Twelve Book

Twelve has the sheep's clothing of a Bridget Jones' clone. Lily, the central character, is a twentysomething woman living in London with a dull job and no man. The subtitle asks "How should a young woman live now?" and Lily's quest is for a real life, an escape from temporary measures. Lily's confessional narrative tracks her confusion, her sense that she should be somewhere else, someone else. In an effort to escape the "steep rock face" of a working week, she seeks respite with weekends in the country, parties and a date with a stranger. But she can't escape the feeling that there's something missing, that she's a bit-part actor in her own life.As Twelve progresses, Jones layers each chapter with a different character's voice: old friends, a down-to-earth neighbour and Lily's date, Colin. There are sensitive, incisive observations--"the brown centre in one of his eyes has seeped a little into its white, a trickle of colour that's blurring its edge"--and a knack with words that twists the imagination. By asking the unexpected, this first novel is unsettling, unusual and perceptive. --Jane HoneyRead More