'A novel of ideas ... urgent and raw ... her skill is creating characters who think for themselves, rather than simple idea-vectors: work that is human and humane.' - Weekend Australian

WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR FICTION
TWICE WINNER OF THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION
THE MULTI-MILLION COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR

'Magnificent.' The Times, 'Books of the Year'
'Gripping.' Grazia
'Peerless.' Daily Mail
'Wise.' Sunday Times

Meet Willa Knox, a woman who stands braced against a world which seems to hold little mercy for her and her family - or their old, crumbling house, falling down around them. Willa's two grown-up children, a new-born grandchild, and her ailing father-in-law have all moved in at a time when life seems at its most precarious. But when Willa discovers that a pioneering female scientist lived on the same street in the 1800s, could this historical connection be enough to save their home from ruin? And can Willa, despite the odds, keep her family together?