The Divorce A Novel
The Divorce by Moa Herngren is a novel published by HarperCollins Publishers in 2024, featuring 352 pages in English. This book presents an intricate domestic drama set during a hot summer in Stockholm, marking the American debut of the Swedish bestselling author. It explores the collapse of a thirty-two-year marriage through the perspectives of both Bea, who feels blindsided by her husband’s decision to leave, and Niklas, who has been contemplating the end of their relationship for some time.
Readers will find a nuanced examination of family life, marriage, and the psychological complexities that accompany divorce. The narrative unfolds as Bea’s excitement for a family vacation turns into a life-altering realization about her marriage. Through the dual perspectives, the novel raises thought-provoking questions about relationships and the nature of abandonment. Translated from Swedish by Alice Menzies, this edition invites readers to delve into the emotional intricacies of modern marriage and the often-unseen struggles that lead to its unraveling.
Official synopsis Publisher
An addictive domestic drama set during one hot Stockholm summer that marks the American debut of #1 Swedish bestselling author Moa Herngren.
“The collapse of a thirty-two-year marriage is depicted with an even hand in this book, which amounts to two parallel novels: one about a woman ‘feverish with confusion,’ who feels that she was abandoned without warning, and another about a man who has been grappling with the end of his relationship for months. . . . As Herngren stitches together the couple’s perspectives, she writes with a sharp neutrality, never overplaying the book’s many tense moments of discovery or languishing in the wife’s despair.” –The New Yorker
There are two sides to every story . . .
Bea couldn’t be more excited to trade the stifling Stockholm summer heat for vacation on Gotland Island. She’s looking forward to spending quality time with her beloved husband of thirty-two years, Niklas, and their two moody teenage daughters, and recuperating from the stress of daily life in the company of her beloved in-laws. One night shortly before their departure, Bea and Niklas have a seemingly mundane argument over a trivial issue, and Niklas goes out with a friend to blow off steam. As the hours pass, Niklas doesn’t come home, and Bea’s irritation soon gives way to panic as she imagines what kind of disaster might have happened to delay his return.
What she soon learns will change her life forever: while her husband is fine, their marriage is not. Her kind, gentle pediatrician husband wants to leave her. But while this might seem like sudden insanity to Bea, for Niklas, it’s anything but…
Writing with the warmth and empathy that have made her insightful, page-turning family novels bestsellers in her native Sweden, Moa Herngren raises thoughtful questions about why relationships fall apart: Is the person who leaves always the bad guy? What emerges once you begin scratching the surface of what seems like a clear-cut situation? Told from dual perspectives, The Divorce is a gripping novel that deftly explores the complexities of modern marriage.
Translated from the Swedish by Alice Menzies
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