What We Can Know

*A WATERSTONES PAPERBACK OF THE YEAR 2026*

The breathtaking new novel from Ian McEwan

‘A thumping literary mystery’ Independent
‘A gripping page-turner’ Observer
‘A beautiful novel, full of wisdom and heart. I loved it’ Elif Shafak

2014: A poem is read aloud once then vanishes without a trace.

2119: A century later, the seas have risen and the world is under water. Those who remain are haunted by what’s been lost – and what might still be found.

When university scholar Tom Metcalfe stumbles across a clue that may lead to the great lost poem, he reveals a story of entangled love and a brutal crime that challenges everything he thought he knew about the past…

READERS LOVE WHAT WE CAN KNOW:
‘Fantastic…a book I will treasure forever’
‘Brilliant, gripping, fascinating’
‘Makes you question everything you think you know’
‘A beautiful exploration of memory and love’
‘What a book. Utterly absorbing’

‘Rewarding and thought-provoking’ Financial Times

‘A master storyteller’ The Times

‘It gave me so much pleasure’ New York Times

‘Haunting, playful and ultimately hopeful… A wonderful book’ Kaliane Bradley

*A BOOK OF THE YEAR for the Sunday Times, Guardian, New York Times, New Statesman, Spectator, New Yorker, i Paper and Barack Obama*