It's as if, standing there in the darkness, he's materialised out of nothing, fully formed, unencumbered. He has no idea what he's doing out of bed: he has no need to relieve himself, nor is he disturbed by a dream or some element of the day before, or even by the state of the world. He stands there, naked by the bed - he always sleeps naked - feeling his full height, aware of his wife's patient breathing and of the wintry bedroom air on his skin. He's never done such a thing before, but he isn't alarmed or even faintly surprised, for the movement is easy, and pleasurable in his limbs, and his back and legs feel unusually strong. It's not clear to him when exactly he became conscious, nor does it seem relevant. Some hours before dawn Henry Perowne, a neurosurgeon, wakes to find himself already in motion, pushing back the covers from a sitting position, and then rising to his feet. ( From the publisher.Cheuse Reviews McEwan's Earlier Novel 'Atonement' To Perowne’s professional eye, something appears to be profoundly wrong with this young man, who in turn believes the surgeon has humiliated him - with savage consequences that will lead Henry Perowne to deploy all his skills to keep his family alive. A minor accident in his car brings him into a confrontation with a small-time thug. After an unusual sighting in the early morning sky, he makes his way to his regular squash game with his anaesthetist, trying to avoid the hundreds of thousands of marchers filling the streets of London, protesting against the war.

On this particular Saturday morning, Perowne’s day moves through the ordinary to the extraordinary. There is an impending war against Iraq, and a general darkening and gathering pessimism since the New York and Washington attacks two years before. Outside the hospital, the world is not so easy or predictable. He is as at ease here as he is in the operating room. Henry wakes to the comfort of his large home in central London on this, his day off. Henry Perowne is a contented man - a successful neurosurgeon, happily married to a newspaper lawyer, and enjoying good relations with his children. Saturday is a masterful novel set within a single day in February 2003. A brilliant, thrilling page-turner that will keep readers on the edge of their seats. From the pen of a master - the #1 bestselling, Booker Prize–winning author of Atonement - comes an astonishing novel that captures the fine balance of happiness and the unforeseen threats that can destroy it.

Saturday by ian mcewan