Author:Dilly Court
In the quiet of a warm summer's evening, two young mothers are forced to give up their babies.
As the years have passed, Kate has grown up knowing only poverty and servitude, whilst Josie's world is one of privilege and luxury.
Despite the differences in their circumstances, Kate and Josie have been friends since childhood. But their past binds them together in ways they must never know.
Until a chance meeting forces Kate and Josie to confront the truth of that night nearly twenty years before - a truth that turns both worlds upside down and threatens to destroy their friendship forever. . .
Supple, artful, skilful storytelling - it takes an immediate grip on the reader's imagination and doesn't let go
—— Hilary MantelA brilliant novel about homecoming and the layered, unstable past that haunts and hurts . . . I admire it enormously
—— Colm TóibínAn impressive debut, atmospheric and unsettling
—— Telegraph, 5 starsA striking debut . . . A bold, interesting novel . . . I'm excited to see what Menon comes up with next
—— Sunday TimesA bravura debut novel . . . It's clever, satisfying, and often playful
—— GuardianThis is a book saturated with the sensations of southeast Asia; where, in Menon's pungent turns of phrase, you feel as though you could "grab the air in two hands and wring it out"; where guilt can be "squatting in the room . . . stringy as spit", and where tiger princes and jungle spirits lurk amid a painful colonial past
—— The Times, pick of the latest fictionA rich and moving family history takes shape, filled with love and heartache, guilt and grief, and no end of secrets and lies . . . Gripping, compelling . . . Menon's story shows that, though time flows on, history's waves still ripple decades downstream
—— EconomistMenon is a sparky storyteller whose thickly atmospheric debut keeps us guessing as its many ghosts press in ever closer
—— Daily MailA beautiful, richly textured absorbing read. I was utterly transported
—— Irenosen OkojieA propulsive debut scattered with gems of fresh and surprising imagery. Menon is at her best exploring the intricate bond between women over generations, their histories strung tight over the fraught realities of a nation coming into being
—— Preti TanejaAlways here for a cross-generational family story, especially one that involves moral ambivalence
—— Marian Keyes selection for her PageTurners top readsAn intriguing, fast-paced, imaginative novel
—— Bad FormA beautifully written story of one Indian Malaysian family's history, entwined with secrets and hidden heartbreak . . . Fragile Monsters is a story of homecoming which illustrates the tension of returning to a past which remains painfully present . . . a cleverly-crafted family saga which explores themes of truth, belonging and shame across multiple generations
—— Asian Review of BooksLeavened with a brisk, dry humour, Fragile Monsters is as propulsive as any mystery, with a bewitching sense of place . . . an accomplished feat of multi-stranded storytelling
—— Evening StandardLyrically beautiful writing
—— iSpellbinding
—— Tatler MalaysiaA story about love, betrayal and redemption with an electric daughter-grandmother relationship at its heart
—— Sheer Luxe, reading recommendation