Versions of a Girl

'If you read anything this summer make sure it's this. An absolute bloody masterpiece'

Daisy May Cooper

'Tender, lush and electric; a wild, heartbreaking, exhilarating ride'

Daisy Buchanan

'Exquisite, stunning, executed brilliantly'

Poorna Bell

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Do we become who we are because of our parents, or in spite of them?

Fern's mother is a social climber and a former ballet dancer who lives a plush life in a London townhouse.

Fern's father only climbs if there's a bottle at the top, has an IQ of 133 and lives hand-to-mouth in Californian motels.

Aged fourteen, Fern has spent equal time with each of her parents. That is, until an unexpected visitor triggers a life-changing dilemma: whether she should get on a plane to London to be with her mother, or stay in California with her father. Here, Fern's narrative splices in two.

Two possible lives, one person. Each Fern will grow in wildly different, but eerily similar directions. Both must determine who they want to be - and how they deal with a thorny problem which threatens to undo them all: a murder.

Warm and brilliantly wise, this is the irresistible fiction debut from the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober.

A raw and relatable page-turner Stylist
A clever, compulsive read that asks big questions about the nature/nurture debate Good Housekeeping
Versions of a Girl transfixed me from the first brilliant sentence and held me in its grip until its poignant, perfect end. I loved this novel more than I've loved any novel in ages Joanna Rakoff, author of My Salinger Year

Catherine Gray is a Sunday Times Bestselling author, who has over sold half a million books in English-speaking territories alone. Her books have been translated into ten languages and received acclaim in the likes of the New York Times, BBC Breakfast and Radio 2.

With a background in journalism, Catherine has been a guest columnist at Grazia, is a regular guest on the Woman's Hour, and her writing has been published everywhere from the Guardian to Stylist.

Catherine was born in Northern Ireland, and lived there until she was ten. When not writing, she can be found running to nineties indie, trying to master the art of only eating three biscuits, or oversharing because she can't do small talk. She lives in a little house by the sea with a high-maintenance dog, a medium-maintenance partner and a low-maintenance toddler. Versions of a Girl is her debut novel.

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