Absence

. . . a reflective journey through four sisters . . . very well drawn . . . very readable book . . . pictorial . . . uses language well . . . very good let's hope another comes soon

Crystal Beavis, Radio NZ

Vier Schwestern [Absence] by Joanna King is a thoroughgoing success, clever . . . a sophisticated novel dealing with the structure of a family, full of exciting and very varied characters . . . Oh, and the language! Joanna King can write again and again about the sea and the rain without ever being boring. . . . I greatly enjoyed Vier Schwestern, and would recommend it to anyone interested in human relationships, family secrets and relations between siblings.

Inga Fröhlich, Schonhalbelf blog, Hamburg

Although the central theme of this at times truly enthralling book appears to be the tensions between the sisters, the greater focus for me was the experience of abandoning and being abandoned. Each of the four protagonists and those around them have been forsaken, all have reacted differently and carry with them their unhealed injuries. It was a pleasure to read this stylistically accomplished novel, and I would recommend it to anyone wanting to enjoy the picturesque landscape of the Cinque Terre, to immerse themselves in the dynamics of human relationships and to contemplate the many interesting reflections. And who doesn’t expect every thread of fate to be tied up at the end.

Barbara Busch, mit-büchern-um-die-welt (around-the-world-with-books)

This exceptional novel . . . is like an intimate theatre play . . . Numerous questions are set up in the book, which is narrated in a style that is calm but full of suspense and at times very poetic . . . For me Vier Schwestern [Absence] is a wonderful novel that stimulated reflection . . . and which takes the reader on a journey of all the senses. Definitely recommended!

Isabel Fredriksson, Seitenwandler