The Rocks by Peter Nichols, 2015

The novel takes place in Mallorca and centers around Gerald Rutledge and Lulu Davenport.

The short-lived marriage between Gerald and Lulu serves as the framework of misunderstandings throughout the years, not only between Gerald and Lulu, but also between their respective children, Aegina and Luc.

Capturing the spirit of the ex-pat world and filled with dubious characters who round out the English ex-pat community who inhabit the island, The Rocks kept my interest while caring for a newborn baby.

It transported me to another way of living, providing a nice respite from the stress, anxiety and hard work of caring for a newborn.

The story unfolds in the present and goes back through the decades. 

Gerald is a former Navy officer who becomes enthralled with Homer's Odyssey and decides to sail the route detailed in the story.  During his travels, he meets Lulu, who ends up becoming the proprietress of The Rocks, a Mallorcan inn.

Although the estranged Gerald and Lulu no longer communicate with each other, the relationship between Aegina and Luc begins as children who share the same group of friends on the small island.

They are sent to London and Paris respectively to attend school and reconnect during their summers back in Mallorca.  One summer, they embark on a adventure to Morroco to purchase shirts for Aegina to re-sell in London.  The trip ends in assumptions and unresolved misunderstandings that ends the relationship, echoing what happened between Gerald and Lulu decades earlier.