Colette’s elegant, unsettling study of love turned hostile – and all because of a cat.

A young marriage begins to sour, poisoned by rivalry and resentment. At its centre is a cat – adored by the husband, despised by the wife – whose presence exposes the quiet cruelty and emotional imbalance of the household.

BRIEF ENCOUNTERS: classic novellas and captivating stories, to be read in a single sitting or savoured over days