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Recently longlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction 2013, a stunning debut novel and international bestseller about a lighthouse keeper and his wife who face a life-changing moral dilemma.

About the Author

M L Stedman was born and raised in Western Australia and now lives in London. This is her first novel. THE LIGHT BETWEEN OCEANS was a New York Times Top Ten bestseller and is being published in thirty-three territories to date. Film rights have been sold in a major deal to Spielberg's Dreamworks. It is also the winner of the 2013 Indie Book of the Year in Australia. Find out more at www.Facebook.com/thelightbetweenoceans

Reviews

"A love story that is both persuasive and tender" The Sunday Times "A description of the extraordinary, sustaining power of a marriage to bind two people together in love, through the most emotionally harrowing circumstances" Daily Mail "A spectacularly sure storyteller ... Reading The Light Between Oceans is a total-immersion experience, extraordinarily moving." -- Monica Ali, Author Of Brick Lane "An extraordinary and heart-rending book about good people, tragic decisions, and the beauty found in each of them" -- Markus Zusak, Author Of "The Book Thief" "What an extraordinary book... as inevitable as Hardy at his most doom-laden. And as unforgettable" Guardian

In Stedman's compelling, heartrending debut novel-infused with the symbol of the lighthouse as guidance and shelter-quiet, thoughtful Tom returns home to Australia after World War I and seeks refuge as a lighthouse keeper. Isabelle, a high-spirited young woman who is ruled by emotion, works her way into Tom's heart and joins him at his remote outpost. Although they yearn for a family, after three years and three lost babies, the light in Izzy's eyes has dimmed. Then, inexplicably, a small boat washes ashore, bearing a dead man and a tiny but healthy infant. Is this the answer to Tom and Izzy's fervent prayers? They must quickly choose whether to keep the baby as their own or to report it to the authorities. Years later, in another, faraway lighthouse, the story circles around to a satisfying conclusion. VERDICT Stedman's engrossing, emotionally driven novel sensitively treats the issue of loss and how we learn to live with its aftermath. Fans of Anita Shreve or Elizabeth Berg will enjoy being swept up in this novel. [See Prepub Alert, 2/20/12.]-Susanne Wells, MLS, Indianapolis (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

In Stedman's deftly crafted debut, Tom Sherbourne, seeking constancy after the horrors of WWI, takes a lighthouse keeper's post on an Australian island, and calls for Isabel, a young woman he met on his travels, to join him there as his wife. In peaceful isolation, their love grows. But four years on the island and several miscarriages bring Isabel's seemingly boundless spirit to the brink, and leave Tom feeling helpless until a boat washes ashore with a dead man and a living child. Isabel convinces herself-and Tom-that the baby is a gift from God. After two years of maternal bliss for Isabel and alternating waves of joy and guilt for Tom, the family, back on the mainland, is confronted with the mother of their child, very much alive. Stedman grounds what could be a far-fetched premise, setting the stage beautifully to allow for a heart-wrenching moral dilemma to play out, making evident that "Right and wrong can be like bloody snakes: so tangled up that you can't tell which is which until you've shot 'em both, and then it's too late." Most impressive is the subtle yet profound maturation of Isabel and Tom as characters. Agent: Susan Armstrong, Conville & Walsh. (Aug.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.