A Family of Strangers

Description

Acutely observed, sharp and absorbing - an insightful exploration of the pain and beauty of modern family ties. The page-turning new novel from bestselling Australian author Fiona Lowe. How can you know so little about those you love? With a coveted promotion dangling within reach, the last thing Addy Topic needs to do is waste precious time singing in Rookery Cove's choir. But when she's reminded how much music meant to her late mother, she can't say no. The building pressure raises the ghosts that sent her running from Rookery Cove years earlier - memories she's spent decades hiding from, silencing them with work, alcohol and sex. For Stephanie Gallagher, Rookery Cove was meant to be a new beginning in the slow lane. A place where she and her husband can embrace community, parenthood and evenly share the load. But the sea-change is changing everything. How much longer can they survive as a family? Brenda Lambeck is finding her feet after the death of her husband when her best friend convinces her to join the choir. Beloved as a grandmother, Brenda is determined to mend the fraught relationship she has with her daughter, Courtney. But is that even possible when she continues to lie? In the wake of a spectacular betrayal, three women are forced to face the uncompromising truths about the choices that have shaped their relationships with those they love most. The consequences will shatter their lives and all they hold dear. After such a disaster is rebuilding even possible? PRAISE FOR FIONA LOWE: 'A glorious, heartwarming tapestry of a novel.' - The Herald Sun 'A Family of Strangers is an engaging, thoughtful and astute novel.' - Book'd Out 'Fiona has been a midwife, family support worker and sexual health counsellor in her former lives, so she knows a thing or two about the complexities of family relationships ... she deals with the full panoply of the human existence in this engaging read.' - Australian Country 'Lowe examines issues around blended families, sexuality and alcohol consumption, weaving them into a moving and utterly enthralling look at family, friendship and life ... A Family of Strangers is a glorious, heart-warming tapestry of a novel.' - Better Reading 'The undisputed queen of Australian small-town fiction.' - Canberra Weekly

FIONA LOWE has been a midwife, a sexual health counsellor and a family support worker; an ideal career for an author who writes novels about family and relationships. She spent her early years in Papua New Guinea where, without television, reading was the entertainment and it set up a lifelong love of books. Although she often re-wrote the endings of books in her head, it was the birth of her first child that prompted her to write her first novel. A recipient of the prestigious USA RITA (R) award and two Australian RuBY awards, Fiona writes books that are set in small country towns. They feature real people facing difficult choices and explore how family ties and relationships impact on their decisions. When she's not writing stories, she's a distracted wife, mother of two 'ginger' sons, a volunteer in her community, guardian of eighty rose bushes, a slave to a cat, and is often found collapsed on the couch with wine. You can find her at her website, fionalowe.com, and on Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads.