Together We Fall Apart

By: Sophie Matthiesson

Narrated by: Eva Seymour

For the past seven years, Clare has been living in London. She works for a judge on child protection cases. Her partner, Miriam, is devoted to raising their young son, Rupert – their days are dominated by nap times, laundry and hiding from each other.

When Clare returns to Melbourne to visit her ailing father, another family crisis looms – her brother Max's long-term drug addiction. She turns her efforts towards helping Max into rehab, but is this at the expense of her family back in London?

Moving, heartbreaking and devastatingly insightful, Together We Fall Apart is a story about running away and coming home.

2025, The Readings Prize New Australian Fiction, Short-listed

©2024 Sophie Matthiesson (P)2024 Bolinda Publishing

Critic reviews

'Explores the intricate dynamics of power, desire, motherhood and belonging with nuance, complexity and empathy.' (Emily Bitto, Stella Prize–winning author of The Strays)

'A meditation on love and loss … Through richly drawn characters with deeply relatable flaws, Matthiesson expertly navigates the universal tension between the families we are born into and those which we create, capturing the very essence of what it is to be human.' (Nadine J. Cohen, author of Everyone and Everything)

'A deeply affecting portrait of home and family, skilfully and thoughtfully rendered.' (Ewa Ramsey, author The Morbids)

'Sophie Matthiesson is a fresh new voice in Australian fiction and certainly one to watch.' (GLAM Adelaide)