A page-turner and a triumph...this book makes Beaumont's position as one of Britain's best comedy writers more permanent

An involving drama with an unexpectedly dramatic climax...this has an ingeniously constructed plot and real emotional heft

An extraordinary novel...as the compelling stories unfold, we are party to every thought and dream. It's like unravelling mysteries behind the faces you see every day on your journey to work...intriguing and compelling.

A feelgood novel about circumstance and chance encounter

Beaumont has spread his wings with Small World, ditching the out and out comedy for some sharp social analysis, but retaining his knack for a witty, punchy story

Heartfelt story of illicit love ... What's so interesting about Addonia's novel, though, is that it shows a man suffering from the consequences of the repression of women ... The frustration and loneliness he experiences living in a male-oriented world are powerfully depicted, as are the inertia, corruption and hypocrisy that flourish when morality is regulated by the state

This tale of forbidden passion is tense and provocative... Compelling

An intense and moving glimpse into a world where love is an impossible dream

Beautifully written, with an imaginative and poetic narrative style

A treat for literature lovers who appreciate complexity in their novels and aren't afraid to deal with tough topics

Harvey's novel bravely reimagines the horrors of Alzheimer's from within the ever-narrowing parameters of an architect's mind

Closer to Virginia Woolf's meditative novels than anything else I can think of

A forensic examination of loss and misunderstanding, a paean to the vital force of stories, and an incredibly moving look at a sword of Damocles that hangs over us all.

Harvey shows her remarkable powers of empathy and her no less remarkable literary skill. To write about a disordered mind is to court the danger of creating a work that is itself disordered. But from start to finish her control is absolute....I can think of few more distinguished literary debuts in recent years

Moving, convincing, adroit- it is a remarkably accomplished first novel and a beautiful jacket

Harvey's is certainly the outstanding fictional debut to have come my way this year

Intricately and delicately woven

Impressive first novel [which] plays some original tricks with narrative

An extremely gifted writer

Deeply original and captivating...The lyrical power of these shifting and competing narratives is matched by the absolute emotional realism of Jake's own desperate plight: his shame and anger and impotence are devastatingly recorded. And yet this is not a depressing novel, but rather one so full of urgent life that it rouses even as it terrifies.

Many novels have documented the trials of living with dementia, but this mind-bending debut throws us straight into the skewed recesses of a sufferer's brain... An exhilarating trip, but for the thought that this is a place some of us might visit one day.