SHE’S ON A REMOTE ISLAND. DEFENDING A MURDERER. BUT SHE REMEMBERS NOTHING.
‘Unputdownable’ Sophia Hannah
‘Mind-blowing, audaciously inventive’ Chris Whitaker
‘Totally recommend. Stuart Turton meets Agatha Christie’ Sarah Moorhead
‘A heady, ambitious mix of courtroom drama and dystopian mystery’ Daily Mail
Lila Dalton finds herself in the middle of a courtroom as the barrister for a man accused of a terrible crime. She has no memories of her life before this moment.
Outside, on the strange island where she is staying, things are even more unnerving: hostile locals, tapped calls, threats slipped under her hotel door. Hints from mysterious sources suggest that someone from her forgotten past is in danger – but are the threats genuine? As the trial progresses, Lila must decide who and what she can trust, and whether that includes herself…
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‘Feverishly compulsive’ Sabine Durrant
‘Inventive and exciting’ Guardian
‘Remarkable’ The Times
‘Terror lurks at every corner’ FT
‘Brilliantly written’ Natasha Pulley
‘Achingly atmospheric’ Kia Abdullah
‘Captivating’ Adam Hamdy
Reviews
Remarkable . . . there are echoes of Kafka, Orwell and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
The Times, Best Thrillers for February
Shepherd cranks up the menace, layering the story with one obstacle after another, revealing snippets of back-story, as evermore sinister forces circle. The narrative quickly assumes a nightmarish quality, redolent of a dream where there is no way out and new terrors lurk at every corner. Writing with verve, Shepherd delivers a creative tour de force
Financial Times
There’s a fever-dream quality from the very start of this debut novel . . . an inventive and exciting read
Guardian, The Best Recent Crime and Thrillers