AN UNSUITABLE WOMAN

231pp., paperback, Karavan Press, Cape Town, 2026 

ISBN: 9781049215112

Journalist Deborah Morsey, suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and a broken heart after encounters with South Africa’s apartheid police, devastating betrayals and failed love affairs, hastily marries a widowed farmer believing that he, his young daughter and country-living offer the possibility of a fresh start and a renewed sense of purpose - until she is introduced to human rights lawyer Sanjay, who makes her question everything she thought she knew about love.

"Heartbreaking, heartwarming, and oh-so very true, An Unsuitable Woman delivers a pitch-perfect tribute to the complexities of relationships, misplaced longing, and the general messiness of life. Gilbride excels in exploring how characters are shaped over time by politics, family dynamics and tragedy. An insightful, sharply observed gift of a book" Penny Haw, author of The Invincible Miss Cust and The Woman and Her Stars

Gail Gilbride is the author of the novel Under the African Sun and the memoir Cat Therapy, She lives in the Hemel en Aarde Valley,