Summer, 1972: In the claustrophobic heat, eleven-year-old Byron and his friend begin ‘Operation Perfect’, a hapless mission to rescue Byron’s mother from impending crisis.
Winter, present day: As frost creeps across the moor, Jim cleans tables in the local café, a solitary figure struggling with OCD. His job is a relief from the rituals that govern his nights.
Little would seem to connect them except that two seconds can change everything.
And if your world can be shattered in an instant, can time also put it right?
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Praise for Perfect
‘A near-flawless novel of emotional truth. Joyce executes this story with precision and flair… Its unputdownable factor lies in its exploration of so many multilayered emotions… It is her clever did-I-read-that-right twist at the end that really got to me and had me scrabbling back through the chapters, open-mouthed.’ Evening Standard
‘The power of Joyce’s prose lies in small, astute observations… [her] subtle touches give the book an intense, slightly mesmeric feel. Tense and engrossing… readers who loved The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry will not be disappointed.’ Sunday Times
‘Diana herself is faultless. She is to Perfect what Harold Fry was to [The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry]: a fully rounded hero, someone to fall in love with and argue about, cherish and admonish, as though she were real… If only there were more novelists like Rachel Joyce’ Telegraph
‘Brilliantly realized… a powerful study of grief, loss, guilt, depression, mental illness – and ultimately the power of love – which grips the reader on every page.’ Daily Mail