The Kiss

When Cormac, an Edinburgh-based art teacher and sculptor, tries to transmit his passion for Rodin to his pupils he finds his words tend to fall on stony ground. There is one exception: fifteen years old, beautiful and fiercely intelligent, Clarinda Bain is his keenest and most ardent student. On a school trip to Paris she becomes obsessed by the work and life of Gwen John, in particular by her affair with Rodin. When she begins to mirror this relationship by becoming obsessed herself with her own mentor, Cormac's life as a teacher and husband is suddenly thrown into confusion. Compelling and exquisitely written, The Kiss is a study of artistic and sexual obsession by a writer at the height of her powers.