Starred review from March 13, 2023
At the start of this memorable thriller from Jarratt (Two Little Girls), 53-year-old Cerys, brokenhearted by her empty nest and emotionally distant husband, drives to the Welsh countryside where she lived as a child. After a suicide attempt, she meets Lily, a frazzled young woman scrambling to take care of her four-year-old son, Sammy. Lily says she and Sammy are in town on an impromptu holiday, but Cerys suspects there’s more to their story. Soon, Cerys finds work as a housekeeper for a feisty widow and moves into her guest cottage with Lily and Sammy, forming a makeshift family unit. Meanwhile, Lily’s abusive husband vows to find Lily and “make her regret every last second she’d made him suffer,” and Cerys tries valiantly to keep the younger woman safe. Jarratt’s lyrical descriptions of Wales (“The gray Irish Sea lay ahead, white horses riding the choppy waves”) complement the propulsive plot, which culminates in an explosive confrontation. Heartfelt, thrilling, and emotionally complex, this is the author’s best work yet. Agent: Ariella Feiner, United Agents.