Almost English

âThe multi award-winning Charlotte Mendelson is famous for whipping up the hottest, messiest family dramas a writer of literary fiction can . . . This is late Shakespeare meets Modern Family and itâs irresistibleâ â" The Times

In a tiny flat in West London, sixteen-year-old Marina lives with her emotionally delicate mother and three ancient Hungarian relatives. Imprisoned by her familyâs crushing expectations and their traditions, she knows she must escape.

At Combe Abbey, a traditional English private boarding school in the Dorset countryside, Marina realizes sheâs made a terrible mistake. Here, among the boathouses, chapel services and unspoken social hierarchy, she is the awkward half-foreign girl who doesnât know how to fit in, flirt, or even exist.

Meanwhile, her mother has her own painful secrets to deal with â" especially the surprising return of the very last man sheâd expect to see. And Marinaâs disastrous spiral at Combe Abbey is going unnoticed . . .

âA deliciously funny tale of dysfunctional families. . . Reading Mendelsonâs easy, assured prose is like sinking into something soft and velvetyâ â" Telegraph

âI read and adored Almost English . . . and now I will read everything sheâs ever written. Charlotte Mendelson is a fiendishly gifted writerâ â" Marian Keyes