1
of
1
Common Decency
A dark, intimate novel of love, grief and obsession
Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.
Check link for latest rating. ( 2,081 ratings, 288 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still
learning, it may not be perfect - your
feedback is welcome!
Summary
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$3500
Unit price
/
Unavailable
AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER
Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 4-6 weeks
Found a better price? Request a price match
Common Decency
$3500
Unit price
/
Unavailable
Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?
This emotionally intense novel will resonate with readers who appreciate dark, character-driven stories about personal loss and the nuances of human relationships. Fans of literary fiction and those interested in introspective narratives set in contemporary urban environments will find it compelling.
Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and
still learning, it may not be perfect - your
feedback is welcome!
Description
From the author of the critically acclaimed Tennis Lessons comes a dark, intimate story of grief, obsession, and how we can never truly know what happens behind closed doors.
From the critically acclaimed author of Tennis Lessons
'Susannah Dickey is a phenomenal talent and I loved this novel.' ELIZABETH DAY
'A treat . . . vividly compelling . . . a rare talent, and certainly one to watch' SUNDAY TIMES
'I loved Common Decency . . . a surprising, clever, sad and strange book . . . such a propulsive joy to read too.' MEGAN NOLAN
In an apartment building in Belfast, two women wrestle with the sorrows and spectres of love and loss.
Since her mother's death, Lily has withdrawn from the world, trapped between grief and anger. She has to break out of this damaging cycle - but how?
Upstairs, Siobhan is consumed by her affair with a married man. Her days revolve around his sporadic texts and rare visits. She barely notices the strange girl who lives below and dawdles in the foyer.
But Lily is keeping a close eye on her neighbour, whose life seems so much better and more fulfilling than her own. When resentment evolves into something darker and more urgent, she decides to teach Siobhan a lesson...
From the critically acclaimed author of Tennis Lessons comes a darkly powerful novel about two lives running closely in parallel but divided by gulfs of misunderstanding. With boundless wisdom and deep empathy, Dickey charts the anonymity and hidden intimacies of modern existence, and our profound human need to connect.
'Sharp as tacks, extremely funny and deeply moving. This novel is very good company.' JAN CARSON
PRAISE FOR SUSANNAH DICKEY
'I loved Tennis Lessons so much. Susannah is a phenomenally talented writer' ELIZABETH DAY
'A raw, fierce, shockingly honest coming-of-age story' LOUISE O'NEILL
'Incredibly funny . . . by turns charming and disgusting and I loved it' NELL FRIZZELL
'Brilliant . . . a wonderful writer, hugely talented, very funny and insightful' ALAN DAVIES
'Propulsive . . . brilliantly vivid . . . stays in the mind long after reading' IRISH TIMES
'A beautifully written and psychologically incisive bildungsroman...the arrival of a young writer to watch' OBSERVER
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9780857529015
Publisher: Transworld Publishers Ltd
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 21 July 2022
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Doubleday
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 26.0mm
Width: 154.0mm
Height: 232.0mm
Weight: 380g
Pages: 320
About the Author
Susannah Dickey grew up in Derry and now lives in London. She is the author of two poetry pamphlets, I had some very slight concerns (2017) and genuine human values (2018). Her poetry has been published in Ambit, The White Review, Poetry Ireland Review and Magma, amongst others. In 2018 she was shortlisted for The White Review short story prize, and in 2017 she was the winner of the inaugural Verve Poetry Festival competition. Her debut novel, Tennis Lessons, was published in July 2020.
Also by Susannah Dickey
View all-
Pre-orderinto the wreck
'One of the best novels Iβve read this year from an unusually gifted writer' IRISH TIMES 'A wonderfully stylish writer with an unwavering eye' JOHN PATRICK McHUGH 'Perfectly calibrated . . . These characters spike off the page' A. K. BLAKEMORE How do you mourn someone you never really knew? Three siblings β Anna, Gemma and Matthew β will have...Paperback$3699Unit price /UnavailableOut 4 Aug 2026Pre-order -
Pre-order
into the wreck
'One of the best novels Iβve read this year from an unusually gifted writer' IRISH TIMES 'A wonderfully stylish writer with an unwavering eye' JOHN PATRICK McHUGH 'Perfectly calibrated . . . These characters spike off the page' A. K. BLAKEMORE How do you mourn someone you never really knew? Three siblings β Anna, Gemma and Matthew β will have...Hardback$4899Unit price /UnavailableOut 4 Aug 2026Pre-order -
Common Decency
From the author of the critically acclaimed Tennis Lessons comes a dark, intimate story of grief, obsession, and how we can never truly know what happens behind closed doors. The lives of a bereaved young woman and her neighbour, who is consumed by her affair with a married man, entwine in this dark, compelling and compassionate coming-of-age novel. A poignant,...PaperbackSold Out
More from General Fiction
View all-
The Wedding People
'BEST READ OF THE YEAR SO FAR' THE TIMES 'BOOKS AS FUN AS THIS ONE ARE FEW AND FAR BETWEEN' GUARDIAN Phoebe Stone arrives at a grand beachside hotel in Rhode Island wearing her best dress and least comfortable shoes. Immediately she is mistaken for one of the wedding people β but she's actually the only guest at the Cornwall...Paperback$2399Elsewhere:$2799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Throne of Glass Box Set (Paperback)
Enter the realm. Unleash the darkness. Live the legend. Discover the worldwide phenomenon of the #1 New York Times-bestselling Throne of Glass series in this gorgeous 8-book box set! In a land without magic, an assassin is summoned to the castle. She has no love for the vicious king who rules from his throne of glass, but she has not...Set$12400Elsewhere:$15500Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
The Score
Welcome to Briar U! Get ready for your newest obsession... Discover the addictive world of the Off-Campus series from The Queen of Hockey Romance, Elle Kennedy! Read The Score now for the perfect friends with benefits romance! He knows how to score, on and off the ice... Allie Hayes is in crisis mode. With graduation looming, she still doesn't have...Paperback$2499Elsewhere:$2799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Theo of Golden
THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING PHENOMENON'For anything to be truly good, there must be love in it. Nothing is what it's supposed to be if love is not at the core.' One morning, a stranger arrives in the town of Golden. No one knows who he is or where he came fromβ¦His name is Theo and he's arrived there by chance β...Paperback$2899Elsewhere:$3499Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
The Goal
Welcome to Briar U!Get ready for your newest obsession . . . Discover the addictive world of the Off-Campus series from The Queen of Hockey Romance, Elle Kennedy!Read The Goal now for the perfect forced proximity romance! She's good at achieving her goals . . . College senior Sabrina James has her whole future planned out: graduate from college, kick...Paperback$2499Elsewhere:$2799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
The Mistake
Welcome to Briar U! Get ready for your newest obsession . . . Discover the addictive world of the Off-Campus series from The Queen of Hockey Romance, Elle Kennedy! Read The Mistake now for the perfect second chance romance! He's a player in more ways than one . . . College junior John Logan can get any girl he wants....Paperback$2499Elsewhere:$2799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseOn Mystic Lake
One of the greatest storytellers of our time - Delia Owens, author of Where the Crawdads Sing Annie Colwater's only child has just left home for school in England. On that same day, her husband of twenty years confesses that he's in love with a younger woman. Left alone in the beautiful California house which was once a home, Annie...Paperback$3100Elsewhere:$3800Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Project Hail Mary
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, the SUNDAY TIMES and NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author of The Martian, offers a gripping new adventure in hard science fiction. With endorsement from notable figures such as Barack Obama and a slew of five-star reviews, this novel promises a thrilling and intellectually stimulating journey. Ryland Grace, a lone astronaut, finds himself on a...Paperback$2399Elsewhere:$2400Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
The Legacy
Welcome to Briar U! Get ready for your newest obsession . . . Discover the addictive world of the Off-Campus series from the Queen of Hockey Romance, Elle Kennedy! Read The Legacy now for the much-anticipated answer to the question: Where are they now? Four stories. Four couples. Three years of real life after graduation . . . A wedding....Paperback$2499Elsewhere:$2799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseYesteryear
A BOLD AND BITING SATIRE. WILL HAVE YOU GASPING TO THE FINAL PAGE β Nita Prose WICKEDLY FUNNY, BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN AND FRIGHTENINGLY PERCEPTIVE β Abigail Dean INVENTIVE, ADDICTIVE, A WILD RIDE β Ashley Audrain SHOT THROUGH WITH HUMOUR AND LACED WITH DARKNESS β Clare Mackintosh The Stepford Wives meets The Handmaid's Tale β Hannah Deitch My name was Natalie Heller...Paperback$2999Elsewhere:$3699Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseLand
Inspired by the mapping of Ireland in the mid nineteenth century, Land, theΒ new novel from the author of Hamnet, is at once intimate and epic: a portrait of a family navigating a legacy of upheaval and loss with love and hope. On a windswept peninsula stretching out into the Atlantic, TomΓ‘s and his reluctant son,Β Liam, are working for the great...Paperback$3199Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseSophie, Standing There
From the award-winning, bestselling author ofΒ Sorrow and BlissΒ comes an achingly tender, poignant, funny and bittersweet story of love, loneliness and finding connection in the most unlikely of places. 'So smart, so funny, so moving - Mason has done it again, this time using behind the scenes of a literary festival to reveal the complexity of loneliness and how one woman...Paperback$3099Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today
Why buy from us?
Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!
Service & Delivery
Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.
Auckland Bookstore
We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.
Our Gifting Service
Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.
General Fiction lists from the team
Explore our curated lists from our heroes to find your next read!
-
![]()
![]()
![]()
Hannah's listGeneral Fiction
Gothic Reads for Dark Nights
With the advent of movie adaptations like Wuthering Heights and Frankenstein, it looks like pop culture is seeing a revival of the...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Shirl's listGeneral Fiction
Shirl's Top 10 Most Recommended Books
These are my Top 10 books that I always recommend to my friends and whΔnau when they ask for recommendations for getting...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Lizzy's listGeneral Fiction
Books to Escape a Reading Slump
A reading slump can be a frustrating feeling and hard to break out of, but we've gathered together a list of crowd...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![Star Shipped]()
Lizzy's listGeneral Fiction
Lizzy's Pride Fiction Picks!
June marks Global Pride Month so in case you're looking for your next great fiction read, here's a list of some of...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Lizzy's listGeneral Fiction
Readersβ Top 100 Novels of All Time - from The Guardian
There was some controversy when The Guardian released their critics and authors list of the top 100 novels of all time, but...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Shirl's listGeneral Fiction
Shirl's Favourite Books of 2026
The first half of 2026 has been packed with brilliant books, making it hard to choose favourites but here are a few...View the list
