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A sensitive and finely achieved work - beautifully crafted, provocative and brave, this novel asks
essential questions about nurture and freedom, about the ways we live and love. I found it hard to put down, impossible to forget. GRAHAM MORT |
Taut and compelling, you won't just read this book, you'll devour it.
ALEX PRESTON As unsettling as it is minutely imagined, this striking debut novel from Tom Vowler will give serious pause for thought to anyone considering downsizing for a cosy life in the countryside. PATRICK GALE A powerful and unsettling book. JEN CAMPBELL An enormously intriguing and powerful book, a moving meditation on family, trauma and pain. TANIA HERSHMAN |
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Living in a remote Devon farmhouse, Anna and her family have always been close to nature, surrounded by the haunting beauty of the moor. But when a convict escapes from nearby Dartmoor prison, their isolation suddenly begins to feel more claustrophobic than free. Fearing for her children's safety, Anna's behaviour becomes increasingly irrational. But why is she so distant from her kind husband Robert, and why does she suspect something sinister of her son Paul? All teenagers have their difficult phases... Meanwhile, a young idealistic teacher has just started her first job, determined to 'make a difference'. But when she is brutally attacked by one of her students, her version of events is doubted by even those closest to her. Struggling to deal with the terrible consequences, she does what she can to move on and start afresh. As the two narratives converge, the tension builds to a devastating denouement, shattering everything you thought you believed about nature, nurture and the true meaning of family. |
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An immensely accomplished debut novel, strongly but sensitively written, this psychological thriller plays out like the best of Greek tragedies, against - and mirrored by - the dark beauty of Dartmoor. These characters slip under the skin of the reader and don’t let go until their clever, gripping, memorable story is told. Vowler’s prose is simply lovely, a pleasure to read. Highly recommended.
VANESSA GEBBIE |
Much more than crime fiction, What Lies Within is unique not just for its sharp psychological insights, but for the moral engine that drives the plot: a deep respect for, and anger on behalf of, women.
MELISSA HARRISON Evokes both the beauty of the moors and their cloying claustrophobia. Beautifully written.
RAY ROBINSON |
