The latest novel by one of the literary scene's most profound observers of women's lives. From the moment Jane first meets Aunt Dolly, with her perfumed mink and bored laughter, she is both fascinated and appalled. But as the exigencies of family life bring Jane and Dolly together, Brookner shows how we sometimes end up loving people we cannot always bring ourselves to like.
In her superbly accomplished novel, Anita Brookner proves that she is our most profound observer of women's lives, posing questions about feminine identity and desire with a stylishness that conveys an almost sensual pleasure.

From the moment Jane Manning first meets her aunt Dolly, she is both fascinated and appalled. Where Jane is tactful and shy, Dolly is flamboyant and unrepentantly selfish, a connoisseur of fine things, an exploiter of wealthy people. But as the exigencies of family bring Jane and Dolly together, Brookner shows us that we may end up loving people we cannot bring ourselves to like -- and that this paradox makes love all the more precious and miraculous.