One autumn in London Eve Swift, a nervous young actress from an esteemed theatrical dynasty, finds herself - surprisingly - married to an even-tempered expert on anxiety called Jim.

Across town, tabloid journalist Rebecca Melville is burning all her bridges while her devoted sister Beatrice, a therapist, tries her hardest not to intervene.

How far can Eve and Rebecca go without losing the admiration of the people they love?

'A book that manages to be both clever AND cheerful! Who knows if you're allowed to fall in love with characters in books any more (or again) but Eve is the most loveable heroine who has walked across the stage of English fiction for a long while. Delivered with wit and brilliance leavened with a sense of tragedy just off stage' Alain De Botton

'Boyt writes sentences with the nuance of a playful Henry James, exploring grief with wit and wisdom' Linda Grant, Observer