Here’s the perfect recipe for mischief: Take one sexually
neglected woman and one dashing, romantic foreigner
(with a delectable accent). Add a craving for adventure
plus a few drops of heady desire . . . then stand back,
because in Olivia Lichtenstein’s sparkling and sharply
observed comedy of lust, longing, and marital unrest,
this mix proves to be deliciously volatile.
Chloe Zhivago has it all: a successful career, two
teenage children who still speak to her, a faithful best
buddy, a Famous Friend from hell (so decadently self-
indulgent that one can’t help but admire her and hate
her at the same time), and Greg, her husband of
seventeen years, a family-practice doctor who has the
annoying habit of hiding the teakettle (to keep his
memory sharp) and who occupies his time writing letters
to the parking commission.
And then it suddenly hits her. Is this all there is? When
did wild weekends of passion become nights of chaste
kisses and snoring to wake the dead? Will she ever
savor sweet whispers of desire, or knowing glances filled
with longing? What happens when the kids leave the
nest but the husband stays behind?
Enter Ivan. Married but questing and quixotic, he
proffers notes of seduction written in Russian
(necessitating awkward pleas for translation from a
nearby shopkeeper) and lures Chloe to the precipice of
one glorious, fortuitous fling. Does she dare?
This wonderfully funny, sexy novel asks a vital question–
how do you keep love alive in a marriage?–and answers
it with poignancy and pure irresistible comedy.
neglected woman and one dashing, romantic foreigner
(with a delectable accent). Add a craving for adventure
plus a few drops of heady desire . . . then stand back,
because in Olivia Lichtenstein’s sparkling and sharply
observed comedy of lust, longing, and marital unrest,
this mix proves to be deliciously volatile.
Chloe Zhivago has it all: a successful career, two
teenage children who still speak to her, a faithful best
buddy, a Famous Friend from hell (so decadently self-
indulgent that one can’t help but admire her and hate
her at the same time), and Greg, her husband of
seventeen years, a family-practice doctor who has the
annoying habit of hiding the teakettle (to keep his
memory sharp) and who occupies his time writing letters
to the parking commission.
And then it suddenly hits her. Is this all there is? When
did wild weekends of passion become nights of chaste
kisses and snoring to wake the dead? Will she ever
savor sweet whispers of desire, or knowing glances filled
with longing? What happens when the kids leave the
nest but the husband stays behind?
Enter Ivan. Married but questing and quixotic, he
proffers notes of seduction written in Russian
(necessitating awkward pleas for translation from a
nearby shopkeeper) and lures Chloe to the precipice of
one glorious, fortuitous fling. Does she dare?
This wonderfully funny, sexy novel asks a vital question–
how do you keep love alive in a marriage?–and answers
it with poignancy and pure irresistible comedy.
| 'Olivia Lichtenstein's first novel is full to bursting with good things ... [her] writing is succinct, witty and often funny enough to make you hoot unbecomingly on public transport. ... accomplished, enjoyable and surprisingly moral fable.' INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY |
| 'Mrs Zhivago is like a script for the perfect comedy drama. And, reading between the jokes and comic situations, there's a real message about what keeps a marriage alive.' FIRST |
| 'Both poignant and and darkly amusing, we heartily recommend.' IRISH TATLER |
| Mrs Zhivago of Queens Park |
Things Your Mother Never Told You
Olivia Lichtenstein
A sharp, funny and deliciously entertaining follow up to Olivia's acclaimed,
award-winning debut MRS ZHIVAGO OF QUEEN'S PARK
'I hate you. When I'm a mother, I'm never going to be like you...'
These words come back to haunt Ros, years later. As her marriage of twenty
years collapses and her beloved twin sons prepare to flee the nest, Ros's
world is tilting on its axis. It doesn't help that her dead mother seems to have
taken up residence in her head, reminding her of things she once said.
As Ros tries to adapt to sharing custody of the family dog and life without her
husband and boys in the house, she embarks on a new regime to stay sane:
yoga, herbal remedies, internet dating. But as Ros is trying to find herself,
the arrival of a memoir her mother wrote begins to reveal a woman she never
knew, taking her on a journey into her mother's past that will change forever
her idea of who she is.
A sharp, funny and touching novel about the secrets mothers and daughters
keep from each other.
Olivia Lichtenstein
A sharp, funny and deliciously entertaining follow up to Olivia's acclaimed,
award-winning debut MRS ZHIVAGO OF QUEEN'S PARK
'I hate you. When I'm a mother, I'm never going to be like you...'
These words come back to haunt Ros, years later. As her marriage of twenty
years collapses and her beloved twin sons prepare to flee the nest, Ros's
world is tilting on its axis. It doesn't help that her dead mother seems to have
taken up residence in her head, reminding her of things she once said.
As Ros tries to adapt to sharing custody of the family dog and life without her
husband and boys in the house, she embarks on a new regime to stay sane:
yoga, herbal remedies, internet dating. But as Ros is trying to find herself,
the arrival of a memoir her mother wrote begins to reveal a woman she never
knew, taking her on a journey into her mother's past that will change forever
her idea of who she is.
A sharp, funny and touching novel about the secrets mothers and daughters
keep from each other.
Olivia talks about her
latest book; Things
Your Mother Never
Told You
latest book; Things
Your Mother Never
Told You
| 'A bittersweet comedy about secrets between mother and daughter.' (SAINSBURY'S MAGAZINE ) |
'Lichtenstein is a fine writer ... if
you recognise the sentiment
behind the words 'I hate you.
When I'm a mother, I'm never
going to be like you...' then you
will adore this funny, touching
tale.' (Paul Blezard THE LADY )
you recognise the sentiment
behind the words 'I hate you.
When I'm a mother, I'm never
going to be like you...' then you
will adore this funny, touching
tale.' (Paul Blezard THE LADY )
'A moving tale told
with humour and
warmth' (BELLA )
with humour and
warmth' (BELLA )
'A witty, fluent writer,
Lichtenstein deftly moves
between mother and daughter,
Cape Town and Shepherds
Bush. This of-the-moment
comedy puts the world to
rights in the way good popular
fiction can.' (THE
INDEPENDENT )
Lichtenstein deftly moves
between mother and daughter,
Cape Town and Shepherds
Bush. This of-the-moment
comedy puts the world to
rights in the way good popular
fiction can.' (THE
INDEPENDENT )
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