A marvellous novel: tender, sensual, thought-provoking, and very funny... What shines through is Gundar-Goshen's skill as a storyteller, able to encompass both the small domestic details of men and women's lives and the large sweep of history -- Rebecca Abrams Financial Times This is story-telling that feels instinctive... Gundar-Goshen exerts reassuring control over her narrative... both moving and satisfying Guardian [A] remarkably assured first novel with a rich and telling irony Sunday Times A remarkable achievement: a lyrical and fluid story... sensual... with a delicate balance of wit and woe... defiant and passionate TLS A lively meditation on love and nationhood... Gundar-Goshen's prose conveys the "sweet sound" of laughter and compassion... this novel tackles some of the controversial subjects of our time and demonstrates that comedy is a powerful means of exploring serious themes Independent This utterly delightful first novel, set against the birth of modern Israel, is both a love story and story about love. Passionate, funny and very moving The Times, Saturday Review A tragi-comic tale of origins and loneliness... Gundar-Goshen establishes a sprightly and original narrative voice and creates some wonderfully vivid Dickensian characters. She displays a fresh zesty imagination and balances the humour and sadness very skilfully. An impressive debut novel Herald It's hard to believe One Night, Markovitch is a debut... It is genuinely funny and delightfully quirky... unpredictable, sensuous and vivid... The prose stays economical yet poetic, and the characters so pitifully human [that] it is, at times, immensely touching Big Issue A dizzying assault on the senses... The novel is both intimate and epic in its proportions... [keeps] the reader hooked until the end Haaretz Unpredictable, poetic and powerful, with comedy, hope and surrealism alongside mental illness, violence and tragedy Jewish Chronicle The kind of novel aspiring writers everywhere wish they'd penned... Funny yet simultaneously heartbreaking, it's the sort of book you'll be reading with a torch at 4am and still be clutching on the Tube the next day Jewish News It's superb. Gundar-Goshen has written a remarkable first novel, trenchant and full of love, highly impressive in its maturity and wisdom... Just read the beginning; after that, you will have to read the rest -- Eshkol Nevo Yedioth Ahronoth This debut is auspicious, even a miracle Spiegel A psychological masterpiece, vivid and extremely humorous. Quirky characters abound in this book that expertly blends fiction with historical fact Neubucher.de A beautiful story, packed with sensuality, with humor and suspense WDR Marvellous Gibor Tarbut Rich, polished and very impressive Achbar Ha'Ir Funny and moving Kol Israel 1 An absolutely remarkable debut Brigitte Deadly sad yet hilarious at the same time... it is [its] warm-hearted and at the same time ironically interrupted treatment of human frailty, which gives this novel... its particular charm' Neue Zuricher Zeitung Funny, poetic, yet heartbreaking... an excellent debut novel about the unfathomable mysteries of the human heart and the birth of Israel The Lady A dazzlingly funny and tender story about love, betrayal and myth making Bookanista An assured debut... wry, ironically tinged and poignant... This is a fable for the 21st century, and Gundar-Goshen a writer whose dexterity proclaims her one to watch Philip Womack, Sunday Telegraph An astonishing achievement; a lyrical, visceral, almost biblical tale Jewish Chronicle Beautifully brocaded with humour and sensuality... Ayelet Gundar-Goshen is an exceptional literary talent, whose debut novel is an incredibly rich tale of history, love, obsession and new beginnings... A magnificent story, one that keeps you gripped from beginning to end Huffington Post A cross between Gabriel Garcia Marquez and MelBrooks... The final chapter is so breathtaking it makes you want to startreading the whole book again Daily Mail Gundar-Goshen has a beguiling tone, a benevolent irony well captured by Sondra Silverston Literary Review
