House of Women Author:Lynn Freed The rule is this: I am to pretend that my other life does not exist. And yet pretending, it seems to be true. 17-year old Thea, promised by her father to his rich and powerful cousin, flees the bizarre and sheltered life she has led with her mother-an opera singer and Holocaust survivor-to marry a man whose name she does not even know, and to li... more »ve with him on an island out of time and place. Stark, philosophical and surprising, this is a story of passion, love, secrets, and bonds that cannot be broken, even in death.« less