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Go Gentle

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What to expect

'I ADORED THIS NOVEL' NINA STIBBE
'LOADED WITH MARIA SEMPLE'S SIGNATURE WIT' BONNIE GARMUS
'SMART, FUNNY AND DEVASTATING IN A GREAT WAY' JENNETTE MCCURDY

Adora Hazzard has it all figured out. A contented divorcée, she relishes her teenage daughter, her job as a moral tutor for an old-money family and the bliss of finally being solo.

Alone but far from lonely, she's also quietly assembling a 'coven' of like-minded single women on the sixth floor of the legendary Ansonia building on New York's Upper West Side. Together, they share groceries, dog walkers - and one dirty little secret: despite their age, they're only just getting started.

Adora's life philosophy is simple: want only what you already have. But could a chance encounter with a charming stranger threaten her joyfully curated life and leave Adora suddenly wanting more - even if she must risk everything to get it?

Go Gentle is a thrilling story of one woman's mid-life transformation, a romance with wit and a globe-trotting mother-daughter story, all wrapped in a mystery with a socko twist.

Critics Review

Semple has created something rare in Go Gentle: a story that's both deeply intellectual and still accessible. This novel is what happens when someone who understands trauma writes about healing. Smart, funny, and devastating in a great way. Read this book
Jennette McCurdy, bestselling author of I'm Glad My Mom Died
Highly original and loaded with Maria Semple's signature wit, Go Gentle takes us on a fast, wild ride through the days and nights of a philosopher for whom the meaning of life - and how to get through it - is completely upended by the one thing she never saw coming. Love
Bonnie Garmus, author of Lessons in Chemistry
I adored this novel and it made me very happy. Go Gentle combines Semple's giant intellect, genius thinking, rich, witty dialogue and screwall comedy. Brimming with big ideas about art and philosophy and questions about the way we live our lives, this is an intricately plotted mystery, intrigue and romance with a glorious cast of characters
Nina Stibbe, author of Love, Nina
This is the kind of book I dream of. Hilarious, urbane, touching but never sentimental and just brilliantly plotted. It's about so many things - art world shenanigans, toxic Hollywood writer rooms, stoic philosophers, and above all, love, love, love. Maria Semple graces her readers with the intrigue, wisdom and belly laughs we deserve
Gary Shteyngart, author of Vera, or Faith and Our Country Friends
Manic and frank, playful and wise, Go Gentle rampages through reality, giving us glimpses into Hollywood writer's rooms, the lives of the fabulously wealthy New York elite, art heists and philosophical debates, but perhaps most preciously it allows us to glimpse a vision of cronehood as empowering and sexy and fun. Adora Hazzard is a heroine for the ages
Rufi Thorpe, author of Margo’s Got Money Troubles
What a delight this witty screwball caper through philosophy, the art world and late-blooming love is
Bookseller
I couldn't have loved this unbelievable treat of a novel more. Funny and clever and sexy and uplifting
Francesca Segal
Semple blends intrigue, humour, and irony into a story that splits open one character's life and might just inspire you to make yours a little bigger too.
HARPER'S BAZAAR, Books everyone will be talking about in 2026

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