Description
Book SynopsisAs featured on BBC Radio 4 Open Book
Set in the height of the Second World War, The Cazalet Chronicles continues with the third in the series, Confusion, where chaos has become a way of life for the Cazalet family.
'She helps us to do the necessary thing – open our eyes and our hearts' – Hilary Mantel, author of Wolf Hall
It's 1942 and the dark days of war seem never-ending. Scattered across the still-peaceful Sussex countryside and air-raid-threatened London, the divided Cazalets begin to find the battle for survival echoing the confusion in their own lives.
Headstrong, independent Louise surprises the whole family when she abandons her dreams of being an actress and instead makes a society marriage. Polly and Clary, now in their late teens, finally fulfil their ambition of living together in London. But the reality of the city is not quite what they imagined, and Polly is struggling to come to terms with the death of her mother and manage her grieving father. Clary, meanwhile, is painfully aware that what she lacks in beauty she makes up for in intelligence, and is the only member of the family who believes that her father might not be dead.
'Charming, poignant and quite irresistible . . . to be cherished and shared' – The Times
With cover artwork exclusively designed by artist Luke Edward Hall, this is the heartbreaking and heartwarming third instalment of Elizabeth Jane Howard's bestselling series. It is followed by the fourth book, Casting Off.
Trade ReviewIf I were sent to a desert island with one book this would be my choice -- Her Majesty Queen Camilla
Charming, poignant and quite irresistible . . . to be cherished and shared * The Times *
She is one of those novelists who shows, through her work, what the novel is for . . . She helps us to do the necessary thing – open our eyes and our hearts -- Hilary Mantel, author of
Wolf HallThe Cazalets have earned an honoured place among the great saga families . . . rendered thrillingly three-dimensional by a master craftsman * Sunday Telegraph *
Superb . . . hypnotic . . . very funny * Spectator *
Evocative and gracefully written * Cosmopolitan *
A family saga of the best kind . . . a must * Tatler *
A dazzling historical reconstruction -- Penelope Fitzgerald, Booker Prize-winning author of
OffshoreThis chronicle will be read, like Trollope, as a classic about life in England in our century -- Sybille Bedford, author of
A Legacy and
JigsawGloriously addictive . . . Family loyalty, betrayals, triumphs, tragedy, births and deaths are all blissfully here, and you become emotionally absorbed in the fate of each character * Daily Mail *
