An old couple slowly eke out their days long after the departure of the British, the ending of the Raj, and the independence of India. Around them, the country modernises and Indians grow wealthy while they endure in almost-genteel poverty, reminders of the old days, but also repositories of memories. hjile Lucy and Tusker circle each other in a marriage that isn't exactly loveless but seems more like something endured out of habit, their landlady's plans do not include them staying on much longer in the old cottage that is an annexe to her hotel. 

Funny, touching, bitter, a portrait of a life that has always seemed on the margins of something much grander and more epic - we get to hear news of Sarah Layton and Guy and their family, a graceful epilogue to the epic Jewel In The Crown - Lucy and Tusker's greatest virtue is that they somehow hang on, both in India and to each other, despite disappointment and betrayal. They seem lonely despite being part of a community that includes their servants and neigbours and fellow church-goers - but they're not British, you see. The last curse of the Raj is the seperateness it inculcated in them, leaving them isolated in their, not quite superiority, but sense of class and racial divisions. 

A brilliant little novel, full of life and character and superb writing.