John Murray
John Murray
John Murray
A fantastically atmospheric, sexually charged novel by the acclaimed author of THE CUTTING ROOM.
Jane and Petra have been together for six years and after deciding to have a child, they move to Petra's hometown, Berlin. But things do not quite go according to plan. Jane, at six months pregnant, finds herself increasingly isolated and preoccupied with the monuments and reminders of the Holocaust which echo around the city - imagining the horrors that happened in the spaces around her. She becomes uneasy in the apartment and conceives a dread of the derelict backhouse across the courtyard. She also begins to suspect their neighbour, Alban Mann, of sexually assaulting his daughter, and places a phone call to the police which holds more significance than she can ever have known...
Louise Welsh's taut new novel at times feels like a potent cross between The Yellow Wallpaper and Rear Window . . . Welsh expertly conveys the escalation of Jane's suspicions to something approaching obsession - Observer
An impressive psychological chiller - Sunday Telegraph
Sharply rendered . . . The reader's anxiety is heightened by a myriad of small tensions . . . Welsh keeps the reader turning to pursue the multiple stories threading through the pages . . . The writing of crime fiction is, after all, a sort of conjuring trick played on the reader, a welcome deception. Welsh has developed flashing fingers with cards, rabbits and hats - Independent
Builds up atmosphere admirably - Sunday Times
Brilliantly atmospheric, the tension builds until you are chilled to the core - Good Housekeeping
A taut narrative that plays with our sense of what's real. Brilliant - Red
A stylish and violent Berlin-set thriller - Guardian
Powerful, impressive and as black as sin - The Spectator
Louise Welsh is the author of eight novels including The Cutting Room, A Lovely Way to Burn and Death is a Welcome Guest. She has received numerous awards and international fellowships, including an Honorary Doctor of Arts from Edinburgh Napier University and an honorary fellowship from the University of Iowa's International Writing Program. Louise Welsh is Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Glasgow.