There's No Turning Back

Reading Alba de Céspedes was, for me, like breaking into an unknown universe: social class, feelings, atmosphere -- Annie Ernaux
Ruthlessly, thrillingly, unsentimental... [A] dauntless writer... To read de Céspedes for the first time brings both exhilaration and humility, a reordering of one's mental bookshelves * TLS *
One of Italy's most cosmopolitan, incendiary, insightful, and overlooked writers -- Jhumpa Lahiri
Matches the bravery of the author's Forbidden Notebook in its groundbreaking portrayal of a group of female friends in Rome... Readers will be grateful for this rediscovery * Publishers Weekly (starred review) *
De Céspedes writes with blazing urgency about the hidden lives of women realizing that they are being suffocated by the very institutions that claim to protect them. A book so incendiary it's practically hot to the touch -- Sarah Chihaya, author of 'Bibliophilia'
Her writing is brilliant: angry, electric, slightly mystical * The Times *
de Céspedes quietly subverts a culture and political hierarchy which preached that a woman's place was in the home... Beautifully rendered * Irish Times *
de Céspedes is masterfully in control of her ensemble in this energetic, timeless coming-of-age story * Literary Review *