The constant theme running through this collection of short stories, the first collection by A.S. Byatt, is that of repetition, taking the form of family patterns recurring across generations, the return of the past in the form of ghosts and the disruptive force of family stories. A.S. Byatt was the winner of the Silver Pen Award for her novel Still Life (1986). Her other novels include Shadow of a Sun, The Game (1983) and The Virgin in the Garden (1981).