Instances of the Number 3 - by Salley Vickers (Paperback)

About the Book

Following the death of Peter Hansome, his wife Bridget is contacted by Frances Slater, her late-husband's mistress. In a subtly wrought turn of events, Bridget and Frances discover that what they have in common is their parallel memories of Peter and the shared reality of his spirit form, haunting them still.

Book Synopsis

Following the death of Peter Hansome, his wife Bridget is contacted by Frances Slater, her late-husband's mistress. Though the two are from opposite sides of London and meet under the least desirable circumstances, the women become close friends. In a subtly wrought turn of events, Bridget and Frances discover that they have in common what is important to them most: their parallel memories of Peter, killed in a car accident, and the shared reality of his spirit form, haunting them still. A gracefully tuned feat of the imagination, Salley Vickers's novel is a rare celebration of life's most intriguing geometries, the love triangle.

Review Quotes

"Entertains even as it considers serious questions of sin and redemption, love and loss, what we venture in this life and the reckonings we may face in the great beyond." --Francine Prose, People

"A book to place on the shelf next to Marilynne Robinson's haunting Housekeeping and Penelope Fitzgerald's serene The Blue Flower....Harold Bloom once observed that a sense of strangeness in a work of art was one likely sign of greatness. Instances of the Number 3 possesses such an utterly assured, if quiet originality." --Michael Dirda, Crisis

"A comedy of manners and a ghost story...Thoroughly entertaining." --Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

"A testament to the craftiness and generosity of spirit of the author, whom one hopes to hear from much more." --The Seattle Times

About the Author

Salley Vickers's novels, Instances of the Number 3 and Miss Garnet's Angel, have been bestsellers in England. She divides her time between London and Bath