The Falling Thread

'Super-assured ... Wholly convincing' WILLIAM BOYD'Deeply satisfying' Guardian'O'Riordan imbues his narrative with an acutely modern awareness of power and capitalism' The Times__________________Manchester, the summer of 1890. A city humming with industry and gleaming with affluence.But for Charles, cloistered in his middle-class parents' suburban villa on holiday from university, the city's vibrancy holds no charms. Bored and a little listless, he spends the summer in pursuit of his little sisters' governess, Hettie. Before the summer's end, both must face the consequences of their affair - consequences they will live with for the rest of their lives.Charles's sisters come of age as women of the new century - and experience a very different Manchester from their brother and guardian. In the smog and glitter of the city, both sisters will discover the very different things...