Patrick Melrose Series by Edward St. Aubyn

Now a 5-Part Limited Event Series on Showtime, Starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Blythe DannerNever Mind, the first installment in Edward St. Aubyn's wonderful, wry, and profound Patrick Melrose Cycle, follows five-year-old Patrick through a single day, as the Melrose family awaits the arrival of guests. Bright and imaginative, young Patrick struggles daily to contend with the searing cruelty of his father and the resignation of his embattled mother... moreNow a 5-Part Limited Event Series on Showtime, Starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Blythe DannerNever Mind, the first installment in Edward St. Aubyn's wonderful, wry, and profound Patrick Melrose Cycle, follows five-year-old Patrick through a single day, as the Melrose family awaits the arrival of guests. Bright and imaginative, young Patrick struggles daily to contend with the searing cruelty of his father and the resignation of his embattled mother. But on this day he must endure an unprecedented horror—one that splits his world in two. In Never Mind, St. Aubyn renders this vivid tragedy with profound grace and precision, and introduces us to the unforgettable, complex figure of Patrick Melrose. less

Twenty-two years old and in the grip of a massive addiction, Patrick Melrose is forced to fly to New York to collect his father’s ashes. Over the course of a weekend, Patrick’s remorseless search for drugs on the avenues of Manhattan, haunted by old acquaintances and insistent inner voices, sends him into a nightmarish spiral. Alone in his room at the Pierre Hotel, he pushes body and mind to the very edge – desperate always to stay one step ahead of his rapidly encroaching past... moreTwenty-two years old and in the grip of a massive addiction, Patrick Melrose is forced to fly to New York to collect his father’s ashes. Over the course of a weekend, Patrick’s remorseless search for drugs on the avenues of Manhattan, haunted by old acquaintances and insistent inner voices, sends him into a nightmarish spiral. Alone in his room at the Pierre Hotel, he pushes body and mind to the very edge – desperate always to stay one step ahead of his rapidly encroaching past.Bad News was originally published, along with Never Mind and Some Hope, as part of a three book omnibus also called Some Hope. less

THE THIRD PATRICK MELROSE NOVEL Patrick Melrose, cleaned-up and world-weary, is a reluctant guest at a glittering party deep in the English countryside. Amid a crowd of flitting social dragonflies, he finds his search for redemption and capacity for forgiveness challenged by his observation of the cruelties around him... moreTHE THIRD PATRICK MELROSE NOVEL Patrick Melrose, cleaned-up and world-weary, is a reluctant guest at a glittering party deep in the English countryside. Amid a crowd of flitting social dragonflies, he finds his search for redemption and capacity for forgiveness challenged by his observation of the cruelties around him. Armed with his biting wit and a newly fashioned openness, can Patrick, who has been to the furthest limits of experience and back again, find release from the savageries of his childhood? ‘A masterpiece. Edward St Aubyn is a writer of immense gifts’ Patrick McGrath ‘St Aubyn’s Melrose series slices and dices morality with prose so chiselled and a narrative so intense that the hairs on the back of your neck stand up’ Geordie Greig, Evening Standard ‘I’ve loved Edward St Aubyn’s Patrick Melrose novels. Read them all, now’ David Nicholls ‘A memorable tour de force’ New York Times Book Review less

Barnes & Noble Discover Great New WritersSt. Aubyn's first novel carries a biting subtextual social criticism reminiscent of The Corrections, but this British writer takes no prisoners. His brilliantly wrought fictional trilogy features a character-driven narrative with flashes of conflict and emotion relieved by a stringent humor... moreBarnes & Noble Discover Great New WritersSt. Aubyn's first novel carries a biting subtextual social criticism reminiscent of The Corrections, but this British writer takes no prisoners. His brilliantly wrought fictional trilogy features a character-driven narrative with flashes of conflict and emotion relieved by a stringent humor. Some Hope is the tumultuous journey of Patrick Melrose, following along as he endures an abusive childhood under the tyranny of a deliberately cruel father and a drunken mother, through resulting addiction, dereliction, and bitterness that threaten to overtake him completely. On Patrick's travels, readers meet a great many social climbers determined to avoid the label "working class," who provide cautionary evidence for a life of greater significance. From detestably vapid socialites to the loathsome elder Melrose, St. Aubyn's characters are exquisitely rendered and revealed bit by bit in precise sections, like subjects of a biology class. But St. Aubyn is after something deeper, exploring the contrasts between perception and reality, surface and substance. His protagonist has the urgency of an addict searching for order in a chaotic universe, for significance in a vast nullity. Ultimately, Some Hope offers what the title suggests -- a powerfully satisfying conclusion and the reconciliation between the quest for forgiveness and redemption, marking St. Aubyn as a truly important literary discovery. (Winter/Spring 2004 Selection) less

A New York Times Notable Book, Mother’s Milk is a brilliantly stylish and witty novel by a master of modern British fiction. Widely acclaimed in the United States and the UK, Mother’s Milk follows the Melroses, the same family featured in St. Aubyn’s trilogy, Some Hope... moreA New York Times Notable Book, Mother’s Milk is a brilliantly stylish and witty novel by a master of modern British fiction. Widely acclaimed in the United States and the UK, Mother’s Milk follows the Melroses, the same family featured in St. Aubyn’s trilogy, Some Hope. First we meet Robert, who provides an exceptionally droll and convincing account of being born; then Patrick, a hilariously churlish husband who has been sexually abandoned by his wife in favor of motherhood; then Mary, who’s consumed by her children and an overwhelming desire not to repeat the mistakes of her own mother. All the while, St. Aubyn examines the web of false promises that entangles this once illustrious family, whose last vestige of wealth—an estate in the South of France—is about to be permanently donated by Patrick’s mother to a new-age foundation. The result is captivating and unexpected. less

NATIONAL BESTSELLERAn Atlantic Magazine Best Book of the YearA Publishers Weekly Best Book of the YearFor more than twenty years, acclaimed author Edward St. Aubyn has chronicled the life of Patrick Melrose, painting an extraordinary portrait of the beleaguered and self-loathing world of privilege... moreNATIONAL BESTSELLERAn Atlantic Magazine Best Book of the YearA Publishers Weekly Best Book of the YearFor more than twenty years, acclaimed author Edward St. Aubyn has chronicled the life of Patrick Melrose, painting an extraordinary portrait of the beleaguered and self-loathing world of privilege. This single volume collects the first four novels—Never Mind, Bad News, Some Hope, and Mother’s Milk, a Man Booker finalist—to coincide with the publication of At Last, the final installment of this unique novel cycle.By turns harrowing and hilarious, these beautifully written novels dissect the English upper class as we follow Patrick Melrose’s story from child abuse to heroin addiction and recovery. Never Mind, the first novel, unfolds over a day and an evening at the family’s chateaux in the south of France, where the sadistic and terrifying figure of David Melrose dominates the lives of his five-year-old son, Patrick, and his rich and unhappy American mother, Eleanor. From abuse to addiction, the second novel, Bad News opens as the twenty-two-year-old Patrick sets off to collect his father’s ashes from New York, where he will spend a drug-crazed twenty-four hours. And back in England, the third novel, Some Hope, offers a sober and clean Patrick the possibility of recovery. The fourth novel, the Booker-shortlisted Mother’s Milk, returns to the family chateau, where Patrick, now married and a father himself, struggles with child rearing, adultery, his mother’s desire for assisted suicide, and the loss of the family home to a New Age foundation.Edward St. Aubyn offers a window into a world of utter decadence, amorality, greed, snobbery, and cruelty—welcome to the declining British aristocracy. less

Now a 5-Part Limited Event Series on Showtime, Starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Blythe Danner A New York Times Notable Book of of the Year • One of TIME's Top 10 Fiction Books of the Year • Named One of the best books of the Year by The Telegraph and Esquire Here, from the writer described by The Guardian as "our purest living prose stylist" and whom Alan Hollinghurst has called "the most brilliant English novelist of his generation," is a work of glittering social comedy, profound emotional... moreNow a 5-Part Limited Event Series on Showtime, Starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Blythe Danner A New York Times Notable Book of of the Year • One of TIME's Top 10 Fiction Books of the Year • Named One of the best books of the Year by The Telegraph and Esquire Here, from the writer described by The Guardian as "our purest living prose stylist" and whom Alan Hollinghurst has called "the most brilliant English novelist of his generation," is a work of glittering social comedy, profound emotional truth, and acute verbal wit. At Last is also the stunning culmination of one of the great fiction enterprises of the past two decades in the life of the English novel.As readers of Edward St. Aubyn's extraordinary earlier works—Never Mind, Bad News, Some Hope, and the Man Booker Prize finalist Mother's Milk—are well aware, for Patrick Melrose, "family" has always been a double-edged sword. At Last begins as friends, relatives, and foes trickle in to pay final respects to his mother, Eleanor. An American heiress, Eleanor married into the British aristocracy, giving up the grandeur of her upbringing for "good works" freely bestowed on everyone but her own son, who finds himself questioning whether his transition to a life without parents will indeed be the liberation he had so long imagined. The service ends, and family and friends gather for a final party. Amid the social niceties and social horrors, Patrick begins to sense the prospect of release from the extremes of his childhood, and at the end of the day, alone in his room, the promise some form of safety...at last. less

With an introduction by Zadie Smith Patrick slid back down in his chair and sprawled in front of the view. He noticed how his tears cooled as they ran down his cheeks. Washed eyes and a tired and empty feeling. Was that what other people meant by peaceful? Collected here together in a single volume are the complete Patrick Melrose Novels by Edward St Aubyn, Never Mind, Bad News, Some Hope, Mother's Milk, and At Last... moreWith an introduction by Zadie Smith Patrick slid back down in his chair and sprawled in front of the view. He noticed how his tears cooled as they ran down his cheeks. Washed eyes and a tired and empty feeling. Was that what other people meant by peaceful? Collected here together in a single volume are the complete Patrick Melrose Novels by Edward St Aubyn, Never Mind, Bad News, Some Hope, Mother's Milk, and At Last. Acclaimed for their searing wit and their deep humanity, this magnificent cycle of novels - in which Patrick Melrose battles to survive the savageries of his childhood and lead a self-determined life - is one of the major achievements in English fiction. less