Annie Macmanus
Europa Editions
9 February 2027
288
eBook - PDF
Contemporary Fiction
ARC via NetGalley
In Dublin, Carmel has built what appears to be a fulfilling life: a successful career, a comfortable home, three grown sons. Yet a year after her husband’s death, she finds herself alone in a way she never expected. The shape of her days has changed, and the future she once imagined has quietly slipped away. Then, on a dating site, she meets a widower living in London. What begins as a distraction soon becomes the brightest part of her day—a source of comfort, excitement, and possibility. For the first time in years, Carmel allows herself to imagine love again.
Hundreds of miles away in London, Lisa lives a precarious life shaped by past family trauma. She divides her days between caring for her mentally unstable sister and helping those failed by England’s broken class system. Smart, sharp, and resourceful, she understands the lengths people will go to for a second chance at hope—and will do whatever she can to make ends meet.
As the lives of the two women begin to converge, Annie Macmanus unfolds a gripping story of love and deception. Moving between Dublin and London, privilege and instability, The Fox is a novel about grief, self-invention, and the distance between people in an age of constant connection.
The Fox was a story that instantly captured my interest. As we initially follow Carmel's story, we form a bond with her even though, from the outset, we can tell that the relationship she's building is not going to be what she thinks; as readers we can spot a scam from the beginning. The twist for us comes more when Lisa steps into the narrative. I am avoiding spoilers, but it was in Part 2 when her narration commenced that I was first surprised, the truth turning out to be what I had expected on the one hand but not on the other hand. As the book moved towards its conclusion, I could see where things were going, yet I still found the ending unexpected and, because of that, perhaps also a little disappointing. Something about it left me a little unsatisfied and that is why I am giving this book 4 stars. It was an intriguing story told with plenty of emotional punch, but the conclusion didn't quite work for me; maybe others will appreciate it more.
I received this book as a free eBook ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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