''Ferociously smart and full of surprises'' Eleanor Catton, author of Birnam Wood ''Instantly bewitching'' Jennifer Egan, author of A Visit From the Goon Squad The astonishing story of one family swept up in the tides of the twentieth century, which takes them from post-war Japan to suburban America and the North Korean regime One evening, ten-year-old Louisa and her father take a walk out on the breakwater. They are spending the summer in a coastal Japanese town while her father Serk, a Korean emigre, completes an academic secondment from his American university. When Louisa wakes hours later, she has washed up on the beach and her father is missing, probably drowned. The disappearance of Louisa''s father shatters their small family unit. As Louisa and her American mother Anne return to the US, this traumatic event reverberates across time and space, and the mystery of what really happened to Serk slowly unravels. '' Susan Choi is a master of rendering relationships with utter particularity'' Raven Leilani, author of Luster ''A writer at the top of her game'' Library Journal ''I couldn''t put it down, and once I finished, I couldn''t stop thinking about it'' Barbara Demick, author of Nothing to Envy ''An immersive, addictive story with an ending that made me gasp'' Angie Kim, author of Happiness Falls

Autorentext

Susan Choi

Klappentext

SHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2025
WATERSTONES FICTION BOOK OF THE MONTH
LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2026

A moment is all it takes to shatter a family. The echoes last a lifetime...

**'Ferociously smart and full of surprises' Eleanor Catton

'Engrossing... Full of brains and mystery' Telegraph**

One evening, ten-year-old Louisa and her father, Serk, take a walk out on the breakwater. They are spending the summer in a coastal Japanese town. Hours later, Louisa wakes on the beach, soaked to the skin. Her father is missing: presumably drowned.

This sudden event shatters their small family. As Louisa and her American mother return to the US, Serk's disappearance reverberates across time and space, and the mystery of what really happened that night slowly unravels.

A Book **of the Year for the Guardian, Time, New Yorker, Esquire, Vanity Fair, FT and Barack Obama

'Big, bold and surprising' Guardian

'Illuminates the buried secrets of the human heart' Oprah Daily

'Gorgeous... Almost impossibly heartbreaking' New York Magazine

'It will make your head spin in the best way' Dakota Johnson

'Endlessly dazzling' Vogue

READERS LOVE FLASHLIGHT**

'Compelling, fascinating, original. Read this book'
'Five stars. Heartbreaking'
'A beautifully written story of a family across decades'
'I loved it - the best read in years. Glorious'
'Absolutely brilliant'