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A Class Apart
A Class Apart
May 11, 2025 8:12 PM

Author:Diana Appleyard

A Class Apart

Class? It doesn't exist any more, so we're told. We're not supposed to be conscious of subtle class differences. We no longer look down on people because of their accents, their education or the car they drive. Or do we?

Lucy Beresford knows her middle-class family thinks she's married beneath her when she gets together with the devastatingly sexy Rob. He's gorgeous, he's thoughtful, he's clever - but he's undeniably working class. Her parents cannot believe that she would choose him above Max, her so-suitable former boyfriend - who is truly one of us. Gradually the differences between Rob and Lucy - at first so unimportant - begin to loom large, as they argue over how the house should be decorated, how the children should be educated, and whether the evening meal should be called 'dinner' or 'tea'.

In this funny, contentious and brilliantly observed novel, Diana Appleyard scratches the surface to reveal the petty snobberies which still exist in most of us, and which make Rob and Lucy...A Class Apart.Class? It doesn't exist any more, so we're told. We're not supposed to be conscious of subtle class differences. We no longer look down on people because of their accents, their education or the car they drive. Or do we?Lucy Beresford knows her middle-class family thinks she's married beneath her when she gets together with the devastatingly sexy Rob. He's gorgeous, he's thoughtful, he's clever - but he's undeniably working class. Her parents cannot believe that she would choose him above Max, her so-suitable former boyfriend - who is truly one of us. Gradually the differences between Rob and Lucy - at first so unimportant - begin to loom large, as they argue over how the house should be decorated, how the children should be educated, and whether the evening meal should be called 'dinner' or 'tea'.In this funny, contentious and brilliantly observed novel, Diana Appleyard scratches the surface to reveal the petty snobberies which still exist in most of us, and which make Rob and Lucy...A Class Apart.

Reviews

A light and entertaining read with likeable characters

—— Woman's Own

Combining the best elements of a spy thriller, heroic fantasy and Elizabethan mystery, Chadbourn deftly mixes gruesome brutality, a shadowy world of plots and counter-plots and a vivid cast of characters...creates an alternate reality as tangible and authentic as the history we think we know...In a year of outstanding fantasies, The Sword of Albion may just be one of the best so far.

—— Monsters and Critics

Gets off to a smashing start. The historical detail sets a believable backdrop, and the main character, a spy, could pass for a fantastical James Bond. Chadbourn sets a fast pace, pitting his characters against supernatural threats with a bit of horror thrown in.

—— RT Book Reviews

While comparisons with Irvine Welsh are perhaps inevitable, Russ Litten has raised the bar in the genre of writing about ordinary people with extraordinary lives...January is never a good time to talk about favourite books of the year but it's hard to think Russ Litten's invigorating debut will be beaten.

—— Allison Cogan , Hull Daily Mail

A gem. Terse, truthful, and teeming with good old Yorkshire lyricism - Russ Litten effortlessly spins together the disparate lives of his characters, like the sharpest, bittersweet candy floss.'

—— Richard Milward, author of Apples and Ten Storey Love Song

A novel which offers a real slice of contemporary UK life. Litten might just be this city's Roddy Doyle... upplies both laughs and touching moments in equal measure

—— Nick Quantrill , Hull Daily Mail
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