IN THE MIDST OF WINTER

(Scribner £16.99) THIS is one of those books that, in the best way, feels much longer than it is.

That classic device, a minor car crash that allows for a metaphorical collision of worlds, sets events in motion, but one can forgive Allende the cliché, given that those worlds are so richly and compassionately realised.

The driver of the car is Evelyn Ortega, a young, undocumented Guatemalan immigrant. On the surface, her life couldn’t be more different to that of Richard Bowmaster, an uptight, ascetic New York professor, or that of his lodger, Lucia Maraz, a sexagenarian academic from Chile who isn’t quite resigned to an old age without love.

Yet, as the trio begin to talk, it becomes clear they have much in common — terrible tragedy and suffering, but also remarkable resilience. And there’s a further uniting complication: the question of what to do with the body in the boot of Evelyn’s car.

In the midst of winter, Allende’s faith in the limitless capacity and indefatigability of the human heart can’t help but give you a glow.