Disaster catapults three children into the care of their Caribbean grandparents,before another relative, elusive and perhaps unstable, makes a conflicting claimto guardianship. Balancing domestic calamity against her own compulsivewriting, Aria faces physical and psychological threats as a pandemic creeps upon the world and the country moves into lockdown.

By Such a Parting Lightoffers a humorous and poignant tale of aging and of coming of age, and it takesa mischievous approach to the multiple meanings of retirement. A must for all readers of Caribbean and island literature - for readers with ataste for realism that blends seamlessly into strains of the marvelous and gothic- the novel's themes of loss and separation, love and resilience, are universallyappealing.

The book personalizes local and international violence and terror bybringing it all home to a small country in an international context of uncontainedinfection and catastrophic politics. Turning an astonished eye on developednations from the frail shelter of a tiny island, the tale unveils alternative notionsof civilization and enlightenment.

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