April 2011 Guest Editor Lesley Lokko on Douglas Kennedy...

The blurb on the back (or is it the front?) of his novels says ‘no one does stylish, damaged women better.’ How true. When I’m in the mood for something I cannot put down, Kennedy never lets me down. They’re all uniformly good – The Big Picture, The Pursuit of Happiness, The State of the Union and the one I’ve just stayed up all night reading, Leaving the World. It’s rare to read a man who’s got such a handle on women but Kennedy scarcely puts a foot wrong. It’s a bit like watching The Office...scarily familiar, scarily good and often cringe-worthy. We can all remember making that last, desperate phone call when we really, really shouldn’t. What Not To Do, not Wear.

Synopsis

On the night of her thirteenth birthday, Jane Howard made a vow to her warring parents - she would never get married and she would never have children. But life, as Jane discovers, is a profoundly random business. Many years and many lives later, she is a professor in Boston, in love with a brilliant, erratic man named Theo. And then she falls pregnant. Motherhood turns out to be a great welcome surprise - but when a devastating turn of events tears her existence apart she has no choice but to flee all she knows and leave the world. Just when Jane has renounced life itself, the disappearance of a young girl pulls her back from the edge and into an obsessive search for personal redemption. Convinced that she knows more about the case than the police do, she is forced to make a decision - stay hidden or bring to light a shattering truth. Like Kennedy's previous highly acclaimed novels, Leaving the World , speaks volumes about the dilemmas we face in trying to navigate our way through all that fate throws in our path.

Reviews

'Almost invariably - and courageously - Douglas Kennedy chooses women for his central characters. They tend to be both stylish and troubled and, in Jane Howard's case... tried and tested by more than their fair share of tragedy ... the narrative zips along and has moments of great poignancy' Daily Mail

'An emotionally intense and totally compelling read' Woman & Home

'Having vowed at the age of 13 never to have children, years later Jane falls pregnant only to suffer a turn of events which compels to destroy her world. Brilliant.' 5 star review. Daily Mirror

'Douglas Kennedy... is famous for two things: writing insightfully about women's lives, and crafting narratives so utterly gripping as to redefine the concept of unputdownable. In Leaving the World, his ninth novel, these strengths combine to make an unforgettable reading experience ... Don't get on a long-haul flight without it, I say.' The Times

About the Author

Douglas Kennedy's novels have all been highly praised bestsellers. His work has been translated into sixteen languages and in 2006 he received the French decoration of Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. Born in Manhattan in 1955, he now lives in London and has two children. More books by this author Author 'Like for Like' recommendation