Tessa Hadley is adept at writing about the inner lives of her characters. All the time I was reading "The London Train," I felt these people are alive with real feelings. What they grapple with is real; they could be people we know. There are two main characters whose inner lives are quite different. They live in Wales and meet on the London train, and the train continues to provide a connecting thread throughout the novel. The first character we meet is Paul who dominates the first half to the book. A writer, he strikes me as one who has not yet (in middle age) been able to shed his free and easy 1970's London mode of life. Married twice and cavalier in his sexuality, he is a contrast to Cora, who dominates the second half of the novel. Cora is thoughtful and pensive, and her affair with Paul has been meaningful and life-changing. Both characters are married, both have recently lost a mother with whom they were close, and both are only children. Paul has three children. The oldest daughter has fled to London, pregnant, to live with her lover and his sister in a run-down council flat. Paul's interaction with his daughter helps us to understand his character.
Cora's steady phlegmatic husband who is a civil servant, turns out to have issues of his own which bring the story to a climax. There are a number of realistic minor characters who also flow in and out of the story. Tessa Hadley who is primarily a short story writer, has structured the novel like two short stories intertwined and acting on each other to move the action forward. She is a rich writer who will catch you in the world of her characters right to the end. I recommend this book as a thoughtful read and a good choice for a book club discussion.
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