Hotel du Lac

This book opens with a romance writer begrudgingly boarding a plane to Switzerland to spend a few days in exile at the Hotel Du Lac. She will have plenty of time to have a “curious interlude in her life” where she can write her new novel, take long walks, speak to other interesting guests at the hotel, and just hit the reset button. Why is our main character taking this leave of absence from life? Well, it's part of a social banishment enacted by her friends. They believe she needs to go on probation and grow a little, away from her life in London.

It's a fun little curiosity. Edith checks into the hotel and begins to meld with certain personalities over a meal or tea. We find out that most of the guests are cruel or ill-tempered, and the author often uses these traits to sly comedic effects, albeit oftentimes in long, drawn-out diatribes of small talk. There is a certain perceptiveness to the prose. Nothing is really described in great detail. It is often the witticisms that round out character traits and small intricacies that bring the hotel to life.

Edith eventually meets someone who is interested in her, and after a few days, he proposes. We are plucked from the hearty conversations and thrown into another unique situation that Edith did not expect. Will she say yes to the marriage proposal with stipulations attached, or are there other past circumstances that will come into play and give her yield?