Water, sand, hills, sky: the painter was out at sea, looking towards the shore. Impossible to say whether he was coming in or going out. When Sylvie, a single mother yearning for a creative spark, meets Michael, a renowned painter, she feels something she hasn’t felt in years. Impulsively she decides to uproot her life and move to Isaiah, an artists’ colony, with her teenage daughter Alice.
To Sylvie, Isaiah seems to offer a second chance at the things she’s sacrificed—freedom, love and art—but her relationship with Michael begins to affect the closeness she once had with her daughter. Without her mother’s knowledge, Alice engages in an act of teenage defiance that will shape both their lives.
Years later, Alice, a PhD student, is sought out by Caroline, an art historian researching Michael for a retrospective of his work. As their conversations tease out long-buried memories, Alice grapples with her past and Caroline’s hidden agenda.
Sometimes it's all a matter of perspective.
PRAISE FOR BETWEEN YOU AND ME:
‘It’s the language of this nuanced novel that did it … Between You and Me lingers in my mind’ – Canberra Times
‘Joanna Horton's debut is strong on female friendship, and she creates a crisp, effortlessly authentic narrative voice’ – Sydney Morning Herald
'A novel that deftly explores the uncomfortable grey areas of power, privilege and control. Between You and Me is a compulsive read about how the choices we make (and those made for us) ripple into the future. At once unsettling and totally captivating.’ – Natasha Sholl, author of Found, Wanting
‘I absolutely loved it. The characters felt both deeply familiar and also intriguingly complex and unknowable. An engaging and evocative read that I can't stop thinking about.’ – Eliza Henry-Jones, author of Salt and Skin
