內容簡介
內容簡介 入圍《國家猶太人書獎》(National Jewish Award)美國亞馬遜暢銷世界小說評選#16《時人雜誌》、《洛杉磯時報》、《金融時報》、《哥倫布電訊報》、《紐約郵報》一致好評推薦「這是一本關於巧合、家族及無法逃離的罪惡的精湛小說，美麗卻充滿毀滅性。」─《紐約時報》暢銷書《All The Light We Cannot See》作者及普立茲獎得主Anthony Doerr推薦三個姐妹以一段懺悔式的自白開始故事。1999年的新年夜，Alter家族三姐妹正在合力撰寫一份遺書，並決定以自殺來迎接千禧年，一則跨越世紀的自殺書將徹底揭露出Alter家族的黑暗史。Alter家族的起源來自於他們的曾祖母，嫁給一位獲得諾貝爾獎的猶太裔化學家。曾祖父發明的合成氮肥在第一次世界大戰被當作毒氣使用，甚至被納粹拿來運用在集中營而釀成史上大屠殺。然而曾祖父、祖父Richard及他們的孩子都走向相同的結局，以別出心裁的手法了結自己的生命。僅存的Alter家族三姐妹個性機智風趣且深愛彼此，老大Lady未從離婚的傷痛中走出，老二Vee將面對癌症的復發，及仍小姑獨處的老三Delph。正處於人生苦痛的三人，在家族公寓的最後相聚決定為自己設計一個永久終止家族詛咒的告別式。小說的靈感來自諾貝爾化學獎得主及從氯氣及氮氣合成氨的發明人弗里茨•哈伯(Fritz Haber)的傳奇人生。這是一部關於命運與血脈；罪惡與赦免；愛與死亡貫穿其中的黑色幽默故事。‘What if the man who invented chemical weapons was also a grandfather, and what if his great-grandchildren grew up to be three hilarious, introverted, deeply-haunted sisters? And what if those sisters co-wrote a fascinating, funny, and deeply sad 350-page suicide note? Then you’d have A REUNION OF GHOSTS.’Anthony DoerrMeet the Alter sisters: Lady, Vee and Delph. These three mordantly witty, complex women share their family’s apartment on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. They love each other fiercely, but being an Alter isn’t easy. Bad luck is in their genes, passed down through the generations. Yet no matter what life throws at these siblings, they always have a wisecrack – and each other.In the waning days of 1999, the sisters decide it’s time to close the circle of the Alter curse. But first, as the world counts down to the dawn of a new millennium, Lady, Vee and Delph must write the final chapter of a saga generations in the making – one that is inexorably intertwined with that of the twentieth century itself. Unspooling threads of history, personal memory and family lore, they weave a mesmerising account of their lives that stretches back decades to their great-grandfather, a brilliant scientist whose professional triumph became the sinister legacy that defines them.Magnificent and heartbreaking, A REUNION OF GHOSTS is an epic novel about three unforgettable women, bound to each other and their remarkable family through the blessings and the burdens bestowed by blood.
