Description: "Owen Sheers'sResistanceis an astonishing and compelling study of human nature against the backdrop of an occupied village. Sheers plumbs the depths of love, cowardice, bravery, and the devastating effects of blind patriotism, and in doing so exposes the best and worst of humanity in unexpected and haunting ways." Sara Gruen, author ofWater for Elephants "[The] mixture of brutality and kindness is the great insight ofResistance [The novel] demonstrates fiction's unique powerwe might call it the power of the hypothesisto stand outside of recorded history and remind us how complicated and compromising an actual act of resistance might be." New York Times Book Review "Owen Sheers'Resistanceis a literary novel, but it's also a page turner. [It] immediately brings to mind "Dolce," the second part of Irene Nemirovsky'sSuite Francaise, which also treats the deepening feeling between a German officer and a married woman in an occupied land. Sheers' novel is even more exquisitely written and suspenseful than Nemirovsky's, and it held me in its grip until the last page." Chicago Tribune "Emotionally complex, full of local rhythms and color, Sheers' first novel is hard to resist. USA Today "The major accomplishment of this novel is that Sheers never lets his considerable research distract from the focus of his story. He also has a subtle and rather beautiful understanding of emotional nuance, and this plays out among his characters. It's a seductive story, made all the more appealing because it is so credibly set in circumstances that might have been. The reader ends up caring for everyoneWelsh or German or English. To gain empathy for a large cast of characters, all of whom line up on opposing sides of the war, is no small feat. These vulnerable men and women, indeed, become the faces of war." Washington Post "The finest parahistorical fiction leaves heroes and villains behind and begins with humanity. Such is the case with Owen Sheers' taut, beautifully observed first novel. Sheers has already published two books of poetry, andResistancefurther exhibits his artistry. It's not just a question of his tossing off textured, lovely or haunting metaphors but of making them resonate and reveal. He also excels at something more magical: finding the true, often unexpected responses for his characters, Welsh and German. Sheers emerges as a gifted storyteller who can meld the literal and figurative to stunningand tragiceffect." Newsday "Owen Sheers plausibly presents the shudder-invoking alternate reality of Britain losing the Second World War. A compelling book." New York Daily News "A beautiful, vital novel, about the paths that can lead to war, and out of it." Nadeem Aslam, author ofMaps for Lost Lovers "A remarkable work of speculative imagination. Sheers writes with an austere, bracing beauty perfectly attuned to the stark lives (and loves) of his characters. The result is that rare gift, a literary thriller whose pages we turn slowly, even regretfully, savoring every word." Peter Ho Davies, author ofThe Welsh Girl "Owen Sheers' alternate history of WWII beautifully illuminates that which is unalterable: the power of love and longing, community and courage." Jennifer Vanderbes, author ofEaster Island "With its complex characters and arresting plot,Resistanceis an irresistible r

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