As featured on BBC Radio 4 Open Book

Beautifully and poignantly told, Marking Time is the second novel in Elizabeth Jane Howard’s bestselling family saga The Cazalet Chronicles, set during the onset of World War II.

‘She helps us to do the necessary thing – open our eyes and our hearts’ – Hilary Mantel, bestselling author of Wolf Hall

Home Place, Sussex, 1939. As the shadows of the Second World War roll in, banishing the sun-drenched days of childish games and trips to the coast, a new generation of Cazalets takes up the family’s story.

Louise, who dreams of becoming a great actress, finds herself facing the harsh reality that her parents have their own lives with secrets, passions and yearnings. Clary, an aspiring writer, learns that her beloved father, Rupert, is now missing somewhere on the shores of France. And sensitive, imaginative Polly feels stuck, haunted by her nightmares about the war.

‘Charming, poignant and quite irresistible . . . to be cherished and shared‘ – The Times

Marking Time is the second volume of the extraordinary Cazalet Chronicles and a perfect addition to your collection. Marking Time is followed by Confusion, the third book in the series.

"Charming, poignant and quite irresistible . . . to be cherished and shared" - The Times

"The Cazalets have earned an honoured place among the great saga families . . . rendered thrillingly three-dimensional by a master craftsman" - Sunday Telegraph