An emotionally devastated widower is drawn to a married woman in this “impressive” novel set in wartime England (Kirkus Reviews). Lewis Eliot has lost his deeply troubled wife, Sheila, under tragic circumstances. While her suicide has shaken Lewis to his core, it has also put an end to a painful and difficult marriage. In the wake of Sheila’s passing and Britain entering the Second World War, Lewis plunges into his civil service work. During this time, he meets Margaret and begins to feel his heart stirring—and sees the possibility of healing. But Margaret already has a husband, severely complicating the attraction they both feel, in this series of historical novels that the Telegraph called “Balzacian masterpieces of the age.” “A master craftsman in fiction.” —The New York Times “An extremely shrewd observer of men and society.” —Commentary