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Permanence
From one of Granta’s Best Young British Novelists, the critically acclaimed author of the speculative dreamscapes The Water Cure and Blue Ticket, comes the story of a clandestine affair and an alternate city designed to foster it…
Clara and Francis are in love, but nobody knows it. For months they have been stealing away from their respective lives, leaving no trace of their relationship behind. Their time together is always excruciatingly sweet and all too short. Until one day they wake up in an apartment neither of them recognizes, with no memory of how they got there.
The Other City is a self-contained sanctuary where adulterers live openly as couples. Here there are fountains and old town squares and perfect cafes with checkered tablecloths. Ripe fruits wait on the counter each morning, invisible threads bind each lover to the other, and their primary responsibility is to enjoy one another. Contact with the real world is impossible and the city’s whims are mysterious—but now those stolen afternoons can last forever.
How much would you sacrifice for a life you never thought possible? And how long can you stay in paradise before the cracks start to show?
An exploration of desire, novelty and choice, Permanence explores the tantalizing quandary of what, if anything, can withstand the daily toll of “forever”?
Clara and Francis are in love, but nobody knows it. For months they have been stealing away from their respective lives, leaving no trace of their relationship behind. Their time together is always excruciatingly sweet and all too short. Until one day they wake up in an apartment neither of them recognizes, with no memory of how they got there.
The Other City is a self-contained sanctuary where adulterers live openly as couples. Here there are fountains and old town squares and perfect cafes with checkered tablecloths. Ripe fruits wait on the counter each morning, invisible threads bind each lover to the other, and their primary responsibility is to enjoy one another. Contact with the real world is impossible and the city’s whims are mysterious—but now those stolen afternoons can last forever.
How much would you sacrifice for a life you never thought possible? And how long can you stay in paradise before the cracks start to show?
An exploration of desire, novelty and choice, Permanence explores the tantalizing quandary of what, if anything, can withstand the daily toll of “forever”?
240 pages, Hardcover
First published April 2, 2026
About the author
Sophie Mackintosh
18 books1,058 followersSophie Mackintosh was born in South Wales in 1988, and is currently based in London. Her fiction, essays and poetry have been published by Granta, The White Review, The New York Times and The Stinging Fly, among others. Her short story ‘Grace’ was the winner of the 2016 White Review Short Story Prize, and her story ‘The Running Ones’ won the Virago/Stylist Short Story competition in 2016.
Sophie’s debut novel The Water Cure was published by Hamish Hamilton in the UK in Spring 2018 and by Doubleday in the US in early 2019 to critical acclaim, and was long-listed for the Man Booker Prize.
Her second novel Blue Ticket will be published in Spring 2020.
Sophie’s debut novel The Water Cure was published by Hamish Hamilton in the UK in Spring 2018 and by Doubleday in the US in early 2019 to critical acclaim, and was long-listed for the Man Booker Prize.
Her second novel Blue Ticket will be published in Spring 2020.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 113 reviews
April 21, 2026
A departure from Mackintosh's usual hazy, clinical writing, Permanence is a more accessible story than her trio of previously published works. We follow the pair of lovers, Francis and Clara, as they navigate their illicit affair and the complications of secrecy. When they awake in an idyllic city where they can finally be together, they are forced to reckon with their past and the trajectory of their relationship.
Permanence doesn't offer particularly likable characters (Francis especially), but I think most readers will relate to Clara in some capacity. How we cling to relationships that no longer serve us is often rooted in naivety, insecurity, or lust, and I think her character arc embodies each of these three themes well. The concept of the novel is unique and has a lot of potential, but selfishly, I wish it were explored in other facets or from different perspectives. I never warmed up to either Francis or Clara entirely, but perhaps that was the point.
Despite my critiques, I did really adore the setting and how it evolved alongside our narrators; the literal fracturing of the rooms they inhabit, the lustre fading, and the disorienting nature of the city they can never quite figure out. I'm not quite sure how to describe the writing other than very visual, and it's superbly done.
Like always, Sophie Mackintosh has beautiful prose and offers the reader a lush, immersive backdrop to the novel. I think this will be the most commercially palatable of her novels, but I found myself wanting more of the depravity and ambiguity I've come to love in her writing. By no means a bad read, but not quite the usual caliber I've come to expect from one of my favourite writers. Regardless, a solid book I'd recommend for musings on lust and compromise.
Thank you to Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster for the ARC! Permanence releases April 21st, 2026.
Permanence doesn't offer particularly likable characters (Francis especially), but I think most readers will relate to Clara in some capacity. How we cling to relationships that no longer serve us is often rooted in naivety, insecurity, or lust, and I think her character arc embodies each of these three themes well. The concept of the novel is unique and has a lot of potential, but selfishly, I wish it were explored in other facets or from different perspectives. I never warmed up to either Francis or Clara entirely, but perhaps that was the point.
Despite my critiques, I did really adore the setting and how it evolved alongside our narrators; the literal fracturing of the rooms they inhabit, the lustre fading, and the disorienting nature of the city they can never quite figure out. I'm not quite sure how to describe the writing other than very visual, and it's superbly done.
Like always, Sophie Mackintosh has beautiful prose and offers the reader a lush, immersive backdrop to the novel. I think this will be the most commercially palatable of her novels, but I found myself wanting more of the depravity and ambiguity I've come to love in her writing. By no means a bad read, but not quite the usual caliber I've come to expect from one of my favourite writers. Regardless, a solid book I'd recommend for musings on lust and compromise.
Thank you to Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster for the ARC! Permanence releases April 21st, 2026.
March 6, 2026
My god, this is excellent. On the surface, Permanence is a story about an affair, but it’s really asking a bigger question: in a world where romantic love is supposed to be everything, could it ever actually be enough on its own? I think we all know the answer (or at least we should).
The novel follows Clara and Francis, two lovers whose relationship exists entirely in secret: hotel rooms, carefully managed lies, and the constant need to return to their real lives.
But one day they wake up together in a strange city populated entirely by other adulterous couples. Suddenly their relationship can exist out in the open, without hiding. At first it feels like a dream come true. But the city shifts and changes depending on the state of their relationship, and when one of them hurts the other, the aggressor receives a physical wound. What begins as fantasy slowly starts to feel more like a trap.
Books like this almost always get my attention. I love stories that explore what people are willing to sacrifice for even a sliver of happiness—and whether the other person is willing to sacrifice the same. Clara, in particular, feels recognizable in the way she clings to a relationship that isn’t really serving her, driven by longing and the hope that love might somehow be enough.
The writing is dreamy and immersive, and the shifting city becomes the most fascinating part of the story—beautiful at first, then increasingly unsettling as the fantasy of permanence begins to unravel.
It's a meditation on desire, memory, and the strange consequences of getting exactly what you think you want.
The novel follows Clara and Francis, two lovers whose relationship exists entirely in secret: hotel rooms, carefully managed lies, and the constant need to return to their real lives.
But one day they wake up together in a strange city populated entirely by other adulterous couples. Suddenly their relationship can exist out in the open, without hiding. At first it feels like a dream come true. But the city shifts and changes depending on the state of their relationship, and when one of them hurts the other, the aggressor receives a physical wound. What begins as fantasy slowly starts to feel more like a trap.
Books like this almost always get my attention. I love stories that explore what people are willing to sacrifice for even a sliver of happiness—and whether the other person is willing to sacrifice the same. Clara, in particular, feels recognizable in the way she clings to a relationship that isn’t really serving her, driven by longing and the hope that love might somehow be enough.
The writing is dreamy and immersive, and the shifting city becomes the most fascinating part of the story—beautiful at first, then increasingly unsettling as the fantasy of permanence begins to unravel.
It's a meditation on desire, memory, and the strange consequences of getting exactly what you think you want.
April 5, 2026
Sophie Mackintosh always leaves me a little disoriented in the best way. Permanence is no exception.
February 13, 2026
i can see that Mackintosh's writing is beautiful and the concept of this book is original. never have i ever read something like this. but—why not many things actually happens? i just got bored. i didn't like how it went, i only wished the two of them would get into some real conflict to make it more exciting. because honestly, nothing much happened. nothing really stood out.
one bonus star for the original concept, but other than that, meh. and why are people so obsessed with books with no quotation marks? do they know it actually takes more effort to read them? 😭
one bonus star for the original concept, but other than that, meh. and why are people so obsessed with books with no quotation marks? do they know it actually takes more effort to read them? 😭
Did Not Finish
October 24, 2025I'm grateful to this book because it unlocked an interesting reflection and conversation about DNFing.
Now, that might sound harsh as a start, so I'll go over my experience reading this book up to about the 50% mark first. This is just my experience so YMMV as per usual.
Me DNFing Permanence:
PROS
* It's quite nicely written, certainly has the dreamy, unreal vibe down
* The characters were realistic. They could have been my neighbours, or people I'd walk past in the street. They were (very) flawed, and that was reflected in their relationship
* The concept - a "dream town" of sorts for adulterers - was very interesting
CONS
* I'm sorry, I'm bad at putting up with head-hopping and lack of punctuation in dialogues. Sure, it can be read and understood. But did we need to...?
* The characters were insufferable. I mean, most likely intentional and probs to be expected when I said they were realistic, right? I have read and enjoyed books that followed obnoxious and despicable characters reaaaally close up (Yellowface comes to mind). But these two were somehow annoying enough that I couldn't stand being in their heads for long stretches of time
* Slooooooooooooooooooow paced. Nothing against slow-paced books. But when a short book like this takes forever to get through, and feels like you're making little to no progress, you know there's a problem.
Now, that problem might be with me (and probably is). I put down this book on Saturday, and was unable to pick it up in the two days after that. The mere idea of reading a few pages was unbearable. And that's how I knew that it was time to DNF.
I was resisting it because I intended for this book to be a bit of a foray into literary fiction, which I don't read much of, and I wanted to see it through to the end.
But at the end of the day, I read for fun. I have many other hobbies and not enough free time for everything I'd like to do as it is (probably like everyone else here).
It suddenly struck me that life is short, too short to waste time on a book I'm not enjoying, or even on a book I feel "meh" about, when I already want to read a lifetime worth of books.
I could die tomorrow, and I don't want to die reading 'Permanence' (or maybe I do, that title would be kind of ironic xD) which feels like self-imposed homework.
Don't you worry though, I shall continue to hate-read until I either get bored of it or evolve as a person, whatever happens first :D
And with that said, let this be one of many proud DNFs to come! Some with reviews, some without, but that list is gonna grow. And so is the 5* list!
So go DNF those meh books with me. Don't suffer through them.
Now, that might sound harsh as a start, so I'll go over my experience reading this book up to about the 50% mark first. This is just my experience so YMMV as per usual.
Me DNFing Permanence:
PROS
* It's quite nicely written, certainly has the dreamy, unreal vibe down
* The characters were realistic. They could have been my neighbours, or people I'd walk past in the street. They were (very) flawed, and that was reflected in their relationship
* The concept - a "dream town" of sorts for adulterers - was very interesting
CONS
* I'm sorry, I'm bad at putting up with head-hopping and lack of punctuation in dialogues. Sure, it can be read and understood. But did we need to...?
* The characters were insufferable. I mean, most likely intentional and probs to be expected when I said they were realistic, right? I have read and enjoyed books that followed obnoxious and despicable characters reaaaally close up (Yellowface comes to mind). But these two were somehow annoying enough that I couldn't stand being in their heads for long stretches of time
* Slooooooooooooooooooow paced. Nothing against slow-paced books. But when a short book like this takes forever to get through, and feels like you're making little to no progress, you know there's a problem.
Now, that problem might be with me (and probably is). I put down this book on Saturday, and was unable to pick it up in the two days after that. The mere idea of reading a few pages was unbearable. And that's how I knew that it was time to DNF.
I was resisting it because I intended for this book to be a bit of a foray into literary fiction, which I don't read much of, and I wanted to see it through to the end.
But at the end of the day, I read for fun. I have many other hobbies and not enough free time for everything I'd like to do as it is (probably like everyone else here).
It suddenly struck me that life is short, too short to waste time on a book I'm not enjoying, or even on a book I feel "meh" about, when I already want to read a lifetime worth of books.
I could die tomorrow, and I don't want to die reading 'Permanence' (or maybe I do, that title would be kind of ironic xD) which feels like self-imposed homework.
Don't you worry though, I shall continue to hate-read until I either get bored of it or evolve as a person, whatever happens first :D
And with that said, let this be one of many proud DNFs to come! Some with reviews, some without, but that list is gonna grow. And so is the 5* list!
So go DNF those meh books with me. Don't suffer through them.
September 25, 2025
The story had a hazy quality, especially the alternate city in the beginning, and the characters seemed sketched in rather than fully realized. I think the lack of characterization and building up of the core relationship is what bothered me most; the story hinges entirely on the illicit relationship of Clara and Francis, and yet I saw very little of what drew them so strongly together, I just could not get invested. Yes, the page count is short, but there was a lot of repetition that I think could have been replaced with more character development.
The concept of the alternate city is interesting, but I could not relate to the characters being so in lust/love that they often preferred it over the real world that contained everything else in their lives besides their affair.
The concept of the alternate city is interesting, but I could not relate to the characters being so in lust/love that they often preferred it over the real world that contained everything else in their lives besides their affair.
April 21, 2026
"To have wanted for so long, and then to have. To ask and to receive in attendant simplicity. To have existed mainly within absence and then to have the abundance of here: a word so assured, both statement and answer."
This book had such an ethereal atmosphere. It was like a dream, really. And though much of it was like Groundhog Day, the pattern of these two characters was magnetic. I couldn't wait to find out how it ended.
Clara and Francis are the most secret of lovers. No one knows they escape together in an alternate world. They wonder if it's a dream. And somehow they know it isn't. In this other world, the impermanence, they long to make it eternal. But there is a cost. A weight to belonging in this new reality. How long can they remain here before paradise falls apart?
The concept of this novel grabbed me by the collar and pulled me in. I was completely caught up in this otherworldly relationship, and then in the lives Clara and Francis lived upon returning to the known reality. The juxtaposition of these two worlds was the most captivating part of this book. And it is brilliantly executed. I am not so sure I'm ok with this new trend surfacing more and more in writing- the celebration of infidelity. I get that the writing of romance hinges partly on the idea of improbability. I understand that romance writers often must ask themselves, "Why shouldn't these two be together?" I also understand that complex characters, their choices, and behaviors are essential to great writing. Why does infidelity have to be the answer? There are so many other taboo reasons for characters to fall in love without creating a kitsch romance novel. The writing, though - I will return to Sophie Mackintosh in the future.
Thank you NetGalley, Avid Reader Press/Simon & Schuster, and Sophie Mackintosh for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.
This book had such an ethereal atmosphere. It was like a dream, really. And though much of it was like Groundhog Day, the pattern of these two characters was magnetic. I couldn't wait to find out how it ended.
Clara and Francis are the most secret of lovers. No one knows they escape together in an alternate world. They wonder if it's a dream. And somehow they know it isn't. In this other world, the impermanence, they long to make it eternal. But there is a cost. A weight to belonging in this new reality. How long can they remain here before paradise falls apart?
The concept of this novel grabbed me by the collar and pulled me in. I was completely caught up in this otherworldly relationship, and then in the lives Clara and Francis lived upon returning to the known reality. The juxtaposition of these two worlds was the most captivating part of this book. And it is brilliantly executed. I am not so sure I'm ok with this new trend surfacing more and more in writing- the celebration of infidelity. I get that the writing of romance hinges partly on the idea of improbability. I understand that romance writers often must ask themselves, "Why shouldn't these two be together?" I also understand that complex characters, their choices, and behaviors are essential to great writing. Why does infidelity have to be the answer? There are so many other taboo reasons for characters to fall in love without creating a kitsch romance novel. The writing, though - I will return to Sophie Mackintosh in the future.
Thank you NetGalley, Avid Reader Press/Simon & Schuster, and Sophie Mackintosh for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.
March 30, 2026
Sealed off, secret, sharpened by the knowledge that it shouldn’t survive— there’s always something intoxicating about the things we can’t have. This novel is a door to charged spaces: Clara and Francis stealing hours from thin air, building something fragile and electric in the margins of reality and a dream. And those margins collapse into a strange, self-contained city where pairs live openly and shamelessly together, the fantasy arriving fully formed— no more hiding, no more leaving. Just desire, uninterrupted. And no where left to go.
But the novel is less interested in indulgence than in what indulgence costs. The city offers a seductive type of devotion— routine as intimacy, pleasure as obligation— until the very thing that once felt urgent begins to calcify. What happens when longing is given everything it asked for? Mackintosh understands that desire thrives on absence, on risk, on balance, on the possibility of loss, and she lets that tension build beneath every carefully rendered detail. The result is a love story that feels both lush and claustrophobic, like something too beautiful to touch without consequence.
What you’re left with is the question the book refuses to soften: how much of yourself are you willing to sacrifice to sustain a feeling? There’s an aching brutality in the answer. This is a novel of seduction, you included, dear reader. Imperceptibly, the narrative tightens its grip, revealing permanence not as promise, but as a kind of beautiful, irreversible mistake. Yearn at your own risk.
But the novel is less interested in indulgence than in what indulgence costs. The city offers a seductive type of devotion— routine as intimacy, pleasure as obligation— until the very thing that once felt urgent begins to calcify. What happens when longing is given everything it asked for? Mackintosh understands that desire thrives on absence, on risk, on balance, on the possibility of loss, and she lets that tension build beneath every carefully rendered detail. The result is a love story that feels both lush and claustrophobic, like something too beautiful to touch without consequence.
What you’re left with is the question the book refuses to soften: how much of yourself are you willing to sacrifice to sustain a feeling? There’s an aching brutality in the answer. This is a novel of seduction, you included, dear reader. Imperceptibly, the narrative tightens its grip, revealing permanence not as promise, but as a kind of beautiful, irreversible mistake. Yearn at your own risk.
April 21, 2026
What if you and the person you're having an affair with could test your relationship by living in a world with the perfect conditions? Where you can exist openly and freely, have none of the stress of real life, jobs, family, etc. Would your love be able to grow and prosper, or would your relationship crumble because it's built on the allure of "what could be"?
This is the premise for Sophie Mackintosh's newest release, and this is one of the smartest, most engaging books I've ever read. Reading it felt like watching a Black Mirror episode, and it made me feel every feeling- sadness, anger, frustration, everything! In our story we follow Francis and Clara's love affair- typically they meet up in hotel rooms to escape from real life, including getting away from Francis's wife and children. But one day they wake up in an unknown place. A sunny, clean, beautiful city where they have their own apartment and everyone is in a couple, seemingly also having affairs, money appearing in their pockets, food and wine and coffee readily available, and all of their needs met. They exist in this reality as long as possible until one of them hurts the other, and then they get sent back to real life, where no time at all has passed. If they want to return to the other world, they both need to wish to return. Each time they return, the world is in a different state- sometimes beautiful, sometimes sad and stormy, sometimes scary and destructive. And they are forced to reckon with the reality of their relationship- do they actually want to be in a relationship because they love each other, or is the "escape" aspect of the an affair the entire draw. If the allure of secrets, and hiding, and "will we won't we" was taken out- would the relationship work?
I think this book is fascinating and explore this concept in such a slow and delicate way. There are sometimes throughout this story you root for Clara and Francis, and then other times where you hate them. They are both complex, their story is simple, but this book is devastating. And it never seeks to truly answer this question, but to explore it and play with it. Sophie Mackintosh is a genius, and this might have surpassed my love for her other books and have become my favorite. I think if you like Black Mirror episodes like San Junipero, this is the book for you!
This is the premise for Sophie Mackintosh's newest release, and this is one of the smartest, most engaging books I've ever read. Reading it felt like watching a Black Mirror episode, and it made me feel every feeling- sadness, anger, frustration, everything! In our story we follow Francis and Clara's love affair- typically they meet up in hotel rooms to escape from real life, including getting away from Francis's wife and children. But one day they wake up in an unknown place. A sunny, clean, beautiful city where they have their own apartment and everyone is in a couple, seemingly also having affairs, money appearing in their pockets, food and wine and coffee readily available, and all of their needs met. They exist in this reality as long as possible until one of them hurts the other, and then they get sent back to real life, where no time at all has passed. If they want to return to the other world, they both need to wish to return. Each time they return, the world is in a different state- sometimes beautiful, sometimes sad and stormy, sometimes scary and destructive. And they are forced to reckon with the reality of their relationship- do they actually want to be in a relationship because they love each other, or is the "escape" aspect of the an affair the entire draw. If the allure of secrets, and hiding, and "will we won't we" was taken out- would the relationship work?
I think this book is fascinating and explore this concept in such a slow and delicate way. There are sometimes throughout this story you root for Clara and Francis, and then other times where you hate them. They are both complex, their story is simple, but this book is devastating. And it never seeks to truly answer this question, but to explore it and play with it. Sophie Mackintosh is a genius, and this might have surpassed my love for her other books and have become my favorite. I think if you like Black Mirror episodes like San Junipero, this is the book for you!
April 24, 2026
Permanence presents a compelling premise: affair partners are occasionally transported to an otherworldly city where they can exist freely among others like them. I was immediately drawn to this concept and the questions it raises about desire/fantasy/boundaries.
While the setting intrigued me, I found myself less invested in the central relationship. Clara’s devotion to Francis felt static in a way that left me completely unmoved, so the underlying sense of longing didn't really land for me.
I understand the choice to keep the concept focused, but it felt a little too narrow. The novel centers a specific vision of affairs as rooted in sustained longing for an alternate life, which hardly reflects the range of extramarital activities we find in reality. I suspect this was intended to heighten the emotional stakes, but it had the opposite effect for me.
Like in her other works, Mackintosh’s prose is atmospheric and descriptive in a way I'm sure my peers would enjoy but it typically doesn't work for me (and here is no exception).
Ultimately, I appreciated the ambition of the concept, but would have preferred this either as a short story or as a concept fleshed out with multiple focal couples. This felt a bit like a blend of The Ten Year Affair and Acts of Desperation filtered through Maggie O'Farrell's writing style in a way that didn't work for me as well as I had hoped.
While the setting intrigued me, I found myself less invested in the central relationship. Clara’s devotion to Francis felt static in a way that left me completely unmoved, so the underlying sense of longing didn't really land for me.
I understand the choice to keep the concept focused, but it felt a little too narrow. The novel centers a specific vision of affairs as rooted in sustained longing for an alternate life, which hardly reflects the range of extramarital activities we find in reality. I suspect this was intended to heighten the emotional stakes, but it had the opposite effect for me.
Like in her other works, Mackintosh’s prose is atmospheric and descriptive in a way I'm sure my peers would enjoy but it typically doesn't work for me (and here is no exception).
Ultimately, I appreciated the ambition of the concept, but would have preferred this either as a short story or as a concept fleshed out with multiple focal couples. This felt a bit like a blend of The Ten Year Affair and Acts of Desperation filtered through Maggie O'Farrell's writing style in a way that didn't work for me as well as I had hoped.
February 6, 2026
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC, unfortunately had to DNF around 35%. Author has written some beautiful paragraphs and the concept I found intriguing. But the formatting just didn’t jive with me. The lack of quotation throughout made my brain feel like it was working harder for some reason.
April 16, 2026
Welcome to Eden for cheaters! Everything is perfect and, better still, your love is no longer a dirty secret. The only way you can fall back to the real world (and to that nagging wife you hate) is by being a dick to the person supposedly love. Easy, right? So, imagine my surprise when Mr. I-can-only-get-it-up-if-I-can-feel-superior-to-the-much-younger-woman-I’m-stringing-along starts ruining their newfound life together!
Maybe lived experience of an affair would make me more compassionate. As it stands, this just feels like a frustrating narrative of a pissy, hypocritical man and a girl who really should know better than to stay with him. When she does leave, I had very little patience for the descriptions of her aching and the pain flaring up like a broken bone.
Maybe lived experience of an affair would make me more compassionate. As it stands, this just feels like a frustrating narrative of a pissy, hypocritical man and a girl who really should know better than to stay with him. When she does leave, I had very little patience for the descriptions of her aching and the pain flaring up like a broken bone.
April 9, 2026
I knew from the premise that I would love this book and feel it to my core; and I did, I loved it and felt it to my core
November 17, 2025
Sophie Mackintosh’s Permanence is a fable about the dilemma of choice and its consequences. She separates the setting of an affair into its own world, where the adulterers have what they have been wishing for: freedom, times, and no commitment. The city challenges the adulterers perspective of entitlement, forcing choice and punishment for their actions.
I’m very interested to see others perspectives on this novel once it’s released, I’m sure there is so much that could be unpacked here!
Honest review in exchange for NetGalley ARC
I’m very interested to see others perspectives on this novel once it’s released, I’m sure there is so much that could be unpacked here!
Honest review in exchange for NetGalley ARC
April 15, 2026
Probably my least favorite Sophie Mackintosh, but it’s Sophie Mackintosh so it’s still going to be beautifully written. I never felt totally bought into Clara and Francis’ relationship, mainly because Francis was mostly a jerk. Also a little repetitive at points — yes, I understand that the city deteriorates along with their relationship — but still a worthwhile read. What can I say, I love Sophie Mackintosh and her weird, otherworldly books, even when they don’t quite work for me.
September 24, 2025
Thank you to NetGalley and Avid Reader Press for an ARC of Permanence.
This was a unique book with very beautiful writing. I did sometimes struggled to stay engaged because there wasn't a lot of action in the storyline, which instead focused more on the characters' private feelings. I would recommend this to anyone looking for an atmospheric, contemplative read.
3.5 stars
This was a unique book with very beautiful writing. I did sometimes struggled to stay engaged because there wasn't a lot of action in the storyline, which instead focused more on the characters' private feelings. I would recommend this to anyone looking for an atmospheric, contemplative read.
3.5 stars
December 9, 2025
3.5 stars, this is for people who enjoy mostly vibes/relationship development, minimal plot. There was a really interesting concept in there, but mostly this book is about the way Sophie Mackintosh can transport you to a setting or to the emotional state of her characters.
I agree with other reviews wishing there was more exploration into some aspects of the story, but I did mostly enjoy it.
I agree with other reviews wishing there was more exploration into some aspects of the story, but I did mostly enjoy it.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
4.5
I ate this up and I hope it pulls me out of my slump moving forward.
The writing is so dreamy and I loved putting the pieces together to understand the alternate world they are inhabiting. I also found myself writing down quotes almost constantly, I wish this wasn't an arc just so I could write some of them here to share since Mackintosh's writing really hit me over and over again (in the best way possible).
Both Clara and Francis are not really likable, though Clara is more so I think and the choice to have her as the main character with the most internal dialogue was a great choice. It in some ways deepened the irredeemable qualities that she had but also gave a window into those qualities and why she acts the way that she does. She really just felt like someone in the wrong place or situation and couldn't get herself out of it. Francis on the other hand, I really enjoyed the exact amount of his thoughts and feelings I had access to, it also made him irredeemable, but all of his choices were more solid and filled with betrayal compared to Clara, especially in those scenes we get of his wife and daughter. I love when characters get to know themselves better through their story arc and I think this was definitely the case for Clara. Both characters felt so tangible, even if the world they were inhibiting didn't and that is great writing.
I am giving this 4.5 stars instead of 5 for no specific reasons, just vibes, but I do think that if I was to read this again, it very well may turn into 5 stars.
I definitely would recommend, even if you are weary of the cheating aspect, as I don't think it is truly as important to the story as I thought it would be. I don't know how else to explain it, but this story is so complicated in many ways that the cheating itself takes a backseat, and I think that is the best case scenario.
Thank you so much to Simon & Schuster, Avid Reader Press, and Netgalley for offering and providing me an advanced, free digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
I ate this up and I hope it pulls me out of my slump moving forward.
The writing is so dreamy and I loved putting the pieces together to understand the alternate world they are inhabiting. I also found myself writing down quotes almost constantly, I wish this wasn't an arc just so I could write some of them here to share since Mackintosh's writing really hit me over and over again (in the best way possible).
Both Clara and Francis are not really likable, though Clara is more so I think and the choice to have her as the main character with the most internal dialogue was a great choice. It in some ways deepened the irredeemable qualities that she had but also gave a window into those qualities and why she acts the way that she does. She really just felt like someone in the wrong place or situation and couldn't get herself out of it. Francis on the other hand, I really enjoyed the exact amount of his thoughts and feelings I had access to, it also made him irredeemable, but all of his choices were more solid and filled with betrayal compared to Clara, especially in those scenes we get of his wife and daughter. I love when characters get to know themselves better through their story arc and I think this was definitely the case for Clara. Both characters felt so tangible, even if the world they were inhibiting didn't and that is great writing.
I am giving this 4.5 stars instead of 5 for no specific reasons, just vibes, but I do think that if I was to read this again, it very well may turn into 5 stars.
I definitely would recommend, even if you are weary of the cheating aspect, as I don't think it is truly as important to the story as I thought it would be. I don't know how else to explain it, but this story is so complicated in many ways that the cheating itself takes a backseat, and I think that is the best case scenario.
Thank you so much to Simon & Schuster, Avid Reader Press, and Netgalley for offering and providing me an advanced, free digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
April 17, 2026
4.25/5⭐ - Speculative literary fiction readers: this book is for you!
(Thank you Avid Reader Press for the ARC, all thoughts are my own)
The first thing I was struck by was Mackintosh’s prose - romantic and descriptive without being verbose. Thought-provoking and mystical without being pretentious. Constantly blurring the lines between grounded realities and metaphysical existences left me feeling like I was in limbo with both of the characters, anxiously waiting for the inevitable.
Permanence follows Clara who is having an affair with a married man named Francis. They never get to be truly together, always sneaking away in hotels and leaving no evidence of their courtship, until one day they wake up together in a city unknown to them. In this city, ever adapting to their moods and no connection to the ‘real’ world, Clara and Francis are given everything they ever wanted, to finally be together… right? Having to hurt one another to leave and long for each other to return, the couple explores what true desire feels like, why they continue this affair and Clara specifically discovers the propulsive need for real connection.
While this novel is very character/relationship driven, which is not really my speed and therefore reflects in my rating, I found the author’s writing to be incredibly dynamic and infatuating. I liked that we didn’t need to explore every practical crevice of this magical city of cheaters and rather let the driving force be created from Clara and Francis’s compulsion for each other. This novel does not romanticize affairs but rather provides a cunning exploration of how they occur, what keeps them driving, and ultimately how they often will never be ‘enough’.
I was pleasantly surprised by this novel, and will definitely be turning into Mackintosh’s future work!
(Thank you Avid Reader Press for the ARC, all thoughts are my own)
The first thing I was struck by was Mackintosh’s prose - romantic and descriptive without being verbose. Thought-provoking and mystical without being pretentious. Constantly blurring the lines between grounded realities and metaphysical existences left me feeling like I was in limbo with both of the characters, anxiously waiting for the inevitable.
Permanence follows Clara who is having an affair with a married man named Francis. They never get to be truly together, always sneaking away in hotels and leaving no evidence of their courtship, until one day they wake up together in a city unknown to them. In this city, ever adapting to their moods and no connection to the ‘real’ world, Clara and Francis are given everything they ever wanted, to finally be together… right? Having to hurt one another to leave and long for each other to return, the couple explores what true desire feels like, why they continue this affair and Clara specifically discovers the propulsive need for real connection.
While this novel is very character/relationship driven, which is not really my speed and therefore reflects in my rating, I found the author’s writing to be incredibly dynamic and infatuating. I liked that we didn’t need to explore every practical crevice of this magical city of cheaters and rather let the driving force be created from Clara and Francis’s compulsion for each other. This novel does not romanticize affairs but rather provides a cunning exploration of how they occur, what keeps them driving, and ultimately how they often will never be ‘enough’.
I was pleasantly surprised by this novel, and will definitely be turning into Mackintosh’s future work!
April 24, 2026
3.5 stars
Beautifully written and wholly unique. Mackintosh has created something hazy and disorienting. I have seen this described as a Romance novel and feel the need to immediately dispell that myth. Yes, its an exploration of romantic love. But the most unpleasant parts of it. If anything, its teetering on the edge of literary horror.
I think the commentary was sublime, but despite the evocative writing I did find parts hard to get through- because the characters are not at all likeable. Clara maybe less so, but still enough. Francis on the other hand I had essentially zero sympathy for. He is the king of projection, of hypocrisy, nacassism and casual cruelty. I just couldn't imagine any level of desire clouding what a turd of person he was. It is clear that while Clara is living on the stolen moments between them, on the what if's-while he is living a normal- if a little passionless- life, puntuated by these illicit moments outside of it. Clara always being the one to make the sacrifices that allow him to have both. Francis seemingly wanting to keep as her a perfect object of his desire, becoming disgusted whenever she dares seem like a whole person with their own wants and flaws.
But more generally, I found it quite nuanced and the questions it asked important ones. Is romantic love ever enough? Can we ever truly know another person? Are we only ever inamoured with our idea of them? Is it better to settle of something real or lose ourselves in a fantasy? Which would truly make us happier? When we get everything we think we want- can we ever truly be satsified? I think most of the questions posed we kind of already know the answers too, but I still think this novel asks them in a fresh way which more than justifies its existence
Beautifully written and wholly unique. Mackintosh has created something hazy and disorienting. I have seen this described as a Romance novel and feel the need to immediately dispell that myth. Yes, its an exploration of romantic love. But the most unpleasant parts of it. If anything, its teetering on the edge of literary horror.
I think the commentary was sublime, but despite the evocative writing I did find parts hard to get through- because the characters are not at all likeable. Clara maybe less so, but still enough. Francis on the other hand I had essentially zero sympathy for. He is the king of projection, of hypocrisy, nacassism and casual cruelty. I just couldn't imagine any level of desire clouding what a turd of person he was. It is clear that while Clara is living on the stolen moments between them, on the what if's-while he is living a normal- if a little passionless- life, puntuated by these illicit moments outside of it. Clara always being the one to make the sacrifices that allow him to have both. Francis seemingly wanting to keep as her a perfect object of his desire, becoming disgusted whenever she dares seem like a whole person with their own wants and flaws.
But more generally, I found it quite nuanced and the questions it asked important ones. Is romantic love ever enough? Can we ever truly know another person? Are we only ever inamoured with our idea of them? Is it better to settle of something real or lose ourselves in a fantasy? Which would truly make us happier? When we get everything we think we want- can we ever truly be satsified? I think most of the questions posed we kind of already know the answers too, but I still think this novel asks them in a fresh way which more than justifies its existence
April 21, 2026
#PERMANENCE by #sophiemackintosh is a still life of a city that leaves an indelible mark on its adulterous inhabitants. Devastatingly chic, this novel is about an art history professor and an artist who have been carrying on an affair for eighteen months until they wake up together in an unfamiliar apartment surrounded by their favorite things; a shared space for shared lives. Here they find their wallets filled with gold coins in which they use to pay for perfect meals. Here it appears the only demand is to openly enjoy each other’s company; all those stolen moments stretching on into infinity if they so choose.
But the city of impermanence is unforgiving and not the paradise it appears to be. When Francis and Clara are thrust back into their real lives, they find that no time has passed and their absence has gone unnoticed. Everything is unchanged but they are no longer the same. In truth, the yearning in this breathtaking novel isn’t only for one another, but for the person they were before they ever met. Francis and Clara make several return trips (always leaving in anger and coming back contrite) even as living all their lives with “one foot in and one foot out” proves unsustainable.
The city of impermanence serves its purpose. There are few who never go back to the real world anymore. Francis is alarmed by this but satisfied to come and go even though the toll to do so becomes greater. Clara cannot live without Francis but knows deep down that this isn’t her grand love story after all. It is a hard but worthy endeavor, to find a state of #PERMANENCE to settle your one life in. Thanks so much to @barbbookedup for sending me this ARC. This gorgeous, speculative novel celebrates its #pubday today.
But the city of impermanence is unforgiving and not the paradise it appears to be. When Francis and Clara are thrust back into their real lives, they find that no time has passed and their absence has gone unnoticed. Everything is unchanged but they are no longer the same. In truth, the yearning in this breathtaking novel isn’t only for one another, but for the person they were before they ever met. Francis and Clara make several return trips (always leaving in anger and coming back contrite) even as living all their lives with “one foot in and one foot out” proves unsustainable.
The city of impermanence serves its purpose. There are few who never go back to the real world anymore. Francis is alarmed by this but satisfied to come and go even though the toll to do so becomes greater. Clara cannot live without Francis but knows deep down that this isn’t her grand love story after all. It is a hard but worthy endeavor, to find a state of #PERMANENCE to settle your one life in. Thanks so much to @barbbookedup for sending me this ARC. This gorgeous, speculative novel celebrates its #pubday today.
April 22, 2026
Reading Permanence feels like being immersed into a state of complete yearning.
In this slim, dystopian novel, Francis and Clara live between two worlds—in the “real world” where they are conducting an illicit affair, and in “the city of impermanence” which is populated entirely between adulterers.
The writing feels Taylor Swift-ian —it’s not just the poetic musicality of the prose, but something specific about her use of short, sweet metaphors that can expertly stand in for an array of emotions that feel specific yet also allow room for readers/listeners to fill in with their own memories or experiences.
It also feels very painterly, in that she often describes the way the light falls across the room or across skin but only gives you vague outlines of any physical descriptors. Clara is younger, with dark hair. Francis is middle aged, tall, and wears a wedding ring.
In the real world, their story falls very squarely into the predictable affair narrative, but in the other city, their feelings are more nuanced. It’s always so interesting to see how people react when they get what they claim to want most. For Clara & (to a slightly lesser degree) Francis, it’s the luxury of time. To wake up beside each other. To hold hands in public. It’s not so much about infidelity as their own private interior reactions to desire and what it means to have that desire fulfilled.
In this slim, dystopian novel, Francis and Clara live between two worlds—in the “real world” where they are conducting an illicit affair, and in “the city of impermanence” which is populated entirely between adulterers.
The writing feels Taylor Swift-ian —it’s not just the poetic musicality of the prose, but something specific about her use of short, sweet metaphors that can expertly stand in for an array of emotions that feel specific yet also allow room for readers/listeners to fill in with their own memories or experiences.
It also feels very painterly, in that she often describes the way the light falls across the room or across skin but only gives you vague outlines of any physical descriptors. Clara is younger, with dark hair. Francis is middle aged, tall, and wears a wedding ring.
In the real world, their story falls very squarely into the predictable affair narrative, but in the other city, their feelings are more nuanced. It’s always so interesting to see how people react when they get what they claim to want most. For Clara & (to a slightly lesser degree) Francis, it’s the luxury of time. To wake up beside each other. To hold hands in public. It’s not so much about infidelity as their own private interior reactions to desire and what it means to have that desire fulfilled.
March 31, 2026
I went into Permanence by Sophie Mackintosh expecting atmosphere (I mean, look at the cover), and it delivered. This is a novel where the prose does the heavy lifting in the best possible way. It’s beautiful, magnetic, and compelling, even when the characters themselves resist easy affection, and not much happens in the plot (like, at most, they have dinner together, or go to a weird parade).
Clara and Francis are not especially likable (Francis in particular was a tough hang), but they feel real. Mackintosh captures something precise and uncomfortable: the way we can recognize ourselves in both sides of a relationship. Her descriptions of their relationship is where the book is at its strongest.
The more overt symbolism didn’t always work for me. The city’s literal transformations—like the wall splitting in their room as the relationship fractures—felt a bit heavy-handed, as did the Dorian Gray-ing of the mouse painting. And while there are hints of a broader social structure in the city (for example, the dynamics between the “devotionals” and the “tourists”), those threads never fully develop.
But ultimately, that is beside the point. This isn’t a plot-driven novel or a fully-realized attempt at world-building. Instead, it’s a study of people and relationships, and on that level it succeeds.
Thank you to the publisher and Tertulia for the advance copy.
Clara and Francis are not especially likable (Francis in particular was a tough hang), but they feel real. Mackintosh captures something precise and uncomfortable: the way we can recognize ourselves in both sides of a relationship. Her descriptions of their relationship is where the book is at its strongest.
The more overt symbolism didn’t always work for me. The city’s literal transformations—like the wall splitting in their room as the relationship fractures—felt a bit heavy-handed, as did the Dorian Gray-ing of the mouse painting. And while there are hints of a broader social structure in the city (for example, the dynamics between the “devotionals” and the “tourists”), those threads never fully develop.
But ultimately, that is beside the point. This isn’t a plot-driven novel or a fully-realized attempt at world-building. Instead, it’s a study of people and relationships, and on that level it succeeds.
Thank you to the publisher and Tertulia for the advance copy.
April 22, 2026
Thank you to Avid Reader Press for the ARC!
PERMANENCE lingers, which is not a surprise considering its title. But the book really asks the reader what is real life and what is fantasy? And is fantasy all it’s cracked up to be if it’s not really real?
The novel follows Clara and Francis, two lovers in the midst of an affair, who wake up in a strange city built just for couples and their side pieces. Everything is sunshine and roses until they start to question this impermanent existence.
You know what I loved about this book? It’s ORIGINAL and it’s SHORT. PERMANENCE comes in at 240 pages, but it doesn’t waste a moment. Each chapter really propels you forward, but it also asks big questions of its characters and its readers. On top of that, it reminded me of SEVERANCE (except everyone remembers).
I feel like this book is ripe for adaptation. The jumps back and forth between “the city” and the real world would be so fun to see on screen!
This is my first time reading Sophie Mackintosh’s work, but it won’t be my last!
PERMANENCE lingers, which is not a surprise considering its title. But the book really asks the reader what is real life and what is fantasy? And is fantasy all it’s cracked up to be if it’s not really real?
The novel follows Clara and Francis, two lovers in the midst of an affair, who wake up in a strange city built just for couples and their side pieces. Everything is sunshine and roses until they start to question this impermanent existence.
You know what I loved about this book? It’s ORIGINAL and it’s SHORT. PERMANENCE comes in at 240 pages, but it doesn’t waste a moment. Each chapter really propels you forward, but it also asks big questions of its characters and its readers. On top of that, it reminded me of SEVERANCE (except everyone remembers).
I feel like this book is ripe for adaptation. The jumps back and forth between “the city” and the real world would be so fun to see on screen!
This is my first time reading Sophie Mackintosh’s work, but it won’t be my last!
April 21, 2026
Permanence is full of perspectives and different worlds, fully immersing you in a sci-fiesque ever-evolving dreamscape of torrid affairs disguised as romantic interludes. Clara and Francis are our main characters, and he in particular gets somewhat torn and confused when it comes to whether he wants a reality with his wife and child or his lover, Clara. Each time they awaken in their hotel room, their feelings towards their deception is different. I LOVED how the perspective shifted constantly, the reality and humanity of everyone included in this world the author created, and how visual/ visceral the color yellow was to the story beginning AND end (IYKYK). The format was perfect, length was delectable, and there wasn't too much story or character development to distract from the plot. So many metaphors could be gleaned from Francis and Clara and I loved them. Thanks so much to Avid Reader Press for sending me this ARC. All opinions are entirely my own.
January 21, 2026
4.5/5
Well I LOVED this one and gobbled it up. Unlike anything I’ve ever read!! Thanks so much to Penguin for my copy!
Well I LOVED this one and gobbled it up. Unlike anything I’ve ever read!! Thanks so much to Penguin for my copy!
April 11, 2026
Wow! I haven't been moved by a book so much in a long time! I'll be back to write my thoughts once I have recovered...
February 2, 2026
Sophie Mackintosh continues her run of interesting speculative fiction with her newest Permanence. What would happen if there was another world you and your affair partner could live in separately from the real world? Francis and Clara meet in an art gallery and have an immediate attraction. Francis is married with a child, while Clara is single but they feel a strong pull towards one another. They wake up together in a separate world where adulterers can live openly as couples. Everything is ideal in the world, though Clara and Francis do not know how they got there and they cannot contact the outside world. This book interrogates the idealistic relationship that these two have, while cracks begin to show even in this idyllic world. When they return to their regular world, how do they look upon the separate world? It is a thought provoking book on lust, choice, and doubt. Mackintosh delivers again!
Thank you to Avid Reader Press for the advance reader copy in exchange for honest review.
Thank you to Avid Reader Press for the advance reader copy in exchange for honest review.
November 20, 2025
As always, Sophie’s writing is gorgeous and sucks you in to world you learn little about. Through a “city of impermanence” our couple having an affair explores what everyday life would be like if they could live openly. Themes of “what ifs”, regret, and longing are strong, as well as an exploration when each partner has different desires.
Thank you Avid Reader press for the review copy.
Thank you Avid Reader press for the review copy.
January 21, 2026
I came to this after reading Sophie Mackintosh’s Cursed Bread, a favourite of mine, and that may have contributed to my overall disappointment with Permanence. This novel feels like quite a departure from Mackintosh’s usual style, her writing is still beautiful, but for me it lacked the hazy, dreamlike quality I loved in her earlier work.
With unlikeable characters, minimal characterization, and little build-up for the central relationship, I found it hard to stay engaged. While the themes are interesting and the concept original, the story ultimately fell a bit flat for me.
With unlikeable characters, minimal characterization, and little build-up for the central relationship, I found it hard to stay engaged. While the themes are interesting and the concept original, the story ultimately fell a bit flat for me.
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