We Spread by Iain Reid

It is indicative of the skill of an author that a novel about loneliness, old age and paranoia can be so absorbing and, yes, exciting. This is what We Spread is: a story about an elderly widow from her perspective as she sees her life and home, and those who may wish to control her.

The time arrives when the former artist has to move to a care home for her own safety. She is told that the home was chosen by her and her partner, although she cannot remember. When she arrives she is very pleased to see that there are large windows showing a beautiful forest outside, nice regular meals provided as well as housekeepers. There are three other people around her own age to mix with. It all seems too perfect. Then she becomes suspicious when things don't seem to add up. She wonders where and what the house really is.

A powerful and deep story about the meaning of life, death, art, memory and identity. As we age, do people lose their individuality to merge into one being, like lichens, forests and mushrooms, or fade away until we become invisible. 

A fascinating read that manages to hold the attention without ever waning or waffling. It is as if we slip into the mind of someone else, not sure where the art and dreams start or finish, reality could be the cruelty of dementia, the invention of the artist's eye or something completely different.  A cleverly constructed novel that will stay with me for a long time.

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Published by Scribner Simon & Schuster UK on 5 October 2022.
​Advance review copy supplied by the publisher.

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