SUMMERWATER by Sarah Moss published to critical acclaim

SUMMERWATER, the new novel by Sarah Moss, was published by Picador UK on 20th August 2020 and is forthcoming in the US from FSG. Already acclaimed by Hilary Mantel as 'utterly of the moment', here is a selection of the glowing praise the book has already received less than a week after publication:

'The natural world is a dominant force in this absorbing novel, the extreme elements reflecting the mood of the holiday makers [...] Moss's insight into her characters' inner lives is among the many strengths of Summerwater.  [...] For more than a decade, Sarah Moss has been crafting quiet, complex novels that make an indelible impression on the reader. This is one of her best, and most accessible, and should bring her work to a wider audience.' John Boyne, Irish Times

'The story is told through 12 monologues, covering the summer solstice from a damp and fractious dawn to something dreadful in the middle of the night. [...] [There is] plenty of foreboding as Moss heaps up the pointers to something terrible with the cruel skill of a horror technician. By the midpoint, reading feels as stressful and claustrophobic as any wet-weather getaway, and just as impossible to get out of before the appalling end. [...] [And] when  Summerwater brings everyone together, it's in the worst way imaginable. Perhaps that's because the world is getting worse. Moss, though, only seems to be growing more brilliant.' Sarah Ditum, Sunday Times

'Building up a sense of dread in a novel is a subtle art, and Sarah Moss is an absolute master of it. [...] [In Summerwater] her methods are even more cleverly camouflaged [...] the hints are so ambiguous and understated - and so apparently peripheral to the myriad concerns of the various characters - that they create more of a background hum of unease. If anything, though, this is even more disconcerting for the reader. There's a degree of comfort in the near-certainty that something calamitous is just around the corner - at least you know the storm is eventually going to break. Part of the genious of Summerwater is the way it makes you question whether there is even going to be a storm at all. [...] Summerwater has been described as a portrait of "the many conflicting voices of Britain in a microcosm" and it certainly feels like an accurate reflection of our confused, scared, angsty present. Perhaps Moss's point, though, is that we're all so busy worrying about the things we can't influence we've lost sight of the things we can.' Roger Cox, Scotsman

Find more review coverage here.