Changes

Gustav's father Erich was a senior policeman but lost his job when he helped Jews fleeing Austria to get around the laws which prevented their legal entry into the country. His mother refers to him as a 'hero' but cannot forgive him for losing his job and leaving her and Gustav in dramatically reduced circumstances; lacking a kitchen table, they eat off a shelf and Emilie cannot get beyond her belief that Gustav holds this against her. Whilst Erich was alive her feelings about the plight of the Jews was at best indifference and an unwillingness to remedy her ignorance about what was happening. Years later she's at best ambivalent to the friendshp friendship between Gustav and Anton.

Rose Tremain doesn't judge her characters, in fact , you suspect a reluctance to allow them to judge each other: when Gustav is told that a friend is a 'courtesan' he stresses that it doesn't matter and it seems not to change the relationship. But we read between the lines and do judge. We judge Anton when he's cavalier with Gustav's feelings, Erich when he betrays Emilie but most of all we judge Emilie for the way in which she snared Erich, a man who was so much more intelligent than her.