The Distance Between Us by Maggie O'Farrell
Fiction
2004
Finished on February 26, 2025
Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)
Publisher's Blurb:
On a cold February afternoon, Stella catches sight of a man she hasn't seen for many years, but instantly recognises. Or thinks she does. At the same moment on the other side of the globe, in the middle of a crowd of Chinese New Year revellers, Jake realises that things are becoming dangerous.
They know nothing of one another's existence, but both Stella and Jake flee their lives: Jake in search of a place so remote it doesn't appear on any map, and Stella for a destination in Scotland, the significance of which only her sister, Nina, will understand.
Once again, Maggie O'Farrell has held me enthralled with yet another creative, if not topsy-turvy novel about the ties that bind one's family and how we never really escape our pasts. As with her other books (except for Hamnet), O'Farrell's structure is non-linear and she employs multiple POVs, juggling all narratives with great skill. Having read her debut novel (After You'd Gone) last month, I was prepared for this format and didn't find The Distance Between Us difficult to follow, enjoying it better than that earlier novel. I'm excited to read The Hand That First Held Mine, which is next in line for my "Year of Reading Maggie O'Farrell" challenge.
I've read quite a few of her books and like her work. One of my favorites was The vanishing Act of Esme Lennox. Is this a personal O'Farrell reading challenge or one hosted?
ReplyDeleteTina, I really enjoyed Esme Lennox. This is just a personal reading challenge. I thought I'd spend the year reading O'Farrell and Strout's books.
DeleteYou'll laugh at this 🙂 Your review made me want to read this one so I surfed through the library catalog at her titles, mistakenly checked out the Wrong title (not Distance Between Us), settled in last and started reading it. Turns out I'd read the book I checked out - This Must Be the Place. Damn! Alas, the library doesn't have your book. Maybe I'll try and get via inter library loan.
DeleteOh, how funny, Tina! I have This Must Be the Place in my stacks. If I stick to my schedule, I'll start reading it in May. Hope you can get your hands on The Distance Between Us. :)
DeleteI'll check the local independently owned bookshop. they keep my "wish list" and call me when a book is available I am searching for.
DeleteGood luck!
DeleteI do love this author but this is the first time I am seeing this book so thanks for reviewing it! I would totally read this.
ReplyDeleteTi, it was very enjoyable. I like the setting in this one, too.
DeleteI'm looking forward to reading more of O'Farrell. This sounds really good!
ReplyDeleteJoAnn, she's quickly becoming a favorite author! This one was really enjoyable. Loved the settings in Hong Kong, London and Scotland.
DeleteShe has quite a few books that I don't even know about -- so I'm glad you're going back for these. I'm curious what she's putting out next -- and if it will be a historical kind of tale. hmm
ReplyDeleteSusan, I have four more novels and one memoir to read of hers. Yeah, it will be interesting to see what she publishes next. Her two most recent were historical fiction, so I kind of think she'll continue down that road, but who knows!
DeleteI like that you're reading all this author's books. It's a fun project.
ReplyDeleteHelen, it is fun. So far, I'm able to keep the stories separate in my mind, but we'll see how that goes in the months to come. Not that it's important since I'm spacing them out with only one a month.
DeleteI really need to give her books a try.
ReplyDeleteWendy, she's quickly becoming a favorite author of mine!
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