It seems like mutual good luck for Abigail Taylor and Dara MacLeod when they meet at St. Andrews University and, despite their differences, become fast friends. Years later they remain an unlikely pair. Abigail, an actress who confidently uses her charms both on- and offstage, believes herself immune to love. Dara, a counselor, is convinced that everyone is inescapably marked by childhood; she throws herself into romantic relationships with frightening intensity. Yet now each seems to have found "true love"—another stroke of luck?—Abigail with her academic boyfriend, Sean, and Dara with a tall, dark violinist named Edward, who literally falls at her feet. But soon after Dara moves into Abigail's downstairs apartment, trouble threatens both relationships, and their friendship.
For Abigail it comes in the form of an anonymous letter to Sean claiming that she's been unfaithful; for Dara, a reconciliation with her distant father, Cameron, who left the family when Dara was ten, reawakens complicated feelings. Through four ingeniously interlocking narratives—Sean's, Cameron's, Dara's, and Abigail's—we gradually understand how these characters' lives are shaped by both chance and determination. Whatever the source, there is no mistaking the tragedy that strikes the house on Fortune Street.
"Everyone," claims Abigail, "has a book or a writer who's the key to their life." As this statement reverberates through each of the narratives, Margot Livesey skillfully reveals how luck—good and bad—plays a vital role in our lives, and how the search for truth can prove a dangerous undertaking. Written with her characteristic elegance and wit, The House on Fortune Street offers a surprisingly provocative detective story of the heart.

The House on Fortune Street: A Novel

Literature & Fiction

LIVESEY, Margot

Literary

Harper

It seems like mutual good luck for Abigail Taylor and Dara MacLeod when they meet at university and, despite their differences, become fast friends. Years later they remain inseparable: Abigail, the actress, allegedly immune to romance, and Dara, a therapist, throwing herself into relationships with frightening intensity. Now both believe they've found "true love." But luck seems to run out when Dara moves into Abigail's downstairs apartment. Suddenly both their friendship and their relationships are in peril, for tragedy is waiting to strike the house on Fortune Street. Told through four ingeniously interlocking narratives, Margot Livesey's The House on Fortune Street is a provocative tale of lives shaped equally by chance and choice.

United States

Harper-perennial

Harper Large Print

The resonant story of a young woman’s struggle to take charge of her own future, The Flight of Gemma Hardy is a modern take on a classic story—Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre—that will fascinate readers of the Gothic original and fans of modern literary fiction alike, with its lyrical prose, robust characters, and abundant compassion. Set in early 1960s Scotland, this breakout novel from award-winning author Margot Livesey is a tale of determination and spirit that, like The Three Weissmanns of Westport and A Thousand Acres, spins an unforgettable new story from threads of our shared, still-living literary past. 
“Gemma is real—it’s as simple as that. And through her eyes we see step by step what it means . . . to take possession of one’s own life.” —David Wroblewski, author of The Story of Edgar Sawtelle

The Flight of Gemma Hardy

British & Irish

The Flight of Gemma Hardy: A Novel

A Seattle Times Best Book of the Year • A BookPage Best Book of the Year • A Kirkus Best Fiction Book of the Year
The New York Times bestselling author of “brilliantly paced contemporary adventure” (Elle) delivers her most gripping novel yet—at once a tense, psychological drama and a taut emotional thriller about love, obsession, and the deceits that pull a family apart.
Donald believes he knows all there is to know about seeing. An optometrist in suburban Boston, he is sure that he and his wife, Viv, who runs the local stables, are both devoted to their two children and to each other. Then Mercury—a gorgeous young thoroughbred with a murky past—arrives at Windy Hill and everything changes.
Mercury’s owner, Hilary, is a newcomer to town who has enrolled her daughter in riding lessons. When she brings Mercury to board at Windy Hill, everyone is struck by his beauty and prowess, particularly Viv. As she rides him, Viv begins to dream of competing again, embracing the ambitions that she had harbored, and relinquished, as a young woman. Her daydreams soon morph into consuming desire, and her infatuation with the thoroughbred escalates to obsession.
Donald may have 20/20 vision but he is slow to notice how profoundly Viv has changed and how these changes threaten their quiet, secure world. By the time he does, it is too late to stop the catastrophic collision of Viv’s ambitions and his own myopia.
At once a tense psychological drama and a taut emotional thriller exploring love, obsession, and the deceits that pull a family apart, Mercury is a riveting tour de force that showcases this “searingly intelligent writer at the height of her powers” (Jennifer Egan).

Mercury: A Novel

Donald believes he knows all there is to know about seeing. An optometrist in suburban Boston, he is sure that he and his wife, Viv, who runs the local stables, are both devoted to their two children and to each other. Then Mercury—a gorgeous young Thoroughbred with a murky past—arrives at Windy Hill and their world changes.
Everyone at the stables is struck by Mercury’s beauty and prowess, particularly Viv. As she rides him, she begins to dream of competing again, reigniting the ambitions that she pursued, and reluctantly relinquished, as a young woman. Her daydreams soon morph into consuming desire, and her infatuation with the Thoroughbred escalates to obsession.
Donald may have 20/20 vision, but he is slow to notice how profoundly Viv has changed. By the time he does, it is too late to stop the catastrophic collision of Viv’s ambitions and his own myopia.

Perennial

Donald believes he knows all there is to know about seeing. An optometrist in suburban Boston, he is sure that he and his wife, Viv, who runs the local stables, are devoted to their two children and to each other. Then Mercury—a gorgeous young thoroughbred with a murky past—arrives at Windy Hill and everything changes. 
Everyone at the stables is struck by Mercury’s beauty and prowess, particularly Viv. As she rides him, she begins to dream of competing again, embracing the ambitions that she had harbored, and relinquished, as a young woman. Her daydreams soon morph into consuming desire, and her infatuation with the thoroughbred escalates to obsession. 
Donald may have 20/20 vision but he is slow to notice how profoundly Viv has changed. By the time he does, it is too late to stop the catastrophic collision of Viv’s ambitions and his own myopia.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by LIVESEY, Margot. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by LIVESEY, Margot

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by LIVESEY, Margot. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

The House on Fortune Street: A Novel

The House on Fortune Street: A Novel

The House on Fortune Street: A Novel

The Flight of Gemma Hardy

The Flight of Gemma Hardy: A Novel

The Flight of Gemma Hardy: A Novel

Mercury: A Novel

Mercury: A Novel

Mercury: A Novel

Mercury: A Novel