The Voice in My Ear

The Voice in My Ear

Summary

'Superbly written and fearlessly imagined fiction' Sarah Hall

Ten women, all called Claire, are tangled up in complex power dynamics with their families, friends, and lovers. Though all are different ages, and leading different lives, each is haunted by the difficulty of living on her own terms.

Claire is a teenaged babysitter left alone with a strange little girl and her imaginary friend. Claire is a woman trying to escape her elderly mother by employing an android carer. Claire is a young TV journalist wrecking her first big interview. Claire's boyfriend discovers more than he bargains for when he begins to read her diary.

And whatever she does, Claire is always living in the shadow of a monstrous mother.

'Leviston is a mistress of precision and emotional insight' Hilary Mantel, TLS

Reviews

  • I loved it. I absolutely loved it. It felt like a choose your own adventure version of somebody’s life... I cannot say enough how much I enjoyed it. It’s a writer putting herself through her paces – it’s showing us what she can do and I’m really excited to see what she does next.
    Naomi Alderman, BBC Radio 4 Front Row

About the author

Frances Leviston

Frances Leviston is the author of two collections of poetry: Public Dream, shortlisted for the T. S. Eliot Prize, the Forward Prize for Best First Collection and the Jerwood-Aldeburgh First Collection Prize; and Disinformation, shortlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize. In 2015 she was shortlisted for the BBC Short Story Award. She lives in Northumberland and is a lecturer in creative writing at the University of Manchester.
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