The Love She Left Behind

With dry English wit and stark prose, Coe depicts nuanced, damaged characters in the midst of a no-win situation. As a young woman, Sara left her husband and two children for Patrick Conway, a playwright on the cusp of fame. Patrick saw the children, Louise and Nigel, largely as nuisances and distractions, and as a result, they remained semi-estranged from their mother until adulthood. Thirty-five years later, after Sara's sudden death, Louise and Nigel convene on the Conways' run-down Cornwall estate to settle her affairs, and their relationship with Patrick is as strained as ever. As all three navigate their grief, Nigel and Louise uncover curious details that suggest Sara and Patrick's relationship was more complicated than they initially imagined%E2%80%94and the more they learn about the affair that tore their family apart, the more confusing the situation becomes. Further complicating matters is Mia, an attractive young student purportedly writing a master's thesis on Patrick, but whose actual motives seem murkier once she moves into the house and begins to take a more-than-journalistic interest in him. While the plot takes its time unfolding, readers will enjoy the journey toward acquiring real sympathy for a cast of characters who are, generally speaking, not particularly likable on first glance. (July)