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Published Jul 2010
272 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
When the bright but tongue-tied David sees the magnetic Camille at a party, he plays it safe, asking his smooth and charming best friend, Alex, to make the introduction. But even though David was the one to notice Camille, it's the ever-confident Alex who makes the first move on her. As David watches his best friend walk away with the girl of his dreams, he becomes painfully aware of just what he has lost through his hesitant, overcautious approach to life.
Shedding his disappointment, David leaves home in search of a new beginning. But neither distance nor time can erase the memory of Camille. Buoyed by his newfound self-assurance and a fresh perspective, David is ready to try again. He will face the would-be love of his life and act on his feelings, whatever the cost to his friendship with Alex.
What happens when love gets in the way of lifelong friendship? How far will a good guy go to win the love of his life? In the tradition of Nick Hornby, Roddy Doyle, and Michael Chabon, Chris Binchy delivers an addictive tale of looking back and looking forward. This funny and wise story interweaves the suspense of unforeseeable futures, unknowable circumstances, and irreversible mistakes; the misfortunes of bad timing; and the power of love.
"Binchy is a master of realistic dialog and characterization, both of which are on dazzling display in this novel." - Library Journal
"A convincing but plodding and predictable portrait of romantic awkwardness." - Kirkus Reviews
"Binchy writes with a slow-burning intensity about social isolation and loneliness, workplace politics, and romantic triangles." - Booklist
This information about Five Days Apart was first featured
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Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Chris Binchy has worked as an embassy researcher, painter, and hotel manager; trained as a sushi chef; written articles as a restaurant critic for Dublin's Sunday Tribune; and contributed to the Irish Times, the Sunday Times, the Sunday Independent, the Evening Herald, and the Dubliner. His first novel, The Very Man, was short-listed for the Irish Novel of the Year award. Binchy is also the author of People Like Us and Open-Handed. He lives with his wife and three children in Dublin. This is his first novel to be published in the US.
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