A Private Man
United Kingdom

A Private Man

by Stephanie Sy-Quia

Love & Passion Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Romance 2026

Summary

Rome, 1953. David is a young Catholic priest who has devoted his life to God and sworn himself to celibacy. Margaret, meanwhile, is a fiercely independent woman drawn to theology and the possibility of a more progressive Church. When their lives intersect in 1960s England, an intellectual connection develops into a love that challenges everything they believe about faith, duty, and freedom.

Decades later, their grandson Adrian discovers the extraordinary secret behind his family history while caring for his aging grandmother. As the past gradually emerges, the consequences of David and Margaret’s choices reveal themselves across generations. Inspired by the author’s own grandparents, A Private Man is a tender, complex exploration of forbidden love, religious devotion, and the difficult compromises between personal desire and deeply held convictions.

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Country
United Kingdom
Europe
About the author
Stephanie Sy-Quia
Stephanie Sy-Quia

Stephanie Sy-Quia is a British-American writer and poet born in California in 1995 and based in London. Her writing and literary criticism have appeared in publications including The Guardian, Granta, The White Review, The Boston Review, and The Times Literary Supplement. Her work explores questions of identity, faith, family, and the ways personal histories shape our understanding of ourselves. Her debut poetry collection, Amnion, was published in 2021 by Granta Poetry and won the Forward Prize for Best First Collection in 2022. The collection also received a Somerset Maugham Award and an Eric Gregory Award, establishing her as a distinctive voice in contemporary poetry. A Private Man (2026) is her debut novel, inspired by the remarkable real-life relationship between her grandparents. Drawing on family history, religious thought, and the social changes of the twentieth century, Sy-Quia examines the tensions between love, faith, and institutional expectations. The novel brings her poetic sensibility to a story spanning generations, exploring how private decisions can shape the lives of an entire family.

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Details
Published
2026
Author
Stephanie Sy-Quia