Marriage to a handsome Ghanaian architect has brought Eva far from the quiet English countryside. Alfred had made it sound heavenly but the hardship drained her of vitality and the foreign culture bewildered her. But Eva has her friends - Dahlia, Yelena and Margrit - all of them strangers in a foreign land, who rely on each other to fill the gaps left by distant relatives.

When a sudden coup unnerves everyone, and Eva’s relationship with Alfred begins to unravel, The Association of Foreign Spouses discover that there are dark sides to their lives and that they must scheme and deceive to protect themselves and their families.

Set in Ghana in the turbulent eighties, The Association of Foreign Spouses is a story of a group of women who live in a land that at times defeats them, amongst people who often disappoint and baffle them. Yet through their trials and hardships, the women support each other, unified by their foreignness, as ultimately, they are wooed by this strange place that they come to call ‘home’.

Reviews

For Cloth Girl:

• ‘In this vivid and assured first novel, two women meet across a yawning social divide . . . Warm, moving, delightful’ The Times
• ‘Mills offers, through Matilda’s eyes, a rich celebration of the country . . . This unusual tale of the colonial experience hits the spot’ Guardian
• 'Heward Mills deftly captures the ironic pity each feels for the other's situation. Written with fluency and confidence, this is an impressive debut’ New Statesman

Hardback

Published 07/10/2010