Mrs Gulliver

A short, lush novel about sex, second chances and taking control in a man's world

The title suggests a rollicking tale and a rollicking tale is what you get, full of twists and surprises and never a dull moment. Entertainingly wild

I adore Valerie Martin, and Mrs Gulliver is no exception. Pure elegance, subtlety and wit. A triumph of a novel

Irresistible - a funny, sexy romp that's also smart, even wise

An elegant, deftly crafted tale

Brilliant

A quirky and enjoyable twist on an old story with plenty of plot and thematic oomph. Rich in unabashed raunchiness, it toys with feminist tropes and hands us a heroine who is superficially fragile, yet very much in command of her own destiny

Captivating ... In Mrs. Gulliver, Valerie Martin offers us an idyll, perhaps even a comedy. All's well that ends well. We hope

Martin's surprisingly playful latest observes two strong-willed women as they make the best of their initially unfortunate lives ... it's a pleasure to get to know both of her intelligent and resourceful heroines

This is an excellent character-written novel. You get invested in their lives, and want to read along and see what happens to them. You will not want to put this one down

Refreshing and completely different - I loved it as soon as I started reading. I love how Valerie Martin writes and was totally engrossed by the story of these strong unconventional women and the men they vanquish - so thought-provoking, so quirky, so well realised

An unexpected and witty novel examining the eternal inequalities embedded in this particular trade

Lila is a beguiling narrator, offering often shrewd observations, and Carita is an appealingly canny protagonist

An intriguing, well-written gem, it slips down as sweetly as a sonnet

Praise for Valerie Martin

Martin's writing is a reward in itself, a wonderful precision-tool. She uses it to chisel at the human condition - and the effect is astonishing

Valerie Martin is a fleet-footed writer; you never quite know where she'll go next

Few have written so surprisingly, so convincingly as Valerie Martin about sexual obsession and the perverse twistings of the human heart

[Martin's] writing - so prized and clean limbed - is a marvel

Valerie Martin is one of the best novelists we have

The generosity of Martin's understanding opens every character to the full, astounding range of human possibility. Her revelations build mesmerizing excitement, a surprising kindness, and an unexpected sanity in the darkness

An enrapturing and ruthless storyteller, Valerie Martin possesses a predator's ability to mesmerize her prey . . . Martin's tales of betrayal, obsession, connivance, and failure put the firepower back into art

Martin is a vibrant force in American fiction

Valerie Martin is the author of eleven novels, including I Give It To You, Italian Fever and Property, which won the Orange Prize and Women's Prize for Fiction. She has also written three collections of short fiction and Salvation, a biography of Saint Francis of Assisi. She has been awarded grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship, as well as the Kafka Prize for Mary Reilly.