[1] The English version was translated by Charlotte Collins and published in 2018 by Sceptre.

Jules desires Alva and is angered when he finds her having sex with another man.

Romanov declares his intention to kill himself before he loses his mind, and asks Jules to help him.

Kirkus Reviews wrote "The book's earnestness weighs it down from time to time, but overall Wells has written a tender, affecting novel, one that packs a lot into a slender frame.

"[3] Publishers Weekly described it as "satisfying... in prose both beautiful and sparse enough to cut clearly to the question at the novel's heart: how one copes with loss that isn't—or doesn't have to be—permanent.

[8] The jury said "Wells has created a novel whose strength lies in the characters who, despite all their sadness, exude a [...] warmth.

[...] This success is based on Wells' extraordinary imagination, a gift rarely encountered these days.

[10] The jury described it as "a clever work about loss and preservation, about slow self-discovery, about the power of the past, comforting regardless of its sadness, sometimes even funny.