Books like The Stranger's Child by Alan Hollinghurst

During the late summer of 1913, George Sawle invites his Cambridge schoolmate, the charismatic aristocratic poet Cecil Valance, to spend a weekend at the family’s modest home outside London. George becomes captivated by Cecil’s charm, and soon his sixteen‑year‑old sister, Daphne, is equally enchanted by the poet and his stories of Corley Court, the country estate to which he stands heir. Cecil’s brief presence leaves a lasting imprint. While staying, he writes a poem in Daphne’s autograph album that, after his death in the Great War and the ensuing elevation of his reputation, becomes a touchstone for a generation, recited by schoolchildren throughout England. As the years pass, a tragic love story threads through the families, and buried secrets begin to surface. Decades later an ambitious biographer’s investigations threaten to expose long‑hidden truths, reshaping the families’ histories. The novel traces the interplay of longing, secrecy, and historical memory, weaving the personal with the collective experience of early twentieth‑century Britain.

First publish date: 2011