Rose wakes up every morning trapped in a wood-panelled room. Tethered.
Three years ago the police came to her door with the tragic news that her precious daughter, Anna, was dead. In her grief she collapsed into a state of near-death and turned away from everything she held dear. Gradually, we begin to understand what brought her here, to this mountain hut.
Life before was simple and beautiful; home was a village high up on the Swiss Valais slopes. There, she first met Camil, her future husband, steadfast in his love and support. They shared the same love of books, exploring the rugged yet welcoming Alpine valley.
They meet again later as students in Lausanne, marry, build careers. Anna comes along. Rose recalls a life of quiet happiness, while desperately trying to grasp the threads of the madness that brought her to the room where she is tethered.
One day, Rose hears an unknown voice behind the door: a woman is reading to her. And for the first time, we feel that Rose may yet find her way out of the darkness.
Tether is a powerful novel of violence contained, a superb portrait of womanhood and motherhood, and a deeply touching account of the extremes to which love can take us.
