1979. Three old Cambridge friends are brought together at a party to celebrate New Year's Eve and the end of a decade.Esther, Liz and Alix first met in Cambridge in the early Fifties, a time when their futures held glittering promise.But with the dawn of the Thatcher era, everything changed.Now middle-aged, how will these confident women cope with the personal and professional challenges they will come to face?'A sublime example of Drabble's mastery in unravelling the intricacies of intimate relationships' - The Times