Slow Provocation. Pam Stavropoulos

‘It’s hard to find people you can talk to about this kind of stuff.’ She is being consulted in her professional capacity, but his words resonate at a personal level, too. Holly Ladall is a psychotherapist and mother of a young son. She is also increasingly unsettled by a range of things, from aspects of her family history to the unfolding of global events. Can she assist Grant and Aaron, two clients who pose contrasting challenges? Is Sophie, her friend and employee, trapped in a traumatic re-enactment? Are there senses in which she herself might be? In this confronting novel, diverse contexts collide. Against the wider terrain of 9/11 and responses to ‘the refugee crisis’, personal dynamics intersect with dilemmas of abuse, sex and social justice – to startling effect.