Unknown Bridesmaid (Forster) - Book Reviews

Book Reviews
Forster does a stunning job of shaping each layer of Julia’s psychological perspective into a dark, prismatic whole, but if there’s one disappointment in this book, it’s the abrupt ending. The novel has gathered such tension, and our experience of Julia is so intimate, that the closing passages seem poised to open one final door. But the conclusion fails to offer new insight. Then again, perhaps that’s Forster’s point, given how well she has explored her characters’ penchants for rationalization and self-deception.... [A] mesmerizing, unsettling novel.
Michelle Wildgen - New York Times Book Review


Makes such uncomfortable reading that at times you can barely turn the page, but it's so compelling that you have to.
Mail on Sunday (UK)


Nobody is better than Margaret Forster, with her clear calm prose, at delineating the fault lines of the ordinary, unexceptional and hidden lives.
Jennifer Selway - Daily Express (UK)


Margaret Forster is a brilliant and prolific writer... her latest novel is one of her best. It's a gripping read.
Observer (UK)


There is no one to match [Forster] for the way her assured, subtle and careful prose can detail the insecurities, torments and problems of what are, to all surface appearances, just nondescript, unremarkable and often half-lived lives.
The Lady (UK)


Margaret Forster has a deft and idiosyncratic touch.
Penelope Lively - Spectator (UK)


A brilliantly uncomfortable read about the art of forgetfulness.
Emma Hagestadt - Independent (UK)


Brilliant... You won't put this book down until its emotional end.
Siraj Patel Daily Express (UK)


[D]ark, disquieting.... [R]eaches deep to explore hidden truths and raises issues about resolving past conflicts, but...somewhat heavy-handedly, she doesn't cover much territory. Thin on plot, the book may be best regarded as a...carefully considered character study that digs deep to explore the ways the past can shade and shape the present.
Kirkus Reviews