Fair Exchange

Description

In the early 1800s, Louise, a French peasant woman, fearing she is about to die, calls for her priest. She has a secret to confess. Though the priest is impatient, she wants to tell her tale from the beginning. The story opens in Stoke Newington, London, in the 1780s, with Jemima Boote, arriving at Miss Mary Wollstonecraft's school. Jemima follows her beloved teacher to Paris wanting to be part of the erupting revolution and then - six months pregnant - retreats to the tiny village of Louise's youth. Her arrival coincides with that of another young mother-to-be, Annette, who has been sent by her parents to the country to hide her disgraceful pregnancy and to get over her infatuation with William, a young English poet. In an abandoned convent they take up their waiting: waiting for their babies, waiting for their men. While drawing hints and facts from the lives and secret affairs of two of the most famous and passionate figures of the late 18th century - Mary Wollstonecraft and William Wordworth - the intriguing mystery surrounding these two women, is Mich le Roberts own fascinating creation.

Half-English and half-French, Michhle Roberts was born in 1949. DAUGHTERS OF THE HOUSE (1992) was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and won the WH Smith Literary Award.

'Michele Roberts has written a memorable, glowing fantasy, a deftly tapestried fable' MAIL ON SUNDAY 'A dazzling, unputdownable read ... a deeply compelling narrative of dark secrets and intrigue' SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY 'Roberts makes wonderful play with notions of lineage and history ... beautifully written' INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY 'A spirited and sensual novel' SUNDAY TIMES 'One of Britain's best novelists' INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY 'Roberts is at her best when she writes about food and sex, about feelings and desires that cut across boundaries of time and class' SUNDAY TIMES Shortlisted for the Booker Prize 1992 and Winner of the W.H. Smith Literary Award.