Synopsis:

An eerie, hypnotic, darkly beautiful novel about two elderly sisters living alone at the edge of the world and how their lives unravel when their sanctum is breached, for fans of Piranesi and The Testaments.

In a place and time unknown, two elderly sisters live in a walled garden, secluded from the outside world. Evelyn and Lily have only ever known each other. What was before the garden, they have forgotten; what lies beyond it, they do not know. Each day is spent in languid service to their home: tending the bees, planting the crops, and dutifully following the instructions of the almanac written by their mother.

So when a nameless boy is found hiding in the boarded house at the center of their isolated grounds, their once-solitary lives are irrevocably disrupted. Who is he? Where did he come from? And most importantly, what does he want?

As suspicions gather and allegiances falter, Evelyn and Lily are forced to confront the dark truths about themselves, the garden, and the world as they’ve known it.

Review:

Two elderly sisters live alone in a single room of a grand house that sits in an equally grand garden. Together they tend the garden and it provides them everything they need to live – for the outside world is believed to be a wilderness where only danger lurks.

I really enjoyed this one. It was instantly captivating to me – the sisters were such interesting characters and the mystery of their insular life and the unknowns beyond that was compelling. This is a story with layers and they are slow to unfurl, but as they do, fragments of a larger picture gradually start fitting together. If you are someone who needs everything wrapped up in a neat bow at the end of your stories, however, be warned that you will still have questions at the end of this one. In my opinion they don’t need answering though, since it’s not really that kind of book.

I love stories that highlight sister relationships, and Evelyn and Lily were fascinating to get to know. They are so different from each other, shaped by their history in very different ways. Within the pages, there are musings on identity and some stark thoughts on general humanity.
We get to know them both very well since they are essentially the only two characters (until a third appears to tip their world upside-down). Even in their old age, and after spending their entire lives together, their relationship is still evolving, questions being asked and answers not always what the other wanted to hear.

Nick Newman’s writing is brilliant. The atmosphere he managed to put into the pages was palpable. I could feel the garden – alive, the house – empty and unknown, and the tense dread that started to seep into the story as it progressed. I don’t want to say much about the ending, but it was unexpected in a good way, and very satisfying.

Thank you so much to @doubledayukbooks for sending a copy my way.