Adrienne Brodeur – författare

A daughter's tale of living in the thrall of her magnetic, complicated mother, and the chilling consequences of her complicity Every time I fail to become more like my mother, I become more like me.On a hot August night on Cape Cod, when Adrienne was 14, her mother Malabar woke her at midnight with five simple words that would set the course of both of their lives for years to come: Ben Souther just kissed me. Adrienne instantly became her mother’s confidante and helpmate, blossoming in the sudden light of her attention; from then on, Malabar came to rely on her daughter to help orchestrate what would become an epic affair with her husband’s closest friend. The affair would have calamitous consequences for everyone involved, impacting Adrienne’s life in profound ways, driving her into a doomed marriage of her own, and then into a deep depression. Only years later will she find the strength to embrace her life -- and her mother -- on her own terms. This is a book about how the people close to us can break our hearts simply because they have access to them. It's about the lies we tell in order to justify the choices we make. It’s about mothers and daughters and the nature of family. And ultimately, it's a story of resilience, a reminder that we need not be the parents our parents were to us; that moving forward is possible. 'Not since The Glass Castle has a memoir conveyed such a complex family bond, in which love, devotion, and corrosive secrets are inextricably linked' J. Courtney Sullivan

'Beautiful, lyrical and unvarnished' MIRANDA COWLEY HELLER, author of THE PAPER PALACE'Affecting and powerful' OBSERVER'A page-turner' FINANCIAL TIMESA riveting novel about Cape Cod, complicated families and long-buried secretsSummer, Cape Cod. Every member of the Gardner family is hiding a secret. Ken, a businessman with political ambitions, is caught in an internet chatroom and forced into couples therapy. Abby is ashamed to still depend on her brother’s goodwill to sustain her life as an artist. Adam, their father and brilliant oceanographer, decides to come off his bipolar disorder medication to make one last scientific breakthrough. And then there’s Steph: a new person living on the periphery, who harbours a secret that will change everything . . .'Smart, funny and beautifully written. Brodeur is a brilliant dissector of family relationships, a lyricist of the natural world, and an astute observer of our inner turmoils' MONICA ALI'Gorgeous, gripping, I couldn't put it down' RUTH OZEKI