Esther Freud: An Evening with the Author

Join Esther Freud, in conversation with Meg Mason, to celebrate the release of her new novel My Sister And Other Lovers, in-store at Gertrude & Alice Cafe Bookstore.

WHEN: Tuesday, 12th of August 2025, at Gertrude & Alice Cafe Bookstore. Please arrive at 6:45pm for a prompt 7pm start.

TICKETS: 

Admission: $25.00 (excluding external fees), includes admission for one, a glass of wine and nibbles upon arrival.

Admission + Book: $50.00 (excluding external fees), includes admission for one, a copy of My Sister and Other Lovers (RRP: $29.95), a glass of wine and nibbles upon arrival.

A captivating coming-of-age novel about love, sisterhood, secrets and betrayal.

About My Sister and Other Lovers:

For as long as Lucy can remember she's been caught between love for her rootless, idealistic mother and devotion to her fierce and exacting sister, Bea. From their unsettled childhood to their restless teenage years – hitchhiking through rural Ireland, the move to a communal house – she's been forced to make a choice.

But as the girls come of age and embark on their own experiments – in love, drugs, work, motherhood – Bea is in danger of drifting further and further away. Can their loyalty to one another transcend the damages of a past that has become almost too dangerous to examine?

With scalpel-sharp insight, Esther Freud excavates the most intimate relationships of our lives, laying bare the fear and longing, the secrets and mistrust. My Sister and Other Lovers is an irresistible exploration of love, family and freedom in all its forms.

'Slender, perfect and sparkling ... I'm stricken with love for this book' - Meg Mason

About the Author: Esther Freud

Esther Freud trained as an actress before writing her first novel, Hideous Kinky, which was shortlisted for the John Llewellyn Rhys prize and made into a film starring Kate Winslet. After publishing her second novel, Peerless Flats, she was chosen as one of Granta’s Best Young British novelists. Her other books include The Sea House, Lucky Break, and Mr Mac and Me, which won Best Novel in the East Anglian Book Awards. She contributes regularly to newspapers and magazines, and teaches creative writing with her own local group. Her first full length play Stitchers was produced at the Jermyn St Theatre in 2018, and in 2019 she was made a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. I Couldn’t Love You More is her ninth novel. She lives in London

About the Host: Meg Mason

Meg Mason began her career at the Financial Times and The Times of London. Her work has since appeared in The Sunday Times, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Sunday Telegraph. She has written humour for The New Yorker and Sunday STYLE, monthly columns for GQ and InsideOut and is now a regular contributor to Vogue, ELLE, Stellar and marie claire. Her first book, a memoir of motherhood, Say It Again in a Nice Voice (HarperCollins) was published in 2012. Her second, a novel, You Be Mother (HarperCollins) was published in August 2017. She lives in Sydney with her husband and two daughters.

About Gertrude & Alice Cafe Bookstore

Rated as one of the top 10 bookstores in the world by National Geographic, Gertrude & Alice Cafe Bookstore is an oasis for writers, readers, and coffee lovers. Books overflow from the shelves of their store, featuring a mix of new, second-hand, antiquarian and rare books. Stay a while & enjoy some homemade chai, and amazing coffee, and unearth a book treasure or two. Read more about the bookstore's story here, and about the real Gertrude & Alice here.

'Both delicate and profound – about how relationships bind us together and pull us apart' - Tracy Chevalier