Why does a respectable former Professor of English, happily married to a faithful wife for 35 years, suddenly at the age of 71 have an affair with a 54-year-old local Scots woman? He meets her while attending church in his local Church of Scotland-after he had delivered part of the sermon. She is an alcoholic and had come to the church slightly tipsy, seeking help, lavishly made up and wearing a revealing outfit showing a lot of cleavage. The novel is a slice of life that affords an insight into the resourceful and rationalising minds of the habitual 'sinner' and the recovering...

Why does a respectable former Professor of English, happily married to a faithful wife for 35 years, suddenly at the age of 71 have an affair with a 54-year-old local Scots woman? She is an alcoholic and had come to the nearby Church of Scotland slightly tipsy, lavishly made up and wearing a revealing outfit showing a lot of cleavage. She attends the weekly prayer meetings and before long the former professor and the recovering alcoholic find themselves in a secret relationship, but their happiness involves guilt and deceit. As she says, "I was addicted to the bottle-but now you are my new...