`This dramatic, absorbing and good-natured novel abounds Greek Island atmosphere` Daily MailBeloved author Victoria Hislop returns to Crete in this long-anticipated sequel to her multi-million-copy Number One bestseller, The Island. 25th August 1957. The island of Spinalonga closes its leper colony. And a moment of violence has devastating consequences. When time stops dead for Maria Petrakis and her sister, Anna, two families splinter apart and, for the people of Plaka, the closure of Spinalonga is forever coloured with tragedy. In the aftermath, the question of how to resume life looms large. Stigma and scandal need to be confronted and somehow, for those impacted, a future built from the ruins of the past. Number one bestselling author Victoria Hislop returns to the world and characters she created in The Island - the award-winning novel that remains one of the biggest selling reading group novels of the century. It is finally time to be reunited with Anna, Maria, Manolis and Andreas in the weeks leading up to the evacuation of the island... and beyond.Discover for yourself why ten million readers worldwide love the novels of Victoria Hislop...`Immersive storytelling sweeps you along` Mail on Sunday on One August Night`Victoria Hislop`s view of history in her novels is, like the writer herself, a compassionate and generous one` Scotsman `Anyone who reads Victoria Hislop`s novels falls in love with Greece - and not just the beaches and ancient sites but with the people and their recent history` S Mag `Nobody writes about Greece quite like Victoria Hislop` Red `Brilliantly researched historical fiction` Observer `Brings Greek history to compelling life` Sunday Times `When it comes to tales about Greece, Hislop is an undisputed queen` Heat