Ripeness

Sue says about Ripeness:
"A powerful, thought-provoking novel telling the story of Edith firstyl as a 70 year old living on the West Coast of Ireland, and then as a 17 year old sent to Italy to look after her sister as she gives birth. Touching on themes of family, belonging, migration and friendship, it's up to Sarah Moss' usual high standard."

Just out of school and teetering on the brink of adulthood, Edith is sent alone to rural Italy. Her task is simple: support her sister Lydia, a brilliant but brittle ballet dancer, through the final weeks of her pregnancy. Once the baby is born, she is to make a phone call that will change all of their lives forever.

Decades later, Edith is living a contented life in Ireland, happily divorced and unexpectedly free. But when her friend Méabh receives an email from a stranger claiming to be her brother, everything shifts. As Méabh confronts a history she never knew she had, Edith must finally face the truth of that long-ago summer, and the secret she has carried for a lifetime.