Other People's Fun - by Harriet Lane (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Ruth is alone, unnoticed, and at a loss: her marriage has ended, her daughter is leaving home, and her job is leading nowhere. But luckily Sookie is back in her life-vivid, self-assured Sookie, who never spared the time for Ruth when they were teenagers, but who now seems to want to be friends Ruth is caught up in Sookie's life, she sees that everything is not as Instagrammable as Sookie would have you believe. As the truth about Sookie becomes clearer, so too does the choice Ruth will have to make"--

Book Synopsis

A chance encounter draws two old classmates toward an unforgettable reckoning in this "very smart and darkly funny" novel exploring power--and how it tangles with privilege, marriage, motherhood, and midlife--from the acclaimed author of Alys, Always, and Her (Flynn Berry, author of Northern Spy).

"I look. I can't stop looking. That's the deal, isn't it? We all know that's how it works. If someone wants to be seen--and oh, how they want to be seen--then someone has to watch."

Ruth is alone, unnoticed, and at a loss: her marriage has ended, her daughter is leaving home, and her job is leading nowhere.

But luckily Sookie is back in her life-vivid, self-assured Sookie, who never spared the time for Ruth when they were teenagers, but who now seems to want to be friends. But as Ruth is caught up in Sookie's life, she sees that everything is not as Instagrammable as Sookie would have you believe. As the truth about Sookie becomes clearer, so too does the choice Ruth will have to make.

Unputdownable, spiky, and subtle, Other People's Fun is a novel about modern life, from the little lies we tell our neighbors, friends, families, and ourselves to the hall of mirrors that is social media. Filled with Harriet Lane's trademark creeping unease and forensic observation, this page-turner considers how desperately we want others to see us as we are--and what happens when they finally do.

"This deliciously twisted tale is a one-sitting read steeped in tension and unease." -- Red Magazine (UK)
"If you loved Notes on a Scandal, then this is for you." --Prima (UK)

Review Quotes

"A sharply observed psychological drama about friendship and the pitfalls of social media . . . Like an influencer's feed, this is hard to look away from."--Publishers Weekly

"Biting yet entertaining. . . . It is also a contemporary fable about the role social media plays in the lives of people in a look-at-me world."--Library Journal

"Examines the gulf between how people present themselves and how others remember them. Through Ruth's sharp, often uneasy gaze, Lane explores themes of belonging, self-erasure, and the desperate desire to be seen. The result is sharp, unsettling, and quietly devastating, reminding us how much of our sense of self may be bound up in other people's fun."--Booklist

"If you loved Notes on a Scandal, then this is for you."--Prima (UK)

"In this waspishly funny, acutely perceptive novel, life hasn't gone to plan for Ruth. . . . A brilliant novel you'll want to pass on to all your friends."--Woman & Home (UK)

"This deliciously twisted tale is a one-sitting read steeped in tension and unease."--Red Magazine (UK)

"Spiky and atmospheric. A smartly-observed meditation on self-presentation and female friendships."--Sarah Harman, author of All the Other Mothers Hate Me

"Thrilling, sharp, and hugely interesting. Like Jean Rhys and Patricia Highsmith, Harriet Lane writes with a gripping, inexorable sense of tension. Other People's Fun is very smart and darkly funny, a brilliant take on displacement, envy, and artifice. I couldn't put it down."--Flynn Berry, author of Northern Spy

"Brilliant, clever, such a pleasure to read . . . Her writing is as sharp as a scalpel and her judgement is savage (this is not a criticism)."--Marian Keyes, author of My Favorite Mistake

"Chilling, witty, and unputdownable--a superb revenge drama that peels away the facades of social media."--Lissa Evans, author of Old Baggage

"The perfect lesson in backstabbing. Bitchy, sly, and twisty--what a ride."--Claire Fuller, author of The Memory of Animals

PRAISE FOR HER

"[A] meticulously observed domestic drama."--New Yorker

"[Lane] joins the ranks of a new generation of female suspense novelists...who are redefining contemporary crime fiction with character-driven narratives that defy genre conventions."--The New York Times

"The end...is perfectly executed, leaving you at the most excruciating moment possible-when a horrible thing is about to happen and there is nothing you, or any of characters, can do to stop it, save read as fast as you can until the words run out at that last, crucial moment."--Oprah.com

"Brilliant.... As the number of pages left in HER dwindles, you may find yourself wondering if Lane has given herself enough room to wrap the story up satisfactorily. Trust me, she has."--Washington Post

"Through measured prose and crisp, penetrating descriptions, Lane unfurls a chilling tale that begs you to peek at the last page-if only you could pull yourself away from the present."--Entertainment Weekly (Rated 'A')

About the Author

Harriet Lane has worked as an editor and staff writer at Tatler and the Observer. She has also written for the Guardian, Vogue and the New York Times. She is the author of two other novels, Alys, Always and Her. She lives in North London.