The Quiet Drink

by Deborah Moggach

Claudia's husband has left her for somebody softer and more doting. When Claudia meets Steve Mullen, a cosmetics rep, over a quiet drink, the consequences are astounding.

220 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1980

About the author

Deborah Moggach is a British writer, born Deborah Hough on 28 June 1948. She has written fifteen novels to date, including The Ex-Wives, Tulip Fever, and, most recently, These Foolish Things. She has adapted many of her novels as TV dramas and has also written several film scripts, including the BAFTA-nominated screenplay for Pride & Prejudice. She has also written two collections of short stories and a stage play. In February 2005, Moggach was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters degree by her Alma Mater, the University of Bristol . She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, a former Chair of the Society of Authors, and is on the executive committee of PEN.

Reviews

[Pam Keevil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in the 80s, it might come across as dated for some readers except it is a great reminder of pre internet, pre mobile phone days when people still needed 2p pieces for the public phone, could smoke in pubs and women wore Crimplene suits. As always, the characters are well observed and the flips between the stories and the POV are easily followed.
A great timepiece that still deals with the eternal challenges of relationships.

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very light, dated (a bit) but perfectly readable, especially as an attempt to clear my bookshelves of ones I'm unlikely to want to read a third time.

[Susan]

Current London and couples disintegrating

[Gillian · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 and a half stars. I like Deborah Moggach's writing, and I enjoyed the trip back to the eighties.

[Carol Griffiths · Rating 3 out of 5]

An entertaining and only slightly dated story of couples in London of the 1970s. Good characters and wryly amusing.

[Esther Huntington-Whiteley · Rating 3 out of 5]

'When married she had seemed so independent. When married it was easy.'

There were some very good bits, but mostly I was just lost and trying to figure out connections in the story.

I’m intrigued by Deborah Moggach’s writing style, though, so I will read more.

[Jayne Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gentle humour, relationships, witty writing. All the sort of things Deborah Moggach does best, in this short, very readable novel. I particularly liked the section on the use of initials to sign internal memos, cleverly worked into a plot device.

[GaiB · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5stars - well written quick read that doesn’t end as you expect and evokes the eighties zeitgeist