We throw away years of life. We walk in mist. Then unexpectedly something shifts, subtly, hardly at all, and everything is changed. It was like that…

When Maisie Shergold, art historian, meets Michael Curran, folk musician, on the platform of Paddington Station she falls in love with him instantly. Ignoring the differences in their backgrounds, ages, and personal outlook, she pursues the affair with a single-minded intensity that borders on obsession. Abandoning the safe routines that had previously defined her life, and against the advice of friends and family, Maisie opens her home and her heart to this virtual stranger. But she discovers that Michael is a man of secrets, with a past that threatens to overtake them both.

Against the international backdrop of the art world and the pursuit of a rare, precious ikon, their love affair resonates across countries and cultures, and ultimately proves to be just as fragile and elusive as the ikon itself.

The Fig and the Flute Player is a passionate, sensitive exploration of infatuation, in both its tenderness and its darkness. Using prose that is both lyrical and deceptively simple, Harrison paints a realistic, poignant portrait of the overwhelming nature of romantic love.