Restless

Bloomsbury presents Restless by William Boyd, read by Rosamund Pike.

READ BY ROSAMUND PIKE

CHOSEN FOR THE DUCHESS OF CORNWALL'S READING ROOM BOOK CLUB

'Eva Delectorskaya,' I said mystified. ' Who's that?'

'Me,' she said. 'I am Eva Delectorskaya.'

What happens to your life when everything you thought you knew about your mother turns out to be an elaborate lie? During the long, hot summer of 1976, Ruth Gilmartin discovers that her very English mother Sally is really Eva Delectorskaya, a Russian émigré and one-time spy.

In 1939 Eva is a beautiful twenty-eight year old living in Paris. As war breaks out, she is recruited for the British Secret Service by Lucas Romer, a mysterious, patrician Englishman. Under his tutelage she learns to become the perfect spy, to mask her emotions and trust no one. Even those she loves most.

Since then Eva has carefully rebuilt her life – but once a spy, always a spy. Ruth discovers her mother has one final assignment. This time, though, Eva can't do it alone: she needs Ruth's help.

Restless is a tour de force from William Boyd. Exploring the devastating consequences of duplicity and betrayal it is a gripping novel that captures the drama of the Second World War and a remarkable portrait of a female spy. Full of suspense, emotion and history, this is storytelling at its very finest.