PublishedPicador, June 2022 |
ISBN9781760989767 |
FormatSoftcover, 224 pages |
Dimensions23cm × 15.6cm × 1.7cm |
But Edward's new-found sobriety is both a torment and a gift. As he revisits old haunts, he is confronted by reminders of the past: ruined relationships, a stalled career as an artist and - looming over everything - the death of his beloved wife Gertrude.
Shot through with grief and dark comedy, The Diplomat is a powerful story of love and recovery - and a stark evocation of the fine line between self-destruction and redemption.
Praise for The Diplomat
'This is a gem of a novel, full of all the good stuff - love, art, failure, heartbreak - told in a clear, strong voice brimming with loss and longing. A novel of propulsive storytelling and moving depth.' - Emily Bitto
'Art, addiction and nostalgia swirl in reveries that tie London to Melbourne to the Weeping Woman heist. Edward is so heartbreakingly lost in the everyday, so doomed, that he could have risen from Dostoyevsky. Dark, touching and deeply authentic, this is Womersley at his very best.' - Jock Serong
'Threw me right back into the grimy inner-city Melbourne streets of the early 90s. Wonderful!' - Favel Parrett
'Regret and grief are some bitter pills to try wash down. To write about them with raw tenderness, with all their savage complexity, is mighty. A harsh, brave and necessary addendum to Cairo. Bravo.' - Tim Rogers
'Written close to the bone. I clutched my pearls and then rooted for the protagonist. Both harrowing and wonderful.' - Kid Congo Powers (guitarist, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds)
