A God In Ruins

"A grown-up, elegant fairy tale, at least of a kind, with a humane vision of people in all their complicated splendour."  -  Kirkus Reviews

"He had been reconciled to death during the war and then suddenly the war was over and there was a next day and a next day. Part of him never adjusted to having a future." 

Kate Atkinson's dazzling Life After Life explored the possibility of infinite chances and the power of choices, following Ursula Todd as she lived through the turbulent events of the last century over and over again. A God In Ruins tells the dramatic story of the 20th Century through Ursula's beloved younger brother Teddy - would-be poet, heroic pilot, husband, father, and grandfather - as he navigates the perils and progress of a rapidly changing world. After all that Teddy endures in battle, his greatest challenge is living in a future he never expected to have. 

"In A God in Ruins, she’s written not only a companion to her earlier book, but a novel that takes its place in the line of powerful works about young men and war… [it] contains many... harrowing scenes, rendered in economical detail and occasional black humour. Atkinson’s skills as a suspense writer serve her well here: It’s not till the final pages of the novel that we learn who makes it through the war and who doesn’t."  -  Maureen Corrigan, The Washington Post

An ingenious and moving exploration of one ordinary man's path through extraordinary times, A God In Ruins proves once again that Kate Atkinson is one of the finest novelists of our age.

Longlisted for the 2016 Women's Prize For Fiction