Secret Lives — Francis King

One ordinary afternoon, Anna Clive finds her apparently neatly-ordered life unravelling when she answers the phone to an acquaintance, Ossie, who tells her that his lover has died - before begging for her help. What follows is an extraordinary glimpse into the private hopes and fears of a group of characters bound inextricably to one another by their humanity, their secrets - and their love. Beautifully written and deeply moving, Secret Lives is a classic novella by the celebrated author and critic Francis King that examines why we must sometimes tell lies to lead the lives we desire, and what happens when those lies come, inevitably, to light.