A young Englishwoman attempts to make a new life for her children in California, only to be haunted by their difficult past in this “exquisite new novel” (New York Post).
Lucy has always had a volatile marriage of frequent splits and reconciliations. So when she takes her two young children, May and Eden, and walks out on her husband, no one expects it will be for good. Until she flees England for America.
Arriving in California, Lucy, May, and Eden begin to believe that this sunbathed new country might offer them a better life. But when they settle into the Parvati Ashram, what first seemed idyllic threatens to sever their already tenuous family ties.
Like most outsiders, May views the ashram as a cult, but her mother sees it as a place of healing and salvation. As Lucy is taken deeper into the confidence of their leader, May’s initial defenses are broken down by her friendship with the manipulative proselyte, Sati. Thoughts of England slowly fade, but when blind faith challenges human decency, the family’s loyalties face the ultimate test.
Galaxy Craze, author of the acclaimed novel By the Shore, creates “a meditation on a disintegrating family” (Los Angeles Times) and a “perfect yarn for anyone riveted by the religious cult action now dominating the headlines” (Marie Claire).
“A page-turner . . . Craze writes the sort of direct, dry-eyed prose that elevates even the most mundane events into carefully observed drama.” —Time Out New York
“A skillfully rendered, bittersweet family portrait.” —New York Post
“[Craze] gives May a delicate, distinctive voice. . . . [Here] the trials of adolescence don’t stand a chance against the absurdity of grown-ups.” —Kirkus Reviews
