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"Beautifully written and suffused with dread. Jane Shemilt's domestic settings are seductively vivid, and the final outcome is profoundly shocking and terrifying." — Gilly Macmillan, New York Times bestselling author of The Nanny
Big Little Lies meets Lord of The Flies in this electrifyingly twisty psychological thriller, follow-up to Jane Shemilt’s breakout debut The Daughter.
Over the course of a long, hot summer in London, the lives of three very different married couples collide when their children join the same tutoring circle, resulting in illicit relationships, shocking violence, and unimaginable fallout.
There’s Eve, a bougie earth mother with a well-stocked trust fund; she has three little ones, a blue-collar husband and is obsessed with her Instagrammable recipes and lifestyle. And Melissa, a successful interior designer whose casually cruel banker husband is careful not to leave visible bruises; she curates her perfectly thin body so closely she misses everything their teenage daughter is hiding. Then there’s Grace, a young Zimbabwean immigrant, who lives in high-rise housing project with her two children and their English father Martin, an award-winning but chronically broke novelist; she does far more for her family than she should have to.
As the weeks go by, the couples become very close; there are barbecues, garden parties, a holiday at a country villa in Greece. Resentments flare. An affair begins. Unnoticed, the children run wild. The couples are busily watching each other, so distracted and self-absorbed that they forget to watch their children. No one sees the five children at their secret games or realize how much their family dynamics are changing until tragedy strikes.
The story twists and then twists again while the three families desperately search for answers. It’s only as they begin to unravel the truth of what happened over the summer that they realize evil has crept quietly into their world.
But has this knowledge come too late?
"Countless psychological thrillers get compared to Big Little Lies; Shelmilt's is the real deal." — People
Genre: Mystery
Big Little Lies meets Lord of The Flies in this electrifyingly twisty psychological thriller, follow-up to Jane Shemilt’s breakout debut The Daughter.
Over the course of a long, hot summer in London, the lives of three very different married couples collide when their children join the same tutoring circle, resulting in illicit relationships, shocking violence, and unimaginable fallout.
There’s Eve, a bougie earth mother with a well-stocked trust fund; she has three little ones, a blue-collar husband and is obsessed with her Instagrammable recipes and lifestyle. And Melissa, a successful interior designer whose casually cruel banker husband is careful not to leave visible bruises; she curates her perfectly thin body so closely she misses everything their teenage daughter is hiding. Then there’s Grace, a young Zimbabwean immigrant, who lives in high-rise housing project with her two children and their English father Martin, an award-winning but chronically broke novelist; she does far more for her family than she should have to.
As the weeks go by, the couples become very close; there are barbecues, garden parties, a holiday at a country villa in Greece. Resentments flare. An affair begins. Unnoticed, the children run wild. The couples are busily watching each other, so distracted and self-absorbed that they forget to watch their children. No one sees the five children at their secret games or realize how much their family dynamics are changing until tragedy strikes.
The story twists and then twists again while the three families desperately search for answers. It’s only as they begin to unravel the truth of what happened over the summer that they realize evil has crept quietly into their world.
But has this knowledge come too late?
"Countless psychological thrillers get compared to Big Little Lies; Shelmilt's is the real deal." — People
Genre: Mystery
Praise for this book
"Little Friends taps into your darkest fears. Beautifully told, with a rich cast of characters, I couldn't put it down." - Rachael Blok
"Little Friends is beautifully written. I was in the kitchen; in the garden; on holiday with all the characters. And I was there at the fallout. Jane Shemilt has a talent for taking you into her world - but be careful. It might not be what you think..." - Jane Corry
"Little Friends is beautifully written and suffused with dread. Jane Shemilt's compelling literary thriller explores with acuity the pressure cooker challenges of adult responsibility, and the assumptions we make. The domestic settings are seductively vivid and the final outcome is profoundly shocking and terrifying." - Gilly MacMillan
"Extremely clever, readable and elegant... perfect for fans of Big Little Lies. Domestic noir at its best." - Suzy K Quinn
"Little Friends is beautifully written. I was in the kitchen; in the garden; on holiday with all the characters. And I was there at the fallout. Jane Shemilt has a talent for taking you into her world - but be careful. It might not be what you think..." - Jane Corry
"Little Friends is beautifully written and suffused with dread. Jane Shemilt's compelling literary thriller explores with acuity the pressure cooker challenges of adult responsibility, and the assumptions we make. The domestic settings are seductively vivid and the final outcome is profoundly shocking and terrifying." - Gilly MacMillan
"Extremely clever, readable and elegant... perfect for fans of Big Little Lies. Domestic noir at its best." - Suzy K Quinn
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