Magpie

Set in a range of deftly realised locations, these compelling stories take the reader from the hutongs of Beijing, on the cusp of change in 1980, to present-day Syria. We meet Mahmoud, confronting his son in the ruins of a museum; Jill, searching for clues to her sons life in Kenya. Stranded on a nightmarish holiday island, Steve is sure his dark secret can remain hidden, despite an unsettling encounter with a stranger who seems to know everything about him. In suburban Britain, Madeleine faces the loneliness of an empty nest and grapples with the echoes of a past affair. In a small town in the heart of Spain, William discovers that his plans for his dream holiday home and the fate of his family are more entwined with the life of his elderly neighbour than he could ever have imagined. Close relationships are stretched to breaking point; past secrets are revealed to haunt the present. In stories that surprise and entertain yet leave the reader with room to think Sarah Hegartys sharp-eyed prose examines the complexities of human relationships, and our enduring longing to connect. 'A powerful, unsettling, glittering collection from a writer of huge talent Liz Jensen, author of Your Wild and Precious Life