Possession - (Vintage International) by A S Byatt (Paperback)

About the Book

Winner of England's Booker Prize, a coast-to-coast bestseller, and the literary sensation of the year, Possession is a novel of wit and romance, at once an intellectual mystery and a triumphant love story. Revolving around a pair of young scholars researching the lives of two Victorian poets, Byatt creates a haunting counterpoint of passion and ideas.

Book Synopsis

BOOKER PRIZE WINNER - NATIONAL BESTSELLER - A tale of two young scholars researching the secret love affair of two Victorian poets that's an exhilarating novel of wit and romance, an intellectual mystery, and a triumphant love story. "Gorgeously written ... A tour de force." --The New York Times Book Review

Winner of England's Booker Prize and a literary sensation, Possession traces the lives of a pair of young academics as they uncover a clandestine relationship between two long-dead Victorian poets. As they unearth their letters, journals, and poems, and track their movements from London to Yorkshire--from spiritualist séances to the fairy-haunted far west of Brittany--what emerges is an extraordinary counterpoint of passions and ideas.

Review Quotes

"Gorgeously written ... dazzling ... a tour de force." --The New York Times Book Review

"What a book! This is a novel for every taste.... An altogether magical performance." --The Washington Post Book World

"A masterpiece of wordplay and adventure, a novel that compares with Stendhal and Joyce." --Los Angeles Times Book Review

"A genuine winner ... original and unforgettable." --Time

"The most dazzling novel of the year." --USA Today

About the Author

A. S. Byatt was the author of numerous novels, including The Children's Book, The Biographer's Tale, and Possession, which was awarded the Booker Prize. She also wrote two novellas, published together as Angels & Insects, five collections of short stories, and several works of nonfiction. A distinguished critic and author, and the recipient of the 2016 Erasmus Prize for her "inspiring contribution to 'life writing, '" she died in 2023.