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absinthe for elevenses

 

In this ironic study of the complexities of1x1.gif (111 bytes)
love, Ginny Barnes is wrenched out of her1x1.gif (111 bytes)
suburban cul-de-sac into a brutal five-star passion1x1.gif (111 bytes)
and forced to choose between her decaffeinated1x1.gif (111 bytes)
low-cholesterol husband Ian and her1x1.gif (111 bytes)
high-calorie lover Caldos de Roche, a gourmet1x1.gif (111 bytes)
psychoanalyst who seeks fame and fortune by1x1.gif (111 bytes)
selling Happiness like hamburgers.1x1.gif (111 bytes)
1x1.gif (111 bytes)
De Roche is aiming to transform not only1x1.gif (111 bytes)
what he sees as his impotent profession,1x1.gif (111 bytes)
but also once-a-Catholic Ginny, still tied to home1x1.gif (111 bytes)
and children, and obsessed with guilt and sin. Far1x1.gif (111 bytes)
from impotent himself, he woos her with heavenly 1x1.gif (111 bytes)
pleasures and earthly appetites, combining1x1.gif (111 bytes)
sacred and profane, making highly unconventional1x1.gif (111 bytes)
love to a background of church music, and1x1.gif (111 bytes)
trying to coax a dazzling social butterfly1x1.gif (111 bytes)
from a drab and cosy chrysalis.The new1x1.gif (111 bytes)
glossy gift-wrapped Ginny, torn between the1x1.gif (111 bytes)
risk of eternal damnation by a God she only1x1.gif (111 bytes)
half believes in and the god she sees in Caldos1x1.gif (111 bytes)
himself, discovers that even heaven-on-earth1x1.gif (111 bytes)
can be hell. In a single day she visits a VD clinic 1x1.gif (111 bytes)
and then makes two attempts at Confession,1x1.gif (111 bytes)
seeking out a fire-and-brimstone priest after1x1.gif (111 bytes)
the first (liberal) one lets her off too lightly.1x1.gif (111 bytes)

Who will win her allegiance - her husband, her lover, or her God?1x1.gif (111 bytes)

A quite exceptional first novel and I predict a1x1.gif (111 bytes)
glittering future for its author. Perriam's shrewd,1x1.gif (111 bytes)
sharp prose style is complemented by a1x1.gif (111 bytes)
marvellous talent for satirical observation.1x1.gif (111 bytes)
A tour de force.1x1.gif (111 bytes)
The Scotsman1x1.gif (111 bytes)

Perriam's salty mix of satire,1x1.gif (111 bytes)
black comedy and social comment1x1.gif (111 bytes)
has the flavour of Russian caviar,1x1.gif (111 bytes)
and is just as irresistible.1x1.gif (111 bytes)
Sunday Telegraph1x1.gif (111 bytes)

A Cartier of a novel . . . a boisterous,1x1.gif (111 bytes)
comic and unholy achievement that1x1.gif (111 bytes)
roars with operatic passion.1x1.gif (111 bytes)
Time Out1x1.gif (111 bytes)

 

"In Absinthe for Elevenses I take a long, hard look at psychoanalysis, examining not only its values, but also the risks of dependency and self-obsession. Before I started writing, I interviewed several analysts and patients, and also explored the "Upstairs Downstairs" world of Harley Street, where caretakers and other staff live in poky quarters beneath the grandeur of the consulting rooms.

I also discovered (purely in the interests of research, of course!) in which London opera house you can make love in a box without being observed."


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You can buy this book with a personal hand-written inscription by Wendy Perriam.
See the contact details at the bottom of the newsletter or buying books section.


Every book from "Absinthe" to "Breaking and Entering" has been re-published in paperback by Back-in-Print Books Ltd,
available from most good bookshops and outlets. (distributed by Gardners Books).


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© Wendy Perriam 1998 - 2008