I have read and enjoyed books by Karen Perry previously and this was no difference. I felt it was a good portrayal of what it feels like to have been released from prison following a lengthy sentence. I didn't find that there were any particular twists or shocks in the book. It was pretty obviously the way the book was heading but I still found that the journey to ending was an enjoyable read so I am happy with that.

Ah ha, a psychological thriller that is genuinely tense and menacing with a delicious drip-feed of emotional chills? Yes please! Perry has managed to side-step some of the worst flaws of this genre which has become ubiquitous and frequently both silly and badly written. I'm not claiming that this is 'literary' - its intentions are other - but it is pulled together with intelligence and a lovely slow-burn feeling of increasing claustrophobia and tension - we know something terrible is going to happen, and who to - but where is the menace coming from?

This book capitalises on the inherent forced urban intimacy of neighbours where houses divided into flats allow us a far closer look into our neighbours' lives than we might like. There's a creepiness that seeps through these pages, and the characterisation is layered enough to have me changing my mind more than once about recently-returned Anton...

The narrative bypasses the go-to structure of multiple 1st person narrators and time-based sections: instead it's focalised through just three characters, all 3rd person, and memories are deftly woven into the main story to give us all we need to know about the past.

I was a little disappointed by the ending which feels driven by the need for a final 'twist' rather than psychological truth - but at least it's not completely left-field.

Overall, a superior little chiller - the sort that makes you hope your commute home might be delayed so you can read a little bit more!