Elsie and Graeme Johnstone’s powerful two-part story traces the fragmentation of a well-intentioned marriage through to its irretrievable breakdown and a chilling finale that stays with the reader long after the final page is turned.
Set in Ireland and told in two voices – Her Story and His Story – it tells of Stuart and Jennifer, meeting at a time when they both feel marriage and parenthood has passed them by. He is a reliable insurance salesman lacking confidence with women. She is a bright, pretty lawyer, left emotionally scarred by her first boyfriend.
They have three children and appear to be a happy family. But things are not as they seem. Stuart appoints himself as the bullying ‘captain of the ship’ whose orders must always be obeyed. A scared, brow-beaten Jennifer finds comfort amongst her internet friends. An innocent Facebook contact with her first lover, Tommy, leads to cybersex, romance and infidelity.
Jennifer is to learn that breaking free from a controlling husband will be more painful than she could ever have imagined. Stuart determines to hurt his wife in a way she will never forget. And he does.