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The Woman on the Stairs

Published by Diogenes as Die Frau auf der Treppe

Original Title: Die Frau auf der Treppe

A famous painting, missing for decades, suddenly turns up again. A surprise for the art world, and confusing for the man who, as a young lawyer, became entangled in the conflict between the painter and the owner. And who, in the process, fell in love with the woman depicted in the painting. He starts to search for her, and finds much more than the answers to her demeanour and mysterious disappearance. He also has to ask questions about himself that he has always suppressed. The scene: Frankfurt am Main, Sydney and an impassable bay on the Australian coast. A novel about being in the right, about sympathy, property and loss, true and false proximity. And about the happiness of a love that knows its own finite nature.

General Fiction
256 pages
2014

978-3-257-06909-9

Extract in German

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»›The Woman on the Stairs‹ is a daring, hugely emotive work of literature, revolving around the major themes of loss, pretence, love, alienation and death.«

Dagmar Kaindl / News, Vienna

»A delicate and entertaining novel, a cleverly constructed story, almost a thriller, but also a piece about moral code.«

Stefanie Wirsching / Augsburger Allgemeine

»A novel told with breathtaking ease about rights and ethics, great emotions and bitter disappointment.«

Peter Mohr / Die Südostschweiz, Chur

»Bernhard Schlink’s ›The Woman on the Stairs‹ flows with great style between fiction and the politics of the day. The novel is gripping and intelligent, offset with a good portion of thoughtfulness.«

Jens Frederiksen / Rhein-Main-Presse, Mayence

»The novelist has succeeded in writing a veritable thriller, which subtly and expertly intertwines perceptions of art and contemporary political events, debit and credit relational arithmetic as well as the complex relationship of Eros and desire for possession .«

Hendrik Werner / Weser-Kurier, Bremen

»With ›The Woman on the Stairs‹, Bernhard Schlink has written a gripping novel about what happens when life’s plans fall apart.«

Nina May / Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung

»It starts like a well-paced thriller with a love interest. Then Bernhard Schlink's novel turns into a melancholic and touching intimate play about life and death.«

Arno Renggli / Nordwestschweiz, Aarau

»The book has a narrative pull, which allows the reader to get through it within a few hours.«

Markus Reiter / Stuttgarter Zeitung

»Stylisticly an almost humble novel, with a touch of melancholic elegance.«

Tilman P. Gangloff / Südkurier, Konstanz

»Bernhard Schlink offers a profoundly moving meditation on how one's life is affected by the choices one makes along the way.«

Publishers Weekly (starred review), New York

»...exquisite novel...«

Publishers Weekly (starred review), New York

»At the end of this clever but melancholy novel readers are left with some answers to some questions but with others still to ponder. And that’s a satisfying ending because it keeps the novel alive after the last page has been turned.«

Claire Hopley / Washington Times

»Bernhard Schlink's The Woman on the Stairs runs on taut suspense.«

Hamilton Cain / www.ophra.com (3 Thrillers You Won't Be Able To Put Down)

»Bernhard Schlink [...] tells a mysterious, character-driven, and history-enriched story in which a man reckons with his past.«

Annie Bostrom / Booklist, Chicago

»A beautiful novel exploring how nostalgia can both keep us at a standstill and enliven us to dramatic action, Schlink’s writing is as graceful and unsettling as a fine work of art.«

Laura Farmer / The Gazette, USA

»›The Woman on the Stairs‹ is a daring, hugely emotive work of literature, revolving around the major themes of loss, pretence, love, alienation and death.«

Dagmar Kaindl / News, Vienna

»A delicate and entertaining novel, a cleverly constructed story, almost a thriller, but also a piece about moral code.«

Stefanie Wirsching / Augsburger Allgemeine

»A novel told with breathtaking ease about rights and ethics, great emotions and bitter disappointment.«

Peter Mohr / Die Südostschweiz, Chur

Jens Frederiksen / Rhein-Main-Presse, Mayence

Hendrik Werner / Weser-Kurier, Bremen

»With ›The Woman on the Stairs‹, Bernhard Schlink has written a gripping novel about what happens when life’s plans fall apart.«

Nina May / Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung

»It starts like a well-paced thriller with a love interest. Then Bernhard Schlink's novel turns into a melancholic and touching intimate play about life and death.«

Arno Renggli / Nordwestschweiz, Aarau

»The book has a narrative pull, which allows the reader to get through it within a few hours.«

Markus Reiter / Stuttgarter Zeitung

»Stylisticly an almost humble novel, with a touch of melancholic elegance.«

Tilman P. Gangloff / Südkurier, Konstanz

»Bernhard Schlink offers a profoundly moving meditation on how one's life is affected by the choices one makes along the way.«

Publishers Weekly (starred review), New York

»...exquisite novel...«

Publishers Weekly (starred review), New York

Claire Hopley / Washington Times

»Bernhard Schlink's The Woman on the Stairs runs on taut suspense.«

Hamilton Cain / www.ophra.com (3 Thrillers You Won't Be Able To Put Down)

»Bernhard Schlink [...] tells a mysterious, character-driven, and history-enriched story in which a man reckons with his past.«

Annie Bostrom / Booklist, Chicago

»A beautiful novel exploring how nostalgia can both keep us at a standstill and enliven us to dramatic action, Schlink’s writing is as graceful and unsettling as a fine work of art.«

Laura Farmer / The Gazette, USA

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