When your life is ruined, you look for some sense of renewed purpose. This is what A Stolen Season is all about – three lives that demand re-examination. Each focal character takes their turn as narrator, and the book is sectioned into chapters around these, each interspersing through the other’s narrative.

The first narrative is definitely the highlight of the novel. The aptly named Adam goes off to Iraq and comes back in pieces. Almost his every movement is dependent upon a futuristic mechanical body, hinting of devastating injuries and deformities. Added to this challenge is his dependence upon his wife – a woman he intends to leave.

Now, he must return to the marital home and try to find a way for her not to resent him. His injuries redefine their relationship, and Hall lovingly explores their shared sense of entrapment – and connection.

Although arguably the most damaged in the text, Adam is also the most determined to find meaning and transcendence. He devotes himself to exposing the lies about the war, using his mangled body as evidence.

The second largest narrative is more bizarre. Marianna has been ruined by men – mainly a man who married her under false pretences. She is now travelling on his money, slowly making her way to an ancient temple where she ponders if she has a role in the fulfilling prophecies about the end of the world.

Finally, John Phillip’s life has been destroyed by money – and the shallow lives of the wealthy. He is bequeathed some subversive drawings by Turner that provide him with the perfect vehicle to show the people in his world exactly what he thinks of them. It’s a short narrative, entertaining, but lacking the emotional pull of the first.

Although I raced through the second and third narratives – always focused on getting back to Adam – Hall does provide a balanced exploration of the different ways we can feel imprisoned by our circumstances. Worth a look.

Reviewed by Lauren Cook