The Eighth Life (for Brilka): A Novel

The Eighth Life (for Brilka) is a multigenerational epic spanning a century, beginning with the Russian Revolution. The novel follows a family whose prosperity is rooted in a closely guarded chocolate recipe passed down through generations—a recipe said to bring ecstasy but carry a bitter aftertaste. Stasia learns the recipe from her Georgian father and carries it north to St. Petersburg when she follows her husband Simon to his posting during the Russian Revolution. Her story initiates a series of grand but often tragic romances that unfold across the red century. As generations pass, family members experience echoes of their ancestors' lives: a ballet dancer's unfulfilled dream of performing in Paris, a singer's longing for Vienna, and other characters caught in intense relationships amid a world in constant upheaval. The novel weaves together themes of war, loss, love—both requited and unrequited—ghosts, joy, massacres, and tragedy across vast expanses of time and longing. Longlisted for the International Booker Prize. Winner of the Warwick Prize for Women in Translation. Translated from the German by Charlotte Collins and Ruth Martin.