Exactly What You Mean

A surprising and enjoyable read … this novel without guardrails stands as a brave debut * The Times *Virtuosity of technique accompanies keenness of insight and depth of characterisation … Hinshaw’s impressively accomplished debut puts him in [Tim Winton and Jennifer Egan’s] company – Peter Kemp * Sunday Times *Ben Hinshaw offers wit, sensitivity and sharp observation … the intricate, braided storylines, sustained with energy and relish. It is entertaining, and something more - truly involving – Hilary Mantel, author of The Mirror and the LightA poignant demonstration of the way the past is still folded into the present * FT *Ben Hinshaw renders ordinary human agonies with extraordinary precision and emotional insight … This book is a riveting and beautifully patterned map of the emotional archipelago of longing and learning, loving and leaving – Max Porter, author of Grief is the Thing with FeathersSuch an incredibly clever idea this, a set of interlinked stories in which people who appear in one turn up in another . . there’s a regretful, wistful atmosphere that’s compelling. * Daily Mail *A splendid debut. The stories are sharp, subtle, richly coloured and the world they deliver delightfully surprising. Read this book – Lynn Freed, author of The Romance of ElsewhereFull of precise moments of humanity. So finely observed, funny and touching – Alex Hyde, author of VioletsTerrific. I really enjoyed it – Andy Miller, author of The Year of Reading Dangerously and co-host of BacklistedThe calm, clear and intelligent prose belies the tortured emotional currents just below the surface. Sophisticated and ambitious – Samantha Dunn, author of Failing Paris

Ben Hinshaw is a British-American writer whose short fiction has received an O. Henry Prize and appeared in Granta, Harvard Review, The White Review and elsewhere. He grew up on the island of Guernsey and has also lived in London, Nottingham and Northern California. A former bookseller, he currently lives on Guernsey with his family.