Author:Claire Fuller
FROM THE WOMEN'S PRIZE-SHORTLISTED AUTHOR OF UNSETTLED GROUND
'A compulsive page-turner. Fuller creates an atmosphere of simmering menace with all the assurance of a latter-day Daphne du Maurier' The Times
Frances Jellico is dying.
A man who calls himself the vicar visits, hoping to extract a deathbed confession. He wants to know what really happened that fateful summer of 1969, when Frances - tasked with surveying a dilapidated country house - first set eyes on the glamorous bohemian couple, Cara and Peter. She recalls the relationship they forged through sweltering days, lavish dinners and elaborate lies, and the Judas hole through which she would spy on the couple.
Were the signs there right from the beginning?
Or was it impossible to avoid the crime that split their lives open like rotten fruit?
***
'Bewitching, otherworldly . . . full of dark foreboding. Claire Fuller is a dazzling storyteller' Scotsman
'An atmospheric page-turner that speeds us towards a bloody climax of shocks and surprises' Irish Times
'Sinister and suspenseful, this gothic novel simmers with guilt, lust and envy' Mail on Sunday
'Multi-layered, lush, twisty and brilliantly clever' Sunday Mirror
Nothing is quite what it seems in this engrossing, moreish novel about a naïve woman and the hedonistic couple who beguile her
—— Sunday Times CultureRich and compelling. Fuller is an accomplished writer
—— ObserverReminds me of JL Carr's A Month in the Country, Daphne Du Maurier's Jamaica Inn, and Shirley Jackson's We Have Always Lived in the Castle. Incredibly atmospheric, vivid, and intriguing. I had to keep reminding myself that I wasn't reading a forgotten classic.
—— Emma HealeyA stealthy shocker about thwarted desire. A sinister, slow-burn tale that saves its most heart-wrenching revelation for last
—— MetroA twisty, thorny, darkly atmospheric page turner about loneliness and belonging
—— Gabriel Tallent, author of My Absolute DarlingAs haunting as tuberose and delicate as a scalpel
—— Laline PaullHeady, claustrophobic . . . makes for perfect heatwave reading. Echoes Penelope Lively's Booker-winning Moon Tiger, Anita Brookner's Look At Me, and Sarah Waters' The Little Stranger
—— IndependentA rich and hypnotic read
—— TatlerThis darkly smouldering, desperately sad, superior psychological thriller contains shades of Zoe Heller's Notes On A Scandal
—— Daily MailIt is rare for me to put down a novel and then immediately consider rereading it to see what cleverness I might have missed. This time, though, I am tempted.
—— Lucy Atkins, Sunday TimesAtmospheric. Rich, clever and very readable.
—— Amanda Craig, TelegraphA delicate and disturbing read, alive with love, lust, envy and guilt
—— S MagazineA sinister story that considers the terrifying lengths people will go to escape their pasts. In the vein of Shirley Jackson's bone-chilling The Haunting of Hill House, Fuller's disturbing novel will entrap readers in its twisty narrative, leaving them to reckon with what is real and what is unreal. An intoxicating, unsettling masterpiece.
—— KirkusBitter Orange reads like an assured, old-school, du Maurieresque classic. It's an atmospheric page-turner that speeds us towards a bloody climax of shocks and surprises
—— Irish TimesSinister and suspenseful, this gothic novel simmers with guilt, lust and envy
—— Mail on SundayBewitching, otherworldly . . . full of dark foreboding. Claire Fuller is a dazzling storyteller.
—— ScotsmanA compulsive page-turner. Fuller creates an atmosphere of simmering menace with all the assurance of a latter-day Daphne du Maurier
—— The TimesA rich, dark pressure cooker of a novel that simmers with slow heat and suppressed tension
—— Ruth WareDark, beautifully written. It reminds me very much of Ian McEwan's Atonement, with similar slow-build tension and claustrophobic atmosphere
—— The PoolAn exquisite and skilfully written novel, which worms its way under your skin while Frances's loneliness seeps off every page
—— RedFuller is a master at summoning the atmosphere of a heady, hot summer that thrums with tension
—— StylistMulti-layered, lush, twisty and brilliantly clever
—— The Sunday MirrorA smart creation from a skilled writer: a heady psychological novel that builds its layers carefully to allow gradual revelations and stomach-churning surprises
—— Financial TimesFull of complex characters and narrative richness
—— The Sunday Times CultureLoneliness, guilt and atonement are at the heart of the atmospheric Bitter Orange
—— Good HousekeepingNaturally engaging and elegantly written. Fuller is an amply gifted storyteller
—— SpectatorWith shades of Brideshead and Manderley, Claire Fuller's atmospheric third novel plays a satisfyingly unpredictable game with reader expectations. Prepare to be meticulously unsettled and horribly enthralled
—— Country LifeFull of dark foreboding. Claire Fuller is a dazzling storyteller
—— Belfast TelegraphCannily releasing clues on the way to an explosive finale . . . The lush setting and remarkable characters make for an immersive mystery
—— Publishers WeeklyElegant, atmospheric, vivid
—— The Big IssueBeautifully written, with echoes of Barbara Vine and Daphne du Maurier
—— Andrew Taylor, Spectator Books of the Year 2018Sumptuous and sinister with gothic hints, this is a compelling tale of blurred friendships
—— PrimaA taut, nasty thriller. I loved it!
—— India KnightCleverly shows the many facets of a complex human character, evoking sympathy, fear and anger all whilst shining a bright unforgiving light on how society views female sexuality.
—— Crime Review