Trudy has been unfaithful to her husband, John, jilting him for his own brother, the profoundly banal Claude. As the illicit couple hatch a scheme to rid themselves of John, there is a witness to their plot: the inquisitive, nine-month-old resident of Trudy's womb. Brilliantly riffing on Shakespeare's Hamlet, Ian McEwan filters his tale through Trudy's unborn son, who listens to his mother and his uncle's murderous plans, and offers an insider's perspective on our world.

"Gorgeous.... Rife with wordplay, social commentary, hilarity, and suspense." —Boston Globe