OLD FRIENDS, NEW LIES

Twenty years ago, they were the best of friends. When Connie invites her university gang on the holiday of a lifetime, a safari in the Kalahari, they have little in common anymore. Is getting them back together a terrible mistake?

Connie is lonely. With her children at secondary school and an ambitious MP husband, who is regularly adulterous, she is searching for her own purpose in life. She feels insecure next to Sara, a driven, defiantly single barrister, and has conflicted feelings towards her old flame, the freshly-divorced Luke, whose own secrets threaten to overwhelm him.

Despite the undercurrent of tension, they are drawn into the adventure and begin to enjoy each other once more, a million miles away from their daily concerns. They finally have space to explore what really matters to them. But a series of events and revelations bring new challenges to the group.

Conservative lawyer Matt doubtfully confides he is having a surrogate baby, Sara questions her own professionalism as her latest murder trial comes under scrutiny, Daniel discovers his yearning to buy land and put down roots, which his partner Alan does not share, and Lizzie struggles with feelings of jealousy that are closer to home than is comfortable for anyone.

As their lives start to unravel, they see how they are all linked together. New relationships are formed, old ones run their course, and more news from home brings further tragedy.

Can the stark beauty and calm of the Kalahari help them rediscover the friendship that binds them together? Will they all make it back to London in one piece?

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Twenty years ago, they were the best of friends. When Connie invites her university gang on the holiday of a lifetime - a safari in the Kalahari - they have little in common anymore. Is getting them back together a terrible mistake? Despite the undercurrent of tension, they are drawn into the adventure and begin to enjoy each other again, a million miles away from their daily concerns. They finally have space to explore what really matters. But a series of events and revelations bring new challenges to the group. As their lives start to unravel, they see how they are all linked together. New relationships are formed, old ones run their course, and news from home brings further tragedy. The Art of Unpacking Your Life is a beautiful book about friendship, growing up, and that, despite growing apart, your oldest friends can be the ones to sustain you through life's greatest sadness and deepest joy.