We’re very excited to welcome Tan Twan Eng, the Man Booker Prize-shortlisted author of The Garden of Evening Mists, to celebrate the release of his newest novel The House of Doors.
It is 1921 and at Cassowary House in the Straits Settlements of Penang, well-to-do lawyer Robert Hamlyn and his steely wife Lesley receive a visit from an old friend: Willie Somerset Maugham, one of the greatest writers of his day.
But beleaguered by an unhappy marriage, ill-health and business interests that have gone badly awry, Willie is struggling to write. As he prepares to leave and face his demons, Lesley confides secrets of her own, including her relationship with the charismatic Chinese revolutionary Dr Sun Yat Sen and, more scandalous still, her connection to the case of an Englishwoman charged with murder in Kuala Lumpur – a tragedy drawn from fact, and worthy of fiction.
Based on real events The House of Doors is a drama of love and betrayal under the shadow of Empire.
We hope you will join us, and Tan Twan Eng, Tuesday 16th May at FORUM Books, The Chapel, Corbridge.
Doors will be open from 7pm for a 7.30pm start.
Tickets are available now and include a welcome drink on arrival.
Click / tap here for tickets.
