The Names

In the aftermath of a great storm, Cora sets out with her nine-year-old daughter to register the birth of her son. Her husband intends her to follow a long-standing family tradition and call the baby after him. But when faced with the decision, Cora hesitates. Is it right for her child to inherit his name from generations of domineering men? The choice she makes in this moment will shape the course of their lives.

Seven years later, her son is Bear, a name chosen by his sister, and one that will prove as cataclysmic as the storm from which it emerged. Or is he Julian, the name his mother set her heart on, believing it will enable him to become his own person? Or is he Gordon, named after his father and raised in his cruel image - but still with a chance to break the mould?