Strangers kapak görseli

Strangers

A Memoir of Marriage

 Önizleme

Standard'ı 30 gün ücretsiz edinin

Deneme süresinden sonra aylık 5,99£. Aylık olarak iptal edilir.
0,00£ karşılığında dene
Diğer seçenekler

Strangers

Yazan: Belle Burden
Seslendiren: Belle Burden
0,00£ karşılığında dene

30 gün sonra aylık 5,99£. Dilediğiniz zaman iptal edebilirsiniz.

12,06£ karşılığında satın al

12,06£ karşılığında satın al

Season's Savings | £0.99/mo for 3 months

£5.99/mo after 3 months - terms apply. Cancel monthly

Brought to you by Penguin.

How do we go on when a loved one betrays us?

On a chilly day in March of 2020, in the early days of the pandemic, Belle Burden’s husband of twenty years announced, with no prior warning, that he was leaving her. His decision shocked Belle to her core: she believed he was a happy man, a committed partner, and a devoted father to their three children. She thought he was a man who had settled into the life he had always wanted: a successful career, summers spent at their beloved home on Martha’s Vineyard, lots of tennis. Overnight, he transformed from her steady companion into a stranger.

As she pieces her life together in the wake of a loss she had never imagined coming, she finds she is much stronger than she ever expected. Exploring the transformation of a shy, quiet girl, nicknamed ‘Belle the Good’ to a powerful, brave, determined woman who has learned to use her voice to expose the patriarchal structures that have forced women to be discreet and compliant for far too long, Strangers is a must-read memoir of self-discovery.

'A beautifully written eulogy for the loss of a relationship' Joyce Carol Oates

© Belle Burden 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026

 Divorce & Separation Marriage & Long-Term Partnerships Personal Development Relationships Self-Esteem Women Samimi İlham verici Düşündürücü
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1

Eleştirmen yorumları

Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage is a beautifully written eulogy for the loss of a relationship that had been loving, trusting, ‘traditional’ (in the best, unironic sense of the word)—riveting reading for its heartrending candor. Through an examination of her marriage—and the social expectations that defined it—Belle Burden examines the very nature of intimacy, vulnerability, and, in practical terms, the naïveté of many a young woman who falls in love with a 'perfect' mate. Her questions are not just, What went wrong? But, more fundamentally, What is the nature of human personality? Are we all playing ‘roles?’
Named one of the 40 most exciting books to look forward to in 2026
A lyrical and gripping tale of the abrupt end of a seemingly solid and loving marriage. I read Strangers in one weekend. Beyond Burden’s beautiful writing and shocking story, it is a call to feminism. She reminds us: Don’t fall asleep at the wheel, be self-sustaining, stake a claim in what’s yours. Strangers is a woman’s graceful awakening—and one to learn from.
A searing exploration of rebuilding after profound loss. With candor, Belle Burden navigates heartbreak in a way that reshapes rather than restores, crafting a future both unrecognizable and wholly her own. More than a memoir of divorce, it is a powerful testament to reclaiming voice, power, and joy. Burden’s journey speaks to anyone broken by the unimaginable and courageous enough to forge a new beginning.
A beautifully written instant classic. Strangers is gripping and heartbreaking and a must-read for every wife—and husband.
Beautiful…devastating…though it’s a memoir, Strangers reads with all the momentum and colour of water-tight literary fiction
Examines how we view intimacy, how the people closest to us can change without us knowing, and how to move forward in the wake of devastation.
Isn't simply about the dissolution of a marriage...it’s about a private person finding her voice, about learning to live with ambiguity, about what happens when safety nets fail. Burden’s sharp, personal writing brings readers deep into her unthinkable circumstances and offers a promise to anyone suffering: you can make it to the other side.
In 2023, Burden went viral with a Modern Love essay entitled “Was I Married to a Stranger?” Here, she explores the full heart-shock of that episode — the sudden disintegration of a long and largely joyful marriage, undone weeks into the pandemic by the revelation that her husband had not only been unfaithful but also seemed to wish to vanish almost entirely from their shared life, which included three young children.
‘Burden is an elegant writer … As Strangers and myriad tv shows attest, even the most intimate and long marriages can yield nasty surprises. In the end, how well do you really know the person who lies next to you in bed every night?’
Tüm yıldızlar
En alakalı
An absolutely gobsmacking book, but much needed out in the world as a salutary lesson for all women.
On the one hand so sad that this clever and accomplished woman was treated in that way, but also uplifting knowing that she overcame and has gone on to thrive.
Her ex Husband is proof that the dregs of humanity live in all walks of life- that also goes for the men and women who supported him.
The cruelty he inflicted on the author and her children is un fathomable, and the damage incalculable.
There is a special place in hell for the ex husband, and all men who conduct themselves in the way the author describes.
To Belle, I congratulate you on the book and speaking out. Don’t concern yourself with the haters, they are inconsequential low lifes who want women to stay silent. I hope this book encourages other women to shout LOUD.

Strength and Resilience

Bir sorun oluştu. Lütfen birkaç dakika sonra tekrar deneyin.
Excellent story telling, with a sensitive retelling of how it feels when a husband’s affair threatens or ends your marriage. I found it very helpful after my husband left me after 42 years. It shows the ups and downs, the pain of the changing narrative and the ultimate strides towards recovery.

Throws a sensitive spotlight on the issue of separation

Bir sorun oluştu. Lütfen birkaç dakika sonra tekrar deneyin.
Although I felt fully supportive of Belle, I kept having to put her situation into focus and not compare it to mine.
I'm sure she speaks for a lot of us on not understanding the situation she was put in by somebody else.
About 10 years ago, I sat in a wooden rocking chair at Martha's Vineyard airport. I watched a family, with three children, checking in a huge amount of cases. They looked like the perfect family.
During the book I imagined this as Belle. And how looking like you have all the plusses in life doesn't save you from hurt.
I do have to agree with her that being able to pay the bills is something she hasn't had to worry about.
But betrayal knocks a wedge out of you that is hard to get over.
Its brave to put your story out to the world, I applaud her bravery.
My criticism is on the narration. Sometimes it was a bit obvious that she was keeping emotion out of the story. A little would have made it more relatable.

Brave

Bir sorun oluştu. Lütfen birkaç dakika sonra tekrar deneyin.
The emotionally open and reflective telling of a family tragedy and new chapter. Look forward to the author’s next book

Beautiful thoughtful crisp writing

Bir sorun oluştu. Lütfen birkaç dakika sonra tekrar deneyin.
Beautifully written! Everything comes together so well, very balanced, believable, and this will be so relatable to so many women from so many walks of life. Thank you so much Belle.

Wow!

Bir sorun oluştu. Lütfen birkaç dakika sonra tekrar deneyin.
Daha fazla değerlendirme gör