Storytime

OUR HOUSE by Louise Candlish, Simon & Schuster

A close-knit matriarchy existed in Trinity Avenue, London. The day Fiona is blind-sided – her ex-husband disappears after selling their house – the usually intelligent woman is still forgiving. But when she discovers Bram has taken their sons from school, paralysing fear strikes. Neighbour lawyer Meryl rushes in, as does new “owner” Lucy. Fi chucked Bram out when she found him in the kids’ garden playhouse, having sex with a local woman. Now licenseless Bram has caused a crash in which a woman and child were critically injured. He thinks he’s got away until a stranger says she witnessed the accident. Her sidekick Mike turns up to negotiate hush money. Helpless Bram has moments of “grotesque lucidity”, as he goes along with it.

But Mike has played an audacious identity scam.

BABY TEETH by Zoje Stage, Michael Joseph

A disturbing story of Hanna, seven, who wants to get rid of her mother, to have her father to herself. Swedish architect Alex dotes on his “squirrely girl” coming home to cuddles – but no words. Prodigiously intelligent, Hanna does not speak. She barks. Doctors can find no abnormalities, but psychiatrists suspect she is a sociopath. We wade through the exhausting clashes of mum and daughter in interweaving chapters. Suzette, who suffers from Crohn’s disease, home schools Hanna. “I am not Hanna ...” she suddenly whispers, in the sinister voice of a 17th century French witch. Hanna hacks Suzette’s hair off while she sleeps, sprinkles tacks on the kitchen floor, meddles with her drugs. But we see the child’s confusion: “She saw images that frightened her, but she didn’t know how to tell them to go away.”

THREE LITTLE LIES by Laura Marshall, Hachette

Friends since 17, Ellen is distraught when flatmate Sasha doesn’t come home. Her disappearance is alarming, as it is 12 years since Daniel Monkton was found guilty of rape of friend Karina. He has just been released from prison, but Daniel accused Karina, Ellen and Sasha of “three lies” in court and warned them in a letter that “they would pay”. When the bohemian Monkton family moved into the neighbourhood, Ellen and Karina watched transfixed. Dad Tony was a musician, mum Olivia a singer. Sons Nicholas and Daniel loped, marijuana wafted. Live-in goddaughter Sasha, (her “model” mother travelled the world), had hair “the colour of a cornfield”. Spellbound Ellen thinks of what a “little life” she would have had, without the arty talk at boozefuelled bashes at the Monktons.