Description
Luke, Connor, Thea and Violet spend their first holiday together alone in their father's house in the south of France. The boys don't really know him, and they don't really know their half-sisters, either. Luke, the most easy going of the four, is keen to bring a new shape to their overlapping, unconventional family; Connor and Thea, born just six months apart but a world of difference between them, are struggling to hide their attraction to each other; Violet, the youngest, is trying to figure some things out about herself, and trying desperately to forget others.
Sex in all its multiple forms is on the minds of the siblings during the hot, lethargic summer days spent next to the pool, but the land around them is starting to respond to something inexplicable and eerie. Animals begin to act strangely. There is a buzzing sound that only Connor can hear, and when Violet one night sees a plane light abruptly disappear in the sky, it signals the beginning of something that threatens so much more than their turbulent holiday.
With considerable power and unfolding revelation, We Are Together Because starts as a sensual summer drama and very quickly becomes about our own survival, asking us what is truly important in life, and how far we've strayed from our place in a more fluid, vibrant, natural world.
About the Author
Kerry Andrew is a London-based musician and author. They are the acclaimed author of Swansong (2018) and Skin (2021), and their short fiction has been shortlisted twice for BBC National Short Story Award and has been performed on BBC Radio Four. They are also the winner of four British Composer Awards.
Reviews
Andrew makes fine writing look effortless. This rich, mysterious novel glows with intelligence, poetry and heart. I loved it * Sarah Waters, author of The Paying Guests *
A writer of frankly alarming talent * Robert Macfarlane *
Kerry Andrew is that rare thing: a natural storyteller * Patrick Gale *
Tense and tender in equal measure, I was gripped by this holiday that becomes both a trap and an escape, by turns hellish and heavenly, but pure pleasure to read * Zoe Gilbert, author of Mischief Acts *
Utterly bewitching, this is a novel that will work its way into your dreams long after you've finished it * Anna Bailey, author of Sunday Times-bestselling Tall Bones *
The prose is always beautifully light and subtle... We Are Together Because is glossy, chic and cinematic * Curtis Garner, author of Isaac *
Tender, unsettling and beautifully written. I loved it. * Carole Hailey, The Silence Project *
Eerie, provocative, and haunting: Andrew wields their words like an ultra-fine needle, piercing straight to the heart of the complicated truths of adolescent hopes, desires, and fears. A rich and beautiful read. * CN Lester, musician and author of Trans Like Me *
'An off-kilter classic' * New Zealand Herald *
Absolutely breathtaking... So beautifully written, clever, poetic, and totally addictive * Ruth Ivo, author of Performance *
Andrew is one of our most exceptional polymaths... We Are Together Because is a sensitive and nuanced portrayal of contemporary family dynamics...that transforms into a deeply moving and thoroughly original evocation of the end times * The New European *
With echoes of Leave the World Behind...Andrew's tale takes on a vivid, haunting life of its own * Marie Claire, Best Books of 2024 *
An unsettling, moving and haunting novel which deftly questions what happens when layers of the self, and society and certainty begin to melt away * Andrew McMillan, author of PIty *
Book Information
ISBN 9781805460206
Author Kerry Andrew
Format Paperback
Page Count 320
Imprint Atlantic Books
Publisher Atlantic Books
