Sweet Caress: The Many Lives of Amory Clay

As recounted in this powerful new novel by the multiaward-winning Boyd (A Good Man in Africa), Amory Clay was born during England's Edwardian era and spent her entire extraordinary life defying conventions. Introduced to the power of the camera by her photographer uncle, she quickly grew bored shooting high-society events. By the time she was in her 20s, a photo shoot in an after-hours German strip club caused an international scandal, got her arrested, and launched her career as a serious photographer. A few years later, she was badly beaten by the Blackshirts in the London street riots of 1936. Amory's passion for her work and the men in her life who influenced her achievements brought her to the battlefields of World War II, where she met her husband. Settling down with him on his Scottish estate was the beginning of a whole new chapter, abounding with tragedies and challenges.