About the Book
'A gripping page-turner' Sunday Times 'Beautifully written and compelling' Sabine Durrant 'Satisfyingly creepy' Sunday MirrorThe loss of her mother has left Kali McKenzie with too many unanswered questions. But while clearing out Elena's art studio, she finds a drawer packed with postcard each bearing an identical one-line message from a Canadian gallery owner called Susannah Gillespie: thinking of you. Who is this woman and what does she know about Elena's hidden past? Desperate to find out, Kali travels with her toddler, Finn, to Susannah's isolated home on a remote British Columbian island, a place of killer whales and storms. But as bad weather closes in, Kali quickly realises she has made a big mistake. The enigmatic Susannah refuses to talk about the past, and as Kali struggles to piece together what happened back in the 1970s, Susannah's behaviour grows more and more erratic. Most worrying of all, Susannah is becoming increasingly preoccupied with little Finn . . .PRAISE FOR LUCY ATKINS'Wonderfully skilled' Sarah Perry'Sly, witty and gripping' Naomi Alderman 'Wholly beguiling' Mick Herron 'Highly intelligent' Sarah Vaughan'Beguiling, brilliantly creepy' Claire Fuller
About the Author :
Lucy Atkins is an award-winning author, feature journalist and Sunday Times book critic. She has written for newspapers including the Guardian, The Times, the Sunday Times and the Telegraph as well as many UK magazines. She teaches on the Masters in Creative Writing at Oxford University.
Review :
Horribly, horribly compulsive. Brilliant
A gripping page-turner
Taut, tense, and beautifully written. I held my breath between chapters and didn't sleep until I reached the end
A complex, creepy and insidious novel
The rich characterisation makes for an alarmingly plausible riches-to-rags tale
Elegant, clever, beautifully written. Lucy Atkins is, quite frankly, a genius
Thrillingly creepy and darkly funny, The Night Visitor set me racing through the chapters with its brilliant plotting and characters that crackle off the page. A cannot tear yourself away novel
Addictive . . . a pace so relentless that you'll want to inhale this novel in one uninterrupted sitting
This atmospheric, propulsive novel creeps up on you like footsteps in the dead of night... a tingling layer of gothic suspense
One of the most vivid, memorable and menacing characters I've ever read...Dark, tense and menacing, I was quickly drawn into the story and couldn't put it down. Readers who enjoyed Notes on a Scandal by Zoe Heller will adore it
Wonderfully dark and intriguing. In Vivian, Atkins has created a fascinating and sinister character who will stay with you long after you've finished the book. Highly recommended
Such a sophisticated, layered read, I absolutely revelled in it. A wonderful, wonderful book. The plotting is superb but the real triumph is the characterisation. The moment I finished, I wanted to read it all over again
I absolutely loved this novel. The Other Child is seriously gripping, seriously scary and seriously brilliant
Atmospheric and packed with suspense, kept me on edge from start to finish
Sinister, suspenseful and a great sense of place. It races along, as a family history is unpicked
Fabulously dark
Sinister, utterly compulsive...will keep your pulse racing until its dramatic denouement
Truly unnerving. Atkins perfectly captures the vulnerability that comes with moving overseas, away from friends and support networks, and uses it expertly in this compelling novel. Not just one-more-page gripping but perceptive and beautifully written
An elegantly written page-turner which pulled me in from the start and held its grip until the final page
An absolute cracker...Fantastic!
It's wonderfully creepy, in that clever way that is tied in with character, as much as plot and setting. And the beetle metaphor is just ingenious
The tension is immediate and unrelenting; the sense of unease palpable. Deceptive on every level, this is a gripping, Rendellesque read
Enjoyably creepy
Utterly gripping
The last book I read in one sitting like this was Louise Doughty's Apple Tree Yard. Like Louise, Lucy Atkins is brilliant at ramping up the tension so that there's not a chance of relief until the end
Brilliantly believable...you will relish every page
This is an enthralling, creepy and endlessly twisty story about secrets, lies and the destructive power of ambition. We galloped to the climax. Five stars
I read this book in one sitting. A tense psychological thriller which explores authenticity, fame, and lies and the depths you might sink to in order to protect your reputation. A page-turner that keeps you gripped from the very first page
It put me in mind of Misery, and Rebecca. Splendidly tense, creepy and enjoyable
Characters so real you could reach out and touch them. Absorbing, exciting and full of rich detail - snap this one up!
Beautifully crafted, unsettling and utterly unputdownable, The Night Visitor explores what happens when we take someone else's story and make it our own
Crackles with undercurrents of mistrust and menace. Tense, atmospheric and beautifully written, this unnerving tale of ambition and revenge held me captive until the last page. Brilliant
Clever, multilayered and morally murky. I read it with a delicious sense of dread
Elegantly written with a rollercoaster of twists and turns, The Night Visitor has creepy echoes of Zoe Heller's Notes on a Scandal. I read it in two sittings
The Night Visitor is an addictive and intricately plotted page-turner. I devoured it and I loved it
Thrilling...the sort of book you think about even when not reading, and stay up far later than you should to finish. Atkins is a master of suspense; she creates characters that you feel like you've met, and situations you never want to be in. Completely wonderful
It's clever, complex and compelling and grips right up to that completely unexpected twist. A chilling psychological thriller with beetles!
