Small Pleasures, Clare Chambers ( paperback, 29 April 2021)

£8.99

LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2021

'An almost flawlessly written tale of genuine, grown-up romantic anguish' The Sunday Times

1957, the suburbs of South East London.  Jean Swinney is a journalist on a local paper, trapped in a life of duty and disappointment from which there is no likelihood of escape. When a young woman, Gretchen Tilbury, contacts the paper to claim that her daughter is the result of a virgin birth, it is down to Jean to discover whether she is a miracle or a fraud. As the investigation turns her quiet life inside out, Jean is suddenly given an unexpected chance at friendship, love and - possibly - happiness.  But there will, inevitably, be a price to pay.