He loved her twenty years ago and believed he knew her every flaw, but he cannot believe she would kill her own child . . . A mesmeric novel of brooding suspense. Part of Frances Fyfield's stunning newly released digital backlist.
Henry didn't turn back when Francesca needed him twenty years before. Now, on some sort of journey to anchor his soul, he arrives in her home town of Warbling and discovers that she's even further beyond his reach - serving a life sentence for the murder of her child.
Still intrigued by her, and entranced by his memories, he becomes drawn into the town and the people who knew her far better than he - her cousin, her lawyer, her closest friend, Angela, whose adopted daughter Francesca had helped her acquire. He finds himself a lodger in the House of Enchantment, an eccentric boarding house run by two gay men who believe the comfort of their guests is above profit. And he finds himself incapable of believing that Francesca is a killer, even if she did confess her crime in chillingly logical detail. But if it wasn't her, then who
Peopled with richly quirky and original characters, this is a novel of suspense in which the truth is better left unknown.
Her knowledge of the workings of the human mind - or more correctly the soul - is second to none - Ian Rankin
Undiluted brilliance - The Times
Fyfield's writing is always elegant and precise, her characters are finely drawn - Sunday Telegraph
Fyfield at her best is compelling, disturbing, but always elegant - Minette Walters
Frances Fyfield has spent much of her professional life practising as a criminal lawyer, work which has informed her highly acclaimed crime novels. She has been the recipient of both the Gold and Silver Crime Writers' Association Daggers. She is also a regular broadcaster on Radio 4, most recently as the presenter of the series 'Tales from the Stave'. She lives in London and in Deal, overlooking the sea which is her passion.