The Death of the Heart

Written by Elizabeth Bowen

Narrated by Lucy Scott

'Being in love was like China: you knew it was there, and no one needed to tell you it existed. But you could not lay your finger on it.'

A poignant coming-of-age tale set in pre-war London, The Death of the Heart is often classed as one of the best modern novels of all time.

First published in 1938, The Death of the Heart follows the story of sixteen-year-old orphan, Portia Quayne, who moves to London to live with her cold and emotionally repressed half-brother, Thomas, and his wife. Somewhat naïve and pining for love, Portia soon becomes infatuated with the charming yet shallow Eddie, a friend of her sister-in-law's. Devastatingly, Portia's illusions about love and family begin to disintegrate when her trust is shattered by Eddie's manipulation and her brother's indifference. Portia's inner world – one which used to be characterised by vulnerability, longing and optimism – becomes jaded by her environment's emotional hypocrisy. Elegant, layered and brimming with emotional insight, Bowen's novel is a masterful study of the loss of innocence. This audiobook edition is skilfully narrated by Lucy Scott.
Elizabeth Bowen (1899 – 1973) was an English-Irish novelist, essayist and short story writer. Much of her work bridges the modernist and postmodernist eras, and centres on life during the war in London. Today she remains a major figure in twentieth century literature.

• Language: English
• Publisher: SNR Audio
• Release date: Aug 28, 2025
• ISBN: 9781836770374

Elizabeth Bowen

Elizabeth Bowen (1899–1973) was an Anglo-Irish novelist, short story writer, and essayist celebrated for her precise, lyrical prose and her keen psychological insight. Born in Dublin and raised partly in County Cork, she drew deeply on the landscapes, houses, and tensions of Ireland in her early fiction, while later works often explored the moral and emotional upheavals of wartime London. Over a career spanning more than four decades, Bowen produced acclaimed novels such as The Heat of the Day and The Death of the Heart, as well as finely crafted short stories. A chronicler of shifting worlds—whether the fading Anglo-Irish gentry or the fragile civility of a city under siege—Bowen combined elegance and wit with a sharp sense of the undercurrents shaping human lives.