--that she misses her freedom? In contrast, Hannah continues to endure round after round of unsuccessful IVF treatments. The process is taking its toll on her physically and emotionally--and, she worries, creating distance between her and her husband Nathan. She is godmother to Cate's son, but every time they get together, it's a trigger. Beautiful and unattached, Lissa is re-evaluating what it means to be an actress in her thirties. While she fiercely resists convention, she's also lonely. A chance encounter in the British Library with Nathan has her wondering if she missed her best chance at love when she introduced him to Hannah. As each woman longs for what the others seemingly possess, will their bonds of friendship sustain them in this liminal phase of their lives--or will their envy and desire tear them apart?

Also available in a library hardcover edition "The female friendships here are ones we'll all recognize, and in seeing myself in each of these women - their good moments and their bad - I felt implicated in their stories, and in this book. It's an outstanding novel."-- Mary Beth Keane, New York Times bestselling author of Ask Again, Yes In this sharply observed novel set in and around London, three college friends, now in their thirties, must come to terms with the gap between the lives they imagined for themselves and reality in the face of marriage, fertility struggles, and loss. In her first year of motherhood after an unplanned pregnancy, Cate is constantly exhausted, spiraling into self-doubt and postpartum anxiety. Her husband Sam seems oblivious, but maybe she'd prefer he remain in the dark. How can she admit the unthinkable--that she misses her freedom? In contrast, Hannah continues to endure round after round of unsuccessful IVF treatments. The process is taking its toll on her physically and emotionally--and, she worries, creating distance between her and her husband Nathan. She is godmother to Cate's son, but every time they get together, it's a trigger. Beautiful and unattached, Lissa is re-evaluating what it means to be an actress in her thirties. While she fiercely resists convention, she's also lonely. A chance encounter in the British Library with Nathan has her wondering if she missed her best chance at love when she introduced him to Hannah. As each woman longs for what the others seemingly possess, will their bonds of friendship sustain them in this liminal phase of their lives--or will their envy and desire tear them apart?