Twenty-Four Hours in the Life of a Woman

 The less I felt in myself, the more strongly I was drawn to those places where the whirligig of life spins most rapidly. So begins an extraordinary day in the life of Mrs C - recently bereaved and searching for excitement and meaning. Drawn to the bright lights of a casino, and the passion of a desperate stranger, she discovers a purpose once again but at what cost? In this vivid and moving tale of a compassionate woman, and her defining experience, Zweig explores the power of intense love, overwhelming loneliness and regret that can last for a lifetime.

Review: One hardly knows where to begin in praising this work. Perhaps it would be best to concentrate on the almost supernatural ability Zweig had to get into the heart and mind of a woman -- Nicholas Lezard Guardian Zweig belongs with those masters of the novella-Maupassant, Turgenev, Chekhov. Paul Bailey The Updike of his day... Zweig is a lucid writer, and Bell renders his prose flawlessly New York Observer The rediscovery of this extraordinary writer could well be on a par with last year's refinding of the long-lost Stoner, by John Williams -- Simon Winchester Telegraph