From the author of Mayflies, an irresistible, unputdownable, state-of-the-nation novel - the story of one man's epic fall from grace.

'Extraordinary.' MARINA HYDE
'Pitch-perfect.' OBSERVER
'An utter joy to read.' MONICA ALI
'Majestic.' INDEPENDENT
'A masterpiece.' JOHN LANCHESTER
'Addictively enjoyable.' GUARDIAN
'Sensational.' IRISH INDEPENDENT

A SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
SHORTLISTED FOR THE ORWELL PRIZE FOR POLITICAL FICTION

He always knew: when his life came tumbling down, it would occur in public.

May 2021. London.

Campbell Flynn - art historian and celebrity pundit - is entering the empire of middle age. Fuelled by an appetite for admiration and the finer things, con-troversy and novelty, he doesn't take people half as seriously as they take themselves. Which will prove the first of his huge mistakes.

The second? Milo Mangasha, his beguiling and provocative student. Milo in-habits a more precarious world, has experiences and ideas which excite his teacher. He also has a plan.

Over the course of an incendiary year, a web of crimes and secrets and scan-dals will be revealed, and Campbell Flynn may not be able to protect himself from the shattering exposure of all his privilege really involves. But then, he always knew: when his life came tumbling down, it would occur in public.

Details

ISBN13: 9780571381371
Format: Paperback / softback
Number of Pages: 656
Edition: Main
Publication Date: 03 Jun 2025
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Publication City, Country: London, United Kingdom
Dimensions (cm): 19.8(H)x12.9(L)
Weight (gm):

Author Biography

Andrew O'Hagan was born in Glasgow. He has been nominated for the Booker Prize, was voted one of Granta's Best of Young British Novelists in 2003, and won the E. M. Forster Prize from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He is Editor-at-Large of the London Review of Books and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

Reviews

'A brilliant state-of-the-nation novel that pulls down the facades of high society, and knocks over the 'good liberal' house-of-cards. O'Hagan is not only a peerless chronicler of our times, but has other gifts - of generosity, humour and tenderness - which make this novel an utter joy to read.', Monica Ali

'With this new two-fisted, triple-decker, four-on-the floor magnum opus O'Hagan has made more than a great book - he has made a social miracle.', Joshua Cohen