The Summer Before the Dark

Kate Brown is a forty-five-year-old London wife and mother whose family disperses for the summer, leaving her unexpectedly free. She takes a glamorous job as a translator for an international organization, travels, and begins an affair with a younger man that quickly sours. Returning to London, she rents a room and lets herself fall apart, neglecting her appearance and watching how differently the world treats an aging, unkempt woman. Over a single season, Kate strips away every role she has played and confronts what remains of herself underneath.