Quite contrary - Suzannah Dunn

The award-winning debut novel from the author of Venus Flaring and Tenterhooks.

Elizabeth, a young, overworked hospital doctor, gets a phone call from her father late on a Friday night telling her that her mother is dangerously ill. Over the course of the weekend that follows, Elizabeth, on duty as ever and confronting the barely controlled chaos of a busy casualty ward, finds moments to reminisce about her childhood, its joys and its miseries. Past and present are interwoven in a series of vivid tableaux, drawing the reader into an intimate understanding of Elizabeth's life as a whole.

Suzannah Dunn is the author of eight previous books of fiction: Darker Days Than Usual, Blood Sugar, Past Caring, Quite Contrary, Venus Flaring, Tenterhooks, Commencing Our Descent and most recently Queen of Subtleties. She lives in Shropshire.

'In this vivid picture of "normal" life, Dunn's Elizabeth, the oldest of three sisters, is a witty, down-to-earth female whom you really care for. Quite Contrary isn't a weepy slice of bedtime reading, it's a well-observed chapter on growing up - and it proves a touching and remarkably unpredictable read.'
Time Out