The gripping and dark book club debut with a compelling voice at its centre. *THE GUARDIAN
2021 BEST CRIME AND THRILLER PICK* 'Gorgeously written' PANDORA SYKES 'I loved this book'
CLARE MACKINTOSH 'A darkly dazzling debut . . . gripping' LISA JEWELL 'Sharp-edged and highly
discussable' BOOKLIST ___________ 'So that was all it took ' I thought. 'That was all it
took for me to feel like I had all the power in the world. One morning one moment one
yellow-haired boy. It wasn't so much after all.' Chrissie knows how to steal sweets from the
shop without getting caught the best hiding place for hide-and-seek the perfect wall for
handstands. Now she has a new secret. It gives her a fizzing sherbet feeling in her belly.
She doesn't get to feel power like this at home where food is scarce and attention scarcer.
Fifteen years later Julia is trying to mother her five-year-old daughter Molly. She is always
worried - about affording food and school shoes about what the other mothers think of her.
Most of all she worries that the social services are about to take Molly away. That's when the
phone calls begin which Julia is too afraid to answer because it's clear the caller knows the
truth about what happened all those years ago. And it's time to face the truth: is
forgiveness and redemption ever possible for someone who has killed? ______________
'Perceptive and compassionate' GUARDIAN 'A stunning debut' WASHINGTON POST 'Compulsively
readable' ASHLEY AUDRAIN 'Compelling . . . stunningly powerful' GRAZIA 'An unforgettable
narrative voice' PAULA HAWKINS 'An extraordinary and heart-rending novel' OBSERVER 'This is
outstanding . . . so powerful' TRACY FENTON 'A gripping unsettling debut novel' ABIGAIL DEAN
______________ Readers love The First Day of Spring . . . *****'A powerful distressing
haunting but ultimately brilliant read' *****'Such a heartbreaking and powerful psychological
drama that will stay with me for a long time' *****'An incredible book' *****'A thought
provoking dark and compulsive read... Highly recommend ' *****' You DO NOT want to miss The
First Day of Spring!'
