About the Author

Audrey Niffenegger is a writer and visual artist who lives in Chicago and London. She has published two novels, The Time Traveler's Wife and Her Fearful Symmetry, and many illustrated books including The Night Bookmobile and Raven Girl. She is currently at work on The Other Husband, a sequel to The Time Traveler's Wife, which is now an HBO series.

Reviews

"[A] gravely buoyant new novel of phantom loves and all-too-tangible fears." -- "O", the Oprah magazine

"A compelling modern-day ghost story set in and around London's atmospheric Highgate cemetery...An engrossing love story that crosses to the 'other side, ' Symmetry offers an inventive take on sibling rivalry, personal identity and what it's like to be dead." -- "People" (3 1/2 stars)

"An intriguing look at kinship and the danger of getting what you wished for." -- "Good Housekeeping"

"Bewitching...Lovers of Niffenegger's past work should rejoice... "Her Fearful Symmetry" is as atmospheric and beguiling as a walk through Highgate itself." -- Susann Cokal, "New York Times Book Review" (front page)

"Entertaining... The reader is pleasantly carried along by the author's ability to create credible characters and her instinctive narrative gifts." -- Michiko Kakutani, "New York Times"

"Following up a phenomenal blockbuster is not easy, but Niffenegger rises to the task with "Her Fearful Symmetry". Fans will find plenty of rewards in her clever ... [and] unique modern ghost story... Her descriptions transport the reader directly into a moody Victorian landscape of beauty and death... Mesmerizing... A deeply moving story filled with unforgettable characters... A beautiful testament to Niffenegger's fertile imagination and love of storytelling." -- Mary Houlihan, "Chicago Sun-Times"

"Frighteningly smart... Millions of readers who enjoyed "The Time Traveler's Wife" ... will find a similar theme in "Her Fearful Symmetry" romance that transgresses all natural barriers.... Deliciously creepy." -- Ron Charles, "Washington Post"

"Niffenegger is an extraordinarily sensitive and accomplished writer, and "Her Fearful Symmetry" is a work of lovely delicacy." -- Lev Grossman, "Time"

"Niffenegger piles on plenty of action... The book's end [is] a genuine surprise... Elspeth's death ... is moving, as is Robert's surprising immediate reaction to it... [Martin] is intricate and fascinating, especially because of Niffenegger's ability to get inside his head.... Niffenegger is especially good on the subject of twins... [She] deftly plumbs the depths of her subject, showing a profound and imaginative understanding." -- Martin Rubin, "Los Angeles Times"

"The endurance of love animates this gothic story set in and around Highgate Cemetery in London. Niffenegger's prose can be wearyingly overblown, but she has a knack for taking the romantic into the realm of creepiness, and she constructs a taut mystery around the secrets... It's no small achievement that the revelations are both organic and completely unexpected." -- "The New Yorker"

Elspeth Noblin has died of cancer and has left her London apartment to her estranged twin sister Edie's twin daughters, college-aged Julia and Valentina-with the provision that Edie never set foot in the apartment. The twins, unworldly, petite, and blonde (and oddly reminiscent of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen), claim their inheritance and meet their obsessive-compulsive neighbor, Martin, and Robert, Elspeth's shy, younger lover, who is writing a book about Highgate Cemetery (Elspeth's resting place). They eventually encounter Elspeth herself-though not, of course, in the flesh. Things take a sinister turn when their aunt plays a very nasty trick on Valentina that leaves her out of the picture, forever. Verdict The plot is unrealistic but could have been much more believable; the writing seems touched by the naOvete that radiates from the young twins. A puzzling book, like a Gorey drawing gone really icky. Fantasy lovers and lovers of The Time Traveler's Wife will want to consider. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 5/1/09.]-Barbara Hoffert, Library Journal Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information.

"[A] gravely buoyant new novel of phantom loves and all-too-tangible fears." -- "O", the Oprah magazine
"A compelling modern-day ghost story set in and around London's atmospheric Highgate cemetery...An engrossing love story that crosses to the 'other side, ' Symmetry offers an inventive take on sibling rivalry, personal identity and what it's like to be dead." -- "People" (3 1/2 stars)
"An intriguing look at kinship and the danger of getting what you wished for." -- "Good Housekeeping"
"Bewitching...Lovers of Niffenegger's past work should rejoice... "Her Fearful Symmetry" is as atmospheric and beguiling as a walk through Highgate itself." -- Susann Cokal, "New York Times Book Review" (front page)
"Entertaining... The reader is pleasantly carried along by the author's ability to create credible characters and her instinctive narrative gifts." -- Michiko Kakutani, "New York Times"
"Following up a phenomenal blockbuster is not easy, but Niffenegger rises to the task with "Her Fearful Symmetry". Fans will find plenty of rewards in her clever ... [and] unique modern ghost story... Her descriptions transport the reader directly into a moody Victorian landscape of beauty and death... Mesmerizing... A deeply moving story filled with unforgettable characters... A beautiful testament to Niffenegger's fertile imagination and love of storytelling." -- Mary Houlihan, "Chicago Sun-Times"
"Frighteningly smart... Millions of readers who enjoyed "The Time Traveler's Wife" ... will find a similar theme in "Her Fearful Symmetry" romance that transgresses all natural barriers.... Deliciously creepy." -- Ron Charles, "Washington Post"
"Niffenegger is an extraordinarily sensitive and accomplished writer, and "Her Fearful Symmetry" is a work of lovely delicacy." -- Lev Grossman, "Time"
"Niffenegger piles on plenty of action... The book's end [is] a genuine surprise... Elspeth's death ... is moving, as is Robert's surprising immediate reaction to it... [Martin] is intricate and fascinating, especially because of Niffenegger's ability to get inside his head.... Niffenegger is especially good on the subject of twins... [She] deftly plumbs the depths of her subject, showing a profound and imaginative understanding." -- Martin Rubin, "Los Angeles Times"
"The endurance of love animates this gothic story set in and around Highgate Cemetery in London. Niffenegger's prose can be wearyingly overblown, but she has a knack for taking the romantic into the realm of creepiness, and she constructs a taut mystery around the secrets... It's no small achievement that the revelations are both organic and completely unexpected." -- "The New Yorker"