The Paper Palace
The No.1 New York Times Bestseller and Reese Witherspoon Bookclub Pick
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4.2 • 118 Ratings
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- $15.99
Publisher Description
2 MILLION COPIES SOLD WORLDWIDE
LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE 2022
One life changing decision: your husband or your one true love?
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On a perfect August morning, Elle Bishop heads out for a swim in the pond below 'The Paper Palace' - her family's holiday home in Cape Cod. As she dives beneath the water she relives the passionate encounter she had the night before, against the side of the house that knows all her darkest secrets, while her husband and mother chatted to their guests inside...
So begins a story that unfolds over twenty-four hours and fifty years, as Elle's shocking betrayal leads her to a life-changing decision.
A PAGE-TURNING SUMMER READ FOR FANS OF WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING AND LITTLE FIRES EVERYWHERE
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Readers have been gripped by THE PAPER PALACE:
***** 'I devoured this book in a couple of days'
***** 'I fell in love with the characters'
***** 'A heart-rending love story filled with so many complications'
Sunday Times Bestseller, September 2022
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
As head of drama series at HBO, Heller oversaw some of our all-time favourite TV shows, including The Sopranos and The Wire. Here she deploys those formidable storytelling skills in an enthralling and evocative debut novel, unfolding across both 24 hours and 50 years. In the present, we follow heroine Elle—a happily married, middle-aged mother of three—across a single day as she deals with the fallout from having sex with Jonas, her lifelong friend, for the first time. This is intelligently intercut with vivid flashbacks, illustrating how the pair got to this crisis point—and the deadly secret from their youth which bonds them forever. Will Elle gamble on soulmate Jonas or stay with her charming British husband? Heller’s immersive sensual journey takes in family trauma and midlife frustration, while transporting the reader back to the endless hazy summers of childhood holidays. Cleverly constructed and slyly devastating with several rug-pulling revelations, this is a love triangle with surprising angles.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In Heller's captivating debut, a woman's visit to her family's summer home on Cape Cod forces her to make a momentous decision. Elle Bishop, 50, and her family are back at the "Paper Palace," nicknamed for the cheap pressed paperboard their grandfather used in constructing the house. Elle continues to go there each summer despite painful memories, beginning after her parents split when she was 10 and her mother started bringing along a new boyfriend and his children, including his menacing 11-year-old son, Conrad. As the novel opens, Elle's finally consummated her feelings for Jonas, a friend from the Cape whom she's loved since she was a girl. Over the next 24 hours she must make the decision to stay with her husband, Peter, or finally be with Jonas. Woven throughout are flashbacks from Elle's childhood, including a horrific series of events over the summer of 1983 when Elle was 13, involving Conrad, Elle, and Jonas, as well as other family traumas that have reverberated through generations. When the details are revealed later on, they put the somber mood of the first half in a new light. While the story takes a while to get going, Heller's prose is full of lush atmospheric details. This will keep the reader guessing all the way to the end.
Customer Reviews
A gem of a book
This book gave me so much pleasure that I took my time reading it, letting each emotion linger. I’m looking forward to discovering more from this very talented author.
Dilemma
Such a great book, beautifully written. The characters are wonderful, the dilemma is heartbreaking.
Brilliant read
A great story that was so well written that I devoured it in a week.