THE OBSERVATIONS: A NOVEL

Book ID/图书代码： 03540006B05904

English Summary/英文概要： Scotland, 1863. In an attempt to escape her not-so-innocent past in Glasgow, Bessy Buckley-a wide-eyed and feisty young Irish girl-takes a job as a maid in a big house outside Edinburgh working for the beautiful Arabella-the "missus." Bessy lacks the necessary scullery skills for her new position, but as she finds out, it is her ability to read and write that makes her such a desirable property. Bessy is intrigued by her new employer but puzzled by her increasingly strange requests and her insistence that Bessy keep a journal of her mundane chores and most intimate thoughts. And it seems that the missus has a few secrets of her own, including her near- obsessive affection for Nora, a former maid who died in mysterious circumstances.

Giving in to her curiosity, Bessy makes an infuriating discovery and, out of jealousy, concocts a childish prank that backfires and threatens to jeopardize all that she has come to hold dear. Yet even when caught up in a tangle of madness, ghosts, sex, and lies, she remains devoted to Arabella. But who is really responsible for what happened to her predecessor Nora? As her past threatens to catch up with her and raise the stakes even further, Bessy begins to realize that she has not quite landed on her feet.

The Observations is a brilliantly original, endlessly intriguing story of one woman’s journey from a difficult past into an even more disturbing present, narrated by one of the most vividly imagined heroines in recent fiction. This powerful story of secrets and suspicions, hidden histories and mysterious disappearances is at once compelling and heart-warming, showing the redemptive power of loyalty and friendship. A hugely assured and darkly funny debut, The Observations is certain to establish Jane Harris as a significant new literary talent.

Chinese Summary/中文概要： 這是本特別的歷史小說，敍述了蘇格蘭房東女主人和女傭之間一段特殊友誼的故事。
1863年，為了掩蓋曾經在蘇格蘭格拉斯哥不光彩的過去，愛爾蘭女孩Bessy Buckley在愛丁堡郊外的一幢大房子找了份女傭的工作，而漂亮的Arabella正是這座房子的女主人，Bessy稱她為「太太」。Bessy手腳有點笨拙，對新工作還不算上手，但由於她具有一定的讀寫能力，所以待遇還算不錯。
Bessy對她的新老闆印象還不錯，但對Arabella越來越古怪的命令要求和強迫感到煩惱，Bessy把Arabella的日常瑣事和稀奇古怪的想法都寫在了日記裡。不久Bessy發現Arabella的背後隱藏著一些只有她自己才知道的秘密，包括她對Nora的思念，而Nora是這裡以前的女傭，卻不知何故神秘的死了…
儘管她們在身份、地位、性格等有著難以逾越的界限，但Bessy和Arabella不知不覺建立起一種互相依賴的關係，不久又轉為互相猜疑…即使在這片孤立的土地上，所有發生的一切都不是表面看起來的那麼簡單。受到好奇心的驅使，Bessy發現了Arabella和Nora之間的秘密，這足以讓她引火上身。當孩童式的惡作劇失去控制後，Bessy才意識到剛脫離混亂不堪過去的她，又陷入了更為危險的現在…(Vincent)

Awards/获奖情况：英國Richard and Judy讀書俱樂部百大推薦好書之一

Rights sold:
Algoritam Publishers (Croatian)
Borgens Forlag(Danish)
Uitgeverij De Geus(Dutch)
Faber & Faber(UK)
Penguin Viking(US)
Diigisi Publishing(Greek)
Neri Pozza Editore(Italian)
Font Forlag(Norwegian)
Muza SA(Polish)
Editorial Presenca(Portuguese)
Editura Leda(Romanian)
Eksmo Publishers(Russian)
Laguna(Serbian)
El Aleph Editores(Spanish)
Damm Forlag(Swedish)
Epsilon Yayincilik(Turkish)

Praise for THE OBSERVATIONS by Jane Harris:
"Rollicking and engaging. A confident, fresh, roguishly charming first work."---Kirkus (starred review)

"It’s nearly impossible to find period pieces like this, by turns funny and sad, but always true to the ear."---Entertainment Weekly

"Sharp, funny and tender-hearted, Bessy is an accomplishment."---Publishers Weekly

"Bessy’s unique, witty voice distinguishes this boisterous novel."---Booklist

"Bessy’s is the freshest voice to come along in a long time...[The Observations] is utterly unputdownable."---Bookreporter.com

"Bessy... [has] the freshest, sharpest, naughtiest...voice you’re apt to encounter in literature...I adored her."---Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love

"Bessy Buckley can hold her head up with Moll Flanders and Becky Sharp as a living, breathing mortal."---The Times (London)

"Unique, not least in the ebullience of the language... a superbly uncorseted evocation of life in Victorian Scotland."---Sunday Herald (Glasgow)

"There are enough twists... to keep a cynical adult reader up half the night .... [Bessy is] impossible not to like."---London Review of Books

"An astonishing imaginative feat, brilliantly written."---Scotland on Sunday

"This intriguing, ghostly read will have you hooked from page one. Fantastic."---Company Magazine (UK)

"Harris’s skilful unravelling of her labyrinthine plot is a joy that will keep you reading well into the small hours."---Easy Living Magazine (UK)

"A breath of fresh air - witty, bawdy, [and] tantalizing. The author undoubtedly has a wicked sense of humor."---NewBooksMag (UK)

About the Author/作者介绍： Jane Harris’s short stories have appeared in a wide variety of anthologies and magazines, and she has written several award-winning short films. In 2000, she received a Writer’s Award from the Arts Council of England.
Jane Harris出生於北愛爾蘭的貝爾法斯特。成長於格拉斯哥。她的文章經常出現在不同的詩文選集和雜誌報刊上，她也撰寫電影劇本。2000年，她獲得了英國藝術委員會所頒發的最佳作家獎。首部作品The Observations曾入圍Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction的決選名單。現與丈夫Tom定居倫敦。

Format:HARDCOVER

Rights Status/版权销售情况：Simplified Chinese/简体中文：AVAILABLE

Complex/Traditional Chinese/繁体中文：AVAILABLE

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