The idea for prolific Irish author Sally Rooney's fourth novel, Intermezzo (2024), came during the COVID-19 lockdowns. Rooney, who had quite a bit of time on her hands, found online chess during the lockdown and became fascinated with that world. When crafting the novel, she sought to marry the worlds of music and chess together.
Intermezzo follows two brothers, Peter and Ivan, who recently lost their father. Peter is a human rights attorney; Ivan is a former chess prodigy. Both men are in romantic relationships with significant age gaps; Peter is dating a woman nine years his junior and Ivan is dating a woman 14 years his senior. Because of their respective relationships (especially Peter's continuing relationship with his ex-girlfriend), the two brothers having a falling out and don't frequently chat with each other. In dealing with their relationships and the fallout from their father's death shortly before the start of the novel, the brothers are forced to confront their past and contend with the things that made them who they are -- good and bad.
When published, Rooney's novel was met with largely positive reviews, as has become the norm with her work. Not only that, because of the novel's publisher, who embarked on a substantial advertising campaign, the novel was widely read and became a New York Times bestseller shortly after its publication date. In their glowing review of the novel, The Guardian questioned if there was a "better writer" than Rooney and suggested the novel was "utterly perfect."
