2018 Desmond Elliott Prize (nominee)
A family can’t escape their secrets when they’re forced to spend a week in quarantine in this “sharply funny” (People) novel—an Indie Next and #1 Library Reads Pick!
It's Christmas, and for the first time in years the entire Birch family will be under one roof. Even Emma and Andrew's elder daughter—who is usually off saving the world—will be joining them at Weyfield Hall. But Olivia, a doctor, is only coming home because she has to. She's just returned from treating an epidemic abroad and has been told she must stay in quarantine for a week...and so too should her family.
For the next seven days, the Birches are locked down, cut off from the rest of humanity, and forced into each other's orbits. Younger, unabashedly frivolous daughter Phoebe is fixated on her upcoming wedding, while Olivia deals with the culture shock of first-world problems.
As Andrew sequesters himself in his study writing scathing restaurant reviews and remembering his glory days as a war correspondent, Emma hides a secret that will turn the whole family upside down.
In close proximity, not much can stay hidden for long, and as revelations and long-held tensions come to light, nothing is more shocking than the unexpected guest who's about to arrive....
Genre: Literary Fiction
It's Christmas, and for the first time in years the entire Birch family will be under one roof. Even Emma and Andrew's elder daughter—who is usually off saving the world—will be joining them at Weyfield Hall. But Olivia, a doctor, is only coming home because she has to. She's just returned from treating an epidemic abroad and has been told she must stay in quarantine for a week...and so too should her family.
For the next seven days, the Birches are locked down, cut off from the rest of humanity, and forced into each other's orbits. Younger, unabashedly frivolous daughter Phoebe is fixated on her upcoming wedding, while Olivia deals with the culture shock of first-world problems.
As Andrew sequesters himself in his study writing scathing restaurant reviews and remembering his glory days as a war correspondent, Emma hides a secret that will turn the whole family upside down.
In close proximity, not much can stay hidden for long, and as revelations and long-held tensions come to light, nothing is more shocking than the unexpected guest who's about to arrive....
Genre: Literary Fiction
Praise for this book
"Absorbing, insightful and immensely enjoyable." - Laura Barnett
"Touching, funny, emotionally intelligent, Seven Days of Us is pure pleasure from beginning to end. It's stylishly written and totally engrossing. I really, really loved it." - Adèle Geras
"Gripping, powerfully emotional and life-affirming. I read it in one sitting!" - Maeve Haran
"It's a cliché to say this book is a rollercoaster but the sun came up and the sun went down, people cried for help, and the bath overflowed, and I couldn't move, captivated by this extraordinary page-turner. The plot is compulsive and doesn't let up till the very last chapter. It has more twists and turns than Hampton Court Maze and yet Francesca Hornak guides one through it all with a confident hand until one puts it down, exhausted but exhilarated by such a rollicking good read. Terrific." - Virginia Ironside
"LOVED it! Warm and humane, funny and sad, with a great, twisty plot, Seven Days of Us is absolute pleasure reading from beginning to end. Francesca Hornak is a true talent. Just gorgeous!" - Marian Keyes
"Compassionate, witty and wise." - Saskia Sarginson
"An engrossing and funny study of a middle-class British family in crisis. I loved it!" - Keith Stuart
"Touching, funny, emotionally intelligent, Seven Days of Us is pure pleasure from beginning to end. It's stylishly written and totally engrossing. I really, really loved it." - Adèle Geras
"Gripping, powerfully emotional and life-affirming. I read it in one sitting!" - Maeve Haran
"It's a cliché to say this book is a rollercoaster but the sun came up and the sun went down, people cried for help, and the bath overflowed, and I couldn't move, captivated by this extraordinary page-turner. The plot is compulsive and doesn't let up till the very last chapter. It has more twists and turns than Hampton Court Maze and yet Francesca Hornak guides one through it all with a confident hand until one puts it down, exhausted but exhilarated by such a rollicking good read. Terrific." - Virginia Ironside
"LOVED it! Warm and humane, funny and sad, with a great, twisty plot, Seven Days of Us is absolute pleasure reading from beginning to end. Francesca Hornak is a true talent. Just gorgeous!" - Marian Keyes
"Compassionate, witty and wise." - Saskia Sarginson
"An engrossing and funny study of a middle-class British family in crisis. I loved it!" - Keith Stuart
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Used availability for Francesca Hornak's Seven Days of Us