One wintry day in Edinburgh, elderly Lizzie opens her door to Rachel, a young Swiss woman with stigmata-marked palms.

Invading Lizzie's snug existence of dog walks, Café Noirs and Glacier Mints, Rachel forces Lizzie to take stock, forces her to relive her friendship with the late Marlene, Rachel's grandmother – wild, unscrupulous, unprincipled Marlene, who could charm birds out of trees and whose love of life, luxury, liquor and fun has kept Lizzie in thrall all these years.

A classic Edinburgh novel, The Waiting is a unique blend of fiction and historical fact from the 1930s to the present day.

First published by Word Power Books, Leamington Books is delighted to debut and distribute the eBook of this Edinburgh favourite.

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Regi Claire was born and brought up in Switzerland. The Waiting is her second novel and the winner of a UBS Cultural Foundation award.

Her other books include the novel The Beauty Room and the two short story collections Inside Outside and Fighting It, both shortlisted for the Saltire Book of the Year awards. Her first poem, '(Un)certainties', won 1st prize in the Mslexia/PBS Women's Poetry Competition 2019 and was shortlisted for Best Single Poem in the Forward Prizes 2020.

A former Royal Literary Fund Fellow and Royal Literary Fund Lector for Reading Round Scotland, Regi teaches at Edinburgh University. She lives in Edinburgh with her writer husband Ron Butlin and their golden retriever.

Praise for The Waiting

'Heartbreakingly real and utterly compelling. … I absolutely loved this book.'

Northwords Now

'A delicious read.'

Sunday Herald, The Books of 2012

'Truly stunning… the crisp, clean, razor-sharp style of Claire's writing cuts to the heart of a story that will linger in the reader's imagination for long after the final, dazzling passage ends.'

Bottle Imp, Association for Scottish Literary Studies

'Reminiscent, at times, of an early Ian McEwan… brilliant period detail… The past, we are assured, is as comforting as it is disquieting.'

Times Literary Supplement