Böcker av Nicholas Day-Lewis

Charlie Gray and his wife Pam emigrate from England to South Africa, a country sinking under the scourge of apartheid, to start as an engineer in the gold mines. His life appears on the surface to be charmed, but he lives under the shadow of a terrifying instance of abuse in his childhood. Tragedies occur in his marriage and he is forced to leave. He moves, first to Nauru, then to Australia where his life begins to resemble that of the biblical character Job. Things happen to him, events beyond his control. He is powerless to stop them until he meets Emma, a distant cousin, and in a return to Scotland and the place where the story began he finally throws off the shackles of the past.

A leopard cannot change its spots, but can a man change his life? Ray Ferris' career is on the skids while his nymphomaniac wife Susan manages to escape from his alcoholism, his cruelty and his miserly nature. As Ray fights his addiction he has a fortuitous meeting with a young street busker. Other characters enter both his and Susan's lives, as well as a strange windfall of cash that affects each of them in different ways. They gather at the debut concert of a newly-formed orchestra where a shocking accident leads to an unexpected conclusion. This is a story of love and humiliation, of diminished responsibility and survival, of musical talent and the many possibilities of second chances.

Rocky Place is a short street in the coastal village of Wintersea. Attempting to regenerate their failing mariage Quentin and Lyn move there to live. One of their two children has become uncontrollable, further complicating their relationship. As they start life in their new house a dispute develops with their neighbours, a licentious family whose lives revolve round loud music, bumper stickers and sex. The problems that arise from this conflict start affecting other residents of Rocky Place, together with both the children and friends of the two families. In the heat of summer events become increasingly fraught, leading to a horrific tragedy that no one saw coming, but many could have stopped. "e;We're all to blame,"e; said Lyn. "e;Every one of us."e;