Fragile

Book excerpt: ‘Stunning’ – Marian Keyes, author of Grown Ups ‘Chilling’ – Val McDermid, author of The Wire in the Blood Fragile is a modern Gothic psychological thriller with a contemporary twist on the classic novel Rebecca, from award-winning and critically acclaimed writer Sarah Hilary. Everything she touches breaks . . . Nell Ballard is a runaway. A former foster child with a dark secret she is desperate to keep, all Nell wants is to find a place she can belong. So when a position comes up at Starling Villas, home to the enigmatic Robin Wilder, she seizes the opportunity with both hands. But her new lodgings may not be the safe haven she was hoping for. Her employer has secrets of his own and lives by a rigid set of rules she must abide by. But is Nell’s arrival at the Villas really the coincidence it seems? After all, she knows more than most how fragile people can be – and how easy they are to break . . . Further praise for Fragile: ‘Perfectly plotted, beautifully written modern Gothic. I absolutely loved it’ – Erin Kelly, author of He Said/She Said ‘Beautifully crafted, smart and unsettling’ – Mick Herron, author of Slow Horses ‘A dark, mesmeric fever-dream of a book’ – Ruth Ware, author of The Woman in Cabin 10 ‘Ingenious, original and brilliant’ – Will Dean, author of Red Snow ‘Extraordinary’ – Andrew Taylor, author of The American Boy and The Ashes of London ‘A modern-day Highsmith’ – Steve Cavanagh, author of Thirteen ‘A truly outstanding work of modern Gothic’ – Eva Dolan, author of Between Two Evils ‘Highly original, beautifully written’ – Sharon Bolton, author of The Split ‘A beautifully written modern Gothic masterpiece’ – Liz Nugent, author of Skin Deep ‘So elegant, so restrained’ – Lucy Atkins, author of Magpie Lane ‘A gorgeously written, tense and atmospheric novel’ – Gytha Lodge, author of She Lies in Wait