'Ephron piles on the tension in this unflinchingly observed study of two couples' relationships imploding on a shared holiday. The presence of an eerily precocious child brings a chill premonition from the start.'
*
Sunday Times Crime Club star pick *
'A brilliant, biting take on modern relationships... Ephron...has conjured a minor masterpiece that reads like a mash-up of Henry James and Raymond Chandler. It leaves you longing for the film - which is already in the works.'
*
Daily Mail *
'A tense, taut cross between Big Little Lies and The Affair. A clever cautionary tale.'
*
i *
'A master of precise and keen character development, a virtuoso of pacing and surprise, a wizard at skewering convention and expectation, Ephron offers a bewitching take on relationships-marital, parental, casual, and serious-in this read-in-one-sitting, escapist escapade with a message.'
*
Booklist *
'[Ephron] excels at [depicting] characters' unintended comedy, their emotional warfare and witty observations of travel and consumption....with a deft, stinging touch. They are a wise reminder that the hungers driving these people are a ravenous, even violent, business.'
*
New York Times Book Reviews *
'A seductive and edgy dissection of two imploding marriages-and an unhinged mother-daughter alliance... Each of these toxic relationships puts the characters on course to careen headlong into a dark place of deceit and rage in Ephron's brilliant takedown of marital and familial pretense.'
*
Publishers Weekly starred review *
'[A] suspenseful, thoroughly delicious tale. You can almost taste the gelato.'
*
People Magazine *
'Sophisticated, elegantly written, delightfully cynical...Ephron's novel has the feel of a classic.'
* Patrick Anderson,
Washington Post *
'An irresistible novel for fans of psychological thrillers, or those considering vacationing with former lovers and spouses (often one and the same).'
*
Oprah Magazine *
'Siracusa starts innocuously enough, as an ironic travelogue about American sophisticates abroad...The situation begins to resemble a Ford Madox Ford novel, with each narrator recounting and interpreting the same encounters from vastly differing perspectives....As the clues pile up, the coming storm is expertly foreshadowed-but when it arrives, it's utterly surprising.'
*
Kirkus Reviews *
'The word 'unputdownable' is somewhat overused when describing a good book-but really, I just could not put this book down. Delia Ephron's Siracusa is a dark tale with incredibly well-drawn characters. It reveals the slights and secrets that can bring about chaos among friends and within families, and adds more than a spoonful of evil into the bargain. I stayed up well past my bedtime to finish.'
* Jacqueline Winspear, author of the
Maisie Dobbsnovels *
'Siracusa is dazzling. Here is Delia Ephron with a stunning noir tale of marriage and morality, as two couples tangled in secret longings and betrayals travel through Italy, along with a gimlet-eyed ten-year-old daughter who could have been created by Henry James. Beware. You will be up all night to finish. I was.'
* Marie Brenner, author of
Apples and Oranges *
'Witty, wicked tale of desire, betrayal and murder.'
*
i *
'A seductive take on marital betrayal...the secrets and lies at the heart of all relationships.'
*
Tatler *
'A brilliantly observed novel.'
*
Good Housekeeping *
'This is a delicious story, ripe for a cinematic adaptation.'
*
Bookbag *
'An unusually crackling, tricky journey into the distant land of other people's marriages... Ephron writes like a warm-blooded Patricia Highsmith.'
* Meg Wolitzer, author of
The Interestings *
'Siracusa is an Italian aria, a Greek tragedy and a modern American masterpiece written by Delia Ephron at the height of her powers...unforgettable.'
* Adriana Trigiani, author of
The Shoemaker's Daughter *
'A stunning portrait of two marriages coming unraveled during the stress of travel abroad. Insightful and engaging. A must-read!'
* Sue Grafton, author of
X *
