I absolutely loved this book. It follows on from, and we catch up with, the characters first introduced in Double Blind and you do need to read that book first to really get under the skin of what happens in this. Oh and before I forget, this book isn't the end for them either, or so it appears. I'm thinking probably trilogy rather than series, bit who knows how far the author will take them... So, if you recall, at the end of the last book we had Sebastian meeting Olivia at a do where she is a guest and he a waiter. Unbeknown to them, they are related. To ice that cake, Olivia's adopted father Martin is Sebastian's psychotherapist. This book picks them up 5 years later. Olivia is still with Francis who is still off on his rewilding escapades, and they are now parents to Noah. Sebastian has had a breakdown and is in hospital still under the care of Martin, and a nurse called Helio. Lucy is in treatment for her brain tumour, with boyfriend Hunter off seeking help for himself in an Italian Monastery, hosted by the abbott, Guido. Although there is a lot going on with the supporting cast, the main focus is on Olivia and Sebastian and the two of them circling around each other. Whether they do meet properly, and how that impacts both of them, and their relationships with the other cast, especially with regards to medical ethics, I will have to leave for you to discover for yourself. One of the things I love about this book, and its predecessor, is the way the author portrays Sebastian's fractured mind. His running commentary, his inward thoughts. All delivered in a wonderfully lyrical way and with such logic that actually had me rethinking quite a lot of my own thoughts and conceptions. I especially loved his interactions with certain other cast members, spoilers prevent me from going into detail though. As with Double Blind, there are parts of this book that are a bit over my head. Intellectually speaking. But that doesn't really matter as I was able to just read through these parts and it didn't appear to mar my overall enjoyment of the book. There were a few political moments and obviously covid was mentioned in dispatches but these were all in alignment with the characters and the time and setting. And then there's the wit and humour which, happily, is right on my wavelength. Double Blind and this book are the only two books I have read by this author thus far but I have added the Patrick Melrose books to my ever growing TBR to keep me going until the next in this series is released.

Edward St Aubyn returns with a follow-on to his 2021 novel Double Blind. I had not read that novel before reading this, and found Parallel Lines to be a great standalone novel in its own right. If you have read Double Blind you may get even more from it than I did. What did I get from Parallel Lines? Given it's from a writer of such stature as St Aubyn, you know immediately that the writing is going to be great - it is. The story is engaging, and I read it over in one sitting, totally engrossed by it's story. Given it is a sequel, there is probably some duty on St Aubyn's part to give us updates on some of the characters from that first novel, so to me a few lines felt extraneous - but probably if read in sync with Double Blind it probably fits even tighter than I'm giving it credit for. The best recommendation I can give is that it has made me go out and order Double Blind to finish the diptych in reverse. Many thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for the ARC.

This is a darkly comical novel about madness, psychiatry and coincidence, shooting off in so many directions it is sometimes hard to keep track – but it is well worth the effort. At the start of the book, we encounter Sebastian in the midst of a psychotic episode. He has the life history to justify any form of escape! His therapist, Martin is working with him relatively successfully but it turns out that his adopted daughter, Olivia is actually Sebastian’s long lost twin. That makes continuing to work with Sebastian difficult! There’s a range of other characters. Lucy who is being treated for a brain tumour, her wild partner Hunter who finds solace in chatting to an Italian monk named Guido, and Francis who is Olivia’s partner. The book is a sequel to Double Blind and also a cheerful resolution of part of that book’s story. While funny about, and critical of, many aspects of psychiatry and psychoanalysis it describes the possibility of escaping from a terrible past to a place where you can survive as a human being and, in the end, everybody is enriched by the events. It’s a superb novel, beautifully written and insightful. It’s well worth reading! (Parallel Lines is published by Jonathan Cape. Thanks to the publishers and to NetGalley for an advance copy.)

In 2021 I read Edward St Aubyn's novel “Double Blind” and while elements of its were preposterous I concluded that I found it the most intellectually entertaining (or entertainingly intellectual) novel that I read in that year with its treatment of bio-diversity and extinction, epigenetics, brain mapping, venture capitalism, rewilding, the nature of consciousness, mind/brain dichotomy, psychoanalysis, mental heath and much more. And this novel is a direct sequel to the first and while it can be read standalone – that is a little like saying that you can pick up a novel and read the second half only standalone – its neither what is intended I believe or certainly the right way to appreciate the novel and in fact will I think have a similar experience of finding yourself among a group of characters and plotlines already underway with limited backstory provided (the backstory of course being in the first book). In particular the novel draws on a theme which particularly resonated for me in the first novel – twins – and in particular the separated at birth and both adopted pairing (with their Twelfth Night nod names) Olivia (adopted daughter of two psychoanalysts) and Sebastian (who is a patient of Olivia’s adopted father), It follows both of the twins on their initially parallel paths (Olivia parenthood with her extremely unrealistically precocious young child Noah, Sebastian coming gradually to terms with managing his his schizophrenia – which thankfully also allows St Aubyn to gradually manage down his steam of connections chapters) and then on their inevitable intersection (which takes place at another of the slightly damp-squib set piece get togethers of all characters which seem to characterise this new series – but does feature the memorable both pre-imagined and double-meaning line “We don’t only have the same bio Mum we have the same psycho Dad”) – and perhaps more movingly through to the aftermath of the discovery of their connection in a closing section. As well as having more character and feeling than the heavily exposition based first novel there is much more “art” and less “science” in this volume than the first – albeit one of the key themes of the novel is the artificial divide that has grown between the two (and between experimentation and experience, medicine and more holistic practices, and between disciplines in science). The novel featuring for example the ballets of Crystal Pite and particularly “Statement” and her part of “Figures in Extinction”, Olafur Eliasson’s “Little Sun” (of course a deliberate science and art collaboration) and more than anything the light installations of James Turrell (including his installation at Houghton Hall). Overall, while perhaps not up to the heights of “Double Blind” in isolation together it makes for an excellent series with the final part (and the penultimate sentence “To be Continued”) more than hinting at a welcome third volume in the series.

I'm afraid I wasn't aware Parallel Lines was a sequel to Double Blind so failed to get a more deep and meaningful read on this text, and the pre-existing connections between the characters, but enjoyed it immensely regardless. I must now go back and read Double Blind as there are characters, here, I would like to know more about. I have been aware of Edward St. Aubyn since seeing Patrick Melrose years ago but have not had the pleasure of reading his books before now. Going into it I had a rough idea of the chaos of thought and action characters may enjoy so leaned well in, even when I wasn't sure what was happening or how the characters related to each other (also the result of not reading the first book, my fault). My overarching feeling is one of levity and understanding. Sebastian is schizophrenic and he seemed to be like the sun around which a number of the characters orbited as planets. Not inferior, in any way, but like connective tissue, of sorts. His therapist, relations, friends all orbited him in a loose way. I appreciated the randomness of his thoughts and speech. So much sense in quite a lot of what he says though disordered. A new, thought provoking perspective. He elevated a book with dark tones making it brighter and more joyful. I've been ground down by a fair bit of dark topics this year and this felt so fresh and free, in comparison. A wild random ride, this is a world peopled with characters that are intelligent, witty and a joy to hang out with. Each character brings an added level of complexity and heft to the dynamic. My brain feels amply stretched from the exposure to their dialogue. I must confess I started the audio book part way in so I could enjoy it whilst gardening. Benedict Cumberbatch narrates in such an extraordinary fashion. The reader/listener feels as if they are attending a one man show. What a talent! He injected punch and energy to such a level I had to start the book over again to listen to him perform it from the off. So a top tip for you, if you want a good diversion whilst commuting to work or weeding, this is a great book to choose.