Maurice and Maralyn

No one finds the wit, warmth and mischief in a story quite like Sophie Elmhirst. I will read anything she writes

HELEN LEWIS, author of Difficult Women

This is a survival story of relentless power, an epic of human resourcefulness, and of the emotional toll taken at last by suffering’s extremity

COLIN THUBRON

An exciting, fast-paced, terrifying adventure story, and at the same time a slow, gentle commentary on love

ALEXANDER MASTERS, author of Stuart: a Life Backwards

Much of human life is contained in this beautiful, moving book about two people cut off from everything but each other

LARISSA MACFARQUHAR, author of Strangers Drowning

This dramatic, profound human story is so beautifully told in calm, thoughtful, perfectly judged prose. I really could not put it down

NINA STIBBE, author of Love, Nina

Extraordinary . . . Elmhirst is a terrific writer

ELIZABETH DAY

An absolute jewel of a book. I can’t stop thinking about it

INDIA KNIGHT, author of Darling

An extraordinary account

Guardian, *Books to Look Out For 2024*

Electrifying . . . a tender portrait of two unconventional souls blithely defying the conventions of their era and making a break for freedom

Fiona Sturges, Guardian

A compelling book about a shipwreck, but also as thoughtful a tale about marriage, for better and worse, as you are likely to read

Tim Adams, Observer

A gripping story of survival at sea and a haunting account of the yearning to escape . . . It hasn’t left my mind since I finished it

OLIVER BURKEMAN

A beautiful, searing book -- a miniature epic of seafaring and survival with an unbreakable, unusual love story at its heart

SAM KNIGHT, author of The Premonitions Bureau

I turned each page with my heart in my mouth

FRANCESCA SEGAL, author of Mothership

An extraordinary survival story… Elmhirst’s reconstruction of their ordeal is riveting, told in illuminating detail

Francesca Angelini, Sunday Times

A quirky, thrilling and moving tale of a love which proved stronger than starvation, dehydration and the mighty Pacific

Peter Carty

A gripping tale of maritime catastrophe but also of marriage

India Knight, Sunday Times

With its period detail and softly poetic prose, the book melds together the sweet conjugal bonds of a quirky pair with the adrenaline kick of Jaws… It is a remarkable portrait of a marriage kept afloat against the odds

Christian House, Financial Times

What an astonishing story. And what a sublime piece of writing

JULIET NICOLSON, author of A House Full of Daughters

An unlikely love story wrapped in a dramatic adventure

Waitrose

An amazing tale of survival . . . reminds me how incredibly hard it is to find love out there in the world

Tracey Thorn, New Statesman

An epic story of adventure and survival

Daily Express

Superb… Elmhirst is good at evoking an era that feels both familiar and like deep history… you really do hang on to her every word

Maggie Fergusson, Spectator

A beautiful, brilliant book, an exquisitely written piece of non-fiction that reads like a great novel

RORY CELLAN-JONES

Never sentimental and perfectly paced, this is the best sort of story: a true one

Economist

[A] fascinating biography

Yours

Maurice and Maralyn somehow contrives to be both gripping and elegiac. Sophie Elmhirst's graceful, confident prose is novelistic in its pleasures and profoundly moving in its impact

KALIANE BRADLEY, author of The Ministry of Time

A beautiful meditation on endurance, codependence, and the power of love. A dazzling book

PATRICK RADDEN KEEFE, author of Empire of Pain

Maurice and Maralyn is a very accomplished bit of writing. I am not drawn to adventurers and explorers but this skilful storytelling drew me in. The scenes in the life raft were very touching indeed

JAMES REBANKS

A gripping true story of love and survival against the odds

Carl Wilkinson, Financial Times

Immersive, insightful and beautifully written – I loved this book from first page to last

JOE DUNTHORNE

Genuinely unputdownable

Nina Stibbe, Guardian, *Summer Reads of 2024*

Both a nail-biting adventure story and a somehow even more compelling journey into the hidden dramas of marriage

Oliver Burkeman, Guardian, *Summer Reads of 2024*

A riveting adventure as well as a compelling examination of a marriage. Genuinely unputdownable

Good Housekeeping, *Summer Reads of 2024*

Never sentimental and perfectly paced, this book tells the best sort of love story: a true one

Economist, *Summer Reads of 2024*

Thought-provoking…compelling…tender… An ideal gift for a friend or family who likes incredible true stories of survival. But it’s also a book about love and hubris. And in that sense, it’s a book for us all.

PANDORA SYKES