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The Paper Palace: The No.1 New York Times Bestseller and Reese Witherspoon Bookclub Pick
£2.80
One life changing decision: your husband or your one true love?
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On a perfect August morning, Elle Bishop heads out for a swim in the pond below ‘The Paper Palace’ – her family’s holiday home in Cape Cod. As she dives beneath the water she relives the passionate encounter she had the night before, against the side of the house that knows all her darkest secrets, while her husband and mother chatted to their guests inside…
So begins a story that unfolds over twenty-four hours and fifty years, as Elle’s shocking betrayal leads her to a life-changing decision.
A PAGE-TURNING SUMMER READ FOR FANS OF WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING AND LITTLE FIRES EVERYWHERE
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Readers have been gripped by THE PAPER PALACE:
***** ‘I devoured this book in a couple of days’
***** ‘I fell in love with the characters’
***** ‘A heart-rending love story filled with so many complications’
Sunday Times Bestseller, September 2022
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Additional information
| Publisher | Penguin (8 July 2021) |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| File size | 2661 KB |
| Text-to-Speech | Enabled |
| Screen Reader | Supported |
| Enhanced typesetting | Enabled |
| X-Ray | Enabled |
| Word Wise | Enabled |
| Sticky notes | On Kindle Scribe |
| Print length | 385 pages |
by Surbiton customer
Very easy read for a day at the beach – finished in less than 2 days. A great escape that resulted in a hideous sunburn as I got so distracted. Minus one star for the ambiguity in the ending – just wanted a touch more!!
by liam kelleher
This is the first book I’ve read by this author. I must say I really enjoyed the writing style. It was easy to ready & flowed well. However I didn’t completely like the backwards & forwards and the plot was hit & miss. The whole story revolved around one particular although admittedly traumatic event but I’m not sure it was worth reading the 300+ pages. I will add though that the characterizations were excellent & again great style. I’d love to read another by the author on a different storyline.
by Smell.that.book
This book really affected me… but in a positive way. It’s not often I read a book that makes me feel emotional purely down to the writing style alone. As an aspiring writer, this novel makes my stomach drop (in the best way) and gives me a warm feeling in my chest; it really makes you FEEL.
The character development is absolutely flawless – their personalities and unique ‘quirks’ remain consistent throughout the entire novel.
I think I’ve made it pretty clear that the writing style is right up my street! This author has a very special and incredibly unique way of thinking.
The story is raw, graphic, disturbing, full of wit, and, quite frankly, just wonderful. This novel is down to earth, humble, warm. I laughed to myself a number of times throughout the novel; the protagonist’s mother, Wallace, is the epitome of dry humour and wit.
I think the ending could be controversial, some readers may not be satisfied with it. After some reflection, I’ve decided that I like the ending. It’s realistic, and I think the author has masterfully depicted that life isn’t a fairytale, and sometimes love itself isn’t enough. And sometimes, the choices we have to make are really not ‘that simple’. Can you ever truly have what you desire in life without sacrifice?
I can’t wait to read more of the authors work!
I’m incredibly jealous that I didn’t write this novel myself.
by nicol
Recommend this book. Great story..didn’t want to put it down. Was only 99p and is one of my faves now!!
by vicki.reads.books
The Paper Palace has been likened to Where the Crawdads Sing and Little Fires Everywhere, and I would agree with that. It’s one of those books you must read, regardless of your normal reading taste (I’m a psychological thriller girl) – and it leaves you understanding more about yourself and the people around you.
This is pitched as a story about Elle, her husband Peter and her friend/lover Jonas, but it’s much more than that. It’s a story about an entire family over 50 years, and how generations of family history can influence our present.
It’s beautifully written with insights that resonated so much with me. I loved all of the characters and wanted to spend more time with them, even those who were meant to be unlikeable. The coastal setting in Cape Cod was the perfect place for the story to unfold, with the ‘Paper Palace’ house feeling like a character in its own right.
I particularly liked the ending, which has a note of ambiguity – enough to make me re-read the last section, which I felt then clarified Elle’s decision for me. It was so subtly done at the end but the clues were actually there throughout, which was very clever. It raises questions about whether our decisions are based on the moment or are actually inevitably based on everything that has come before.
Why haven’t I given this book 5 stars then you may ask? That just comes down to personal preference. I would urge anyone to read this, but for me it didn’t put Miranda Cowley Heller on my auto-buy list – the same way that I loved Little Fires Everywhere but haven’t bought another book by Celeste Ng.
by nozzy45
An easy, pleasant read. A good get lost book. Not the ending I expected but ok. Worth a read. x
by Legseleven
This story has twists and turns and kept me interested all the way through. It’s a tale about a love triangle and I didn’t guess the ending ……which part of me wished was different but that’s more about me and not the characters in the yarn.
by NorthernLights ????
Read this on holiday after I’d read Lessons in Chemistry and I found some of the abuse themes/descriptions difficult to read in this novel, especially as some of the adult abusers go unpunished which makes it almost feel accepted – this is what happens in broken families?).
It definitely has a ‘Crawdads’ feel to it, due to the setting and the main protagonist. You get a feeling of old family wealth when you read this, although it’s not really made explicit.
I also found the structure weird – how it goes back and retell the story but fills in more gaps in the different ‘sections’ – but then when reading it made sense and worked well. I feel like this would have been confusing if I’d not read it in a couple of days maybe?
The main protagonist battles with longing and desire, and the ending I had to read three time to think ‘ah right, I get it’.
Sounds like I didn’t enjoy it – I did – and I would recommend giving it a read.