After Everything

It's never too late to make amends. A small group of friends in their late fifties discover that life can still surprise them, and even present chances for new beginnings. Recently divorced, Penny moves to a quaint town in France and renounces sex - until she meets an irresistible philosophy professor. Meanwhile unmarried Peter falls head over heels with fiercely independent Frieda; Tim and Angie face challenges in their childless marriage; and Jeremy, twice divorced, develops a destructive interest in under-age girls. Finally, there's Sandy, Penny's ex-husband and a once acclaimed songwriter who realises too late that he took his marriage for granted. He wants to make amends but first he'll have to confront a secret tragedy that has haunted him for decades. After Everything is a wry, emotionally astute novel about second chances and the getting of wisdom long after you think you've grown up. In contemporary London and rural France, a small group of friends reach their late fifties and discover that life still presents them with surprises and unexpected chances for new beginnings. Recently divorced and seeking to reinvent herself, Penny moves to a picturesque town in France and renounces sex-until she meets an irresistible American philosophy professor. Meanwhile, handsome and unmarried Peter falls head over heels for the first time in his life with plump, sexy, and fiercely independent Frieda; David and Angie face challenges in their childless and co-dependent marriage; and Jeremy, twice divorced and the most successful of them all, develops a destructive interest in underage girls. Wonderfully wise and deeply engaging, After Everything provides an insightful look into the complicated relationships we all experience at some point in our lives. As this beautifully written debut novel unfolds, some relationships blossom, some fade, but all reveal the ambivalent nature of the ties that bind us together