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Published Apr 2014
272 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
Harry Sanders is a young foreign service officer in 1960s Indochina when a dangerous and clandestine meeting with insurgents - ending in quiet disaster - and a brief but passionate encounter with Sieglinde, a young German woman, alter the course of his life.
Absorbing the impact of his misstep, Harry returns briefly to Washington before eventual assignments in Africa, Scandinavia, and the Mediterranean. He marries the captivating May, who is fleeing her own family disappointments in worn-out upper New England and looking for an escape into Harry's diplomatic life. On the surface, they are a handsome, successful couple - but the memory of Sieglinde persists in Harry's thoughts, and May has her own secrets too. As Harry navigates the increasingly treacherous waters of diplomacy in an age of interminable conflict, he also tries to bridge the distances between himself and the two alluring women who have chosen to love him.
Ward Just, returning to his trademark territory of Forgetfulness and The Weather in Berlin, delivers an utterly compelling story of Americans trying to run the world, yet failing to master their lives.
"Starred Review. [A] fascinating portrayal of American embassy operations and the treacherous shoals of international diplomacy and duplicity." - Publishers Weekly
"Starred Review. Master writer Just's eighteenth novel is elegantly structured, worldly wise, shrewdly suspenseful, and profoundly satisfying" - Booklist
"Starred Review. Highly recommended as a sharp, fluidly written book on what it means to be American; great for book clubs." - Library Journal
"Another brilliant novel from Just: wise, introspective and full of humanity." - Kirkus
This information about American Romantic was first featured
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Ward Just's seventeen previous novels include Exiles in the Garden, Forgetfulness, the National Book Award finalist Echo House, A Dangerous Friend, winner of the Cooper Prize for fiction from the Society of American Historians, and An Unfinished Season, winner of the Chicago Tribune Heartland Award and a finalist for the 2005 Pulitzer Prize.
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