I think there is always a case for choosing a book based purely on the cover. This is another of those times where I’ve done precisely that - and I loved this book.

Fragile is a haunting thriller, where two young people, Nell and Joe, run away to London from their foster home after a tragic event. An event that we’re drip fed the information of as the book progresses.

Joe and Nell become separated, so Nell decides to go and knock on the door of the last place she saw him. When Dr. Robin Wilder opens the door at Starling Villa, Nell manages to talk him into employing her as his housekeeper. But all is not as it seems. Is Nell really safe here? What happened in Wales before she ran away to London with Joe? What does Dr. Wilders wife want with Nell? And where is Joe?

Nell and Joe’s backstories about their lives in care are heartbreaking. From a young age, Nell becomes the house ‘mother’, cleaner and cook. It’s a horrible life for her and so well described. Joe’s life isn’t any better.

Actually, the writing is so descriptive: people and places are described picture perfectly, and some scenes are so emotive, whilst others are really tense. The gripping finale was heartbreaking.

Sarah Hilary is a new author to me, and one that I’ll certainly look out for in future.

What a terrifically written book.
Had me hooked from the first page and kept a tight grip on me until the last.
I dontthink I have quite recovered yet.
Fabulous
Thank you netgalley and the publishers and the author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest opinion

A slow paced gothic chiller thriller. This is a standalone thriller from the author of DI Marnie Rome series.

A powerful psychological thriller with gothic overtones, Fragile is a haunting story of an Orphan who just wants to belong.

A beautifully written, dark and atmospheric character driven story which is told over two timelines

Now - London
Nell needs to feel needed, needs to belong and needs to find Joe - when the job of housekeeper for the eccentric man, who owns the house where Joe was last seen, falls in her lap she jumps at the chance. Once she starts the live-in job in this strange, gloomy, oppressive house under the rigid rules and work rota of her strange employer she discovers that she is not the only one with dark secrets.

Then - Wales
After being abandoned by her mother and running away from various foster homes Nell ends up placed in Lyle's , the children's home from hell run by Megan Flack, who is only in it for the money, criminally negligent and lazy with a cruel streak. Nell becomes the 'mother' figure to the younger waifs and strays who are unfortunate enough to end up in the 'care' of this vile woman. She falls deeply in love with a new arrival - the very beautiful Joe Peach, surprisingly Megan also has a soft spot for the runaway, drug dependent teen - Following a tragic event Nell and Jo flee to London and Megan loses both her job and home.

A very different offering from this author, whose Marnie Rome series is one of the best crime series out there. Fragile is beautifully and evocatively written, the suspense is palpable and the storylines past and present are both gripping and heartbreaking.

A story of love, loss and freindship, jealoulsy and revenge - I honestly couldn't put it down.

4.5 - 5 stars

This was a slow developing psychological thriller. Some good characters and a tense story line.. Great conclusion.

'The Past will catch up with you in the end'.
Nell Ballard is a person who is running. Running from her past and a secret she must keep hidden, but can you ever truly escape your past ?
She is living on the streets with Joe having run away from her foster carer Megan who is only in it for the money. Then one night Joe disappears with a woman he meets at a club and whilst Nell is trying to find him she manages to worm her way into the employ of the mysterious Dr Robin Wilder who is the owner of the house Nell is convinced she saw Joe go in to. Nell sees this as the ideal opportunity to escape her past and build a fresh start for herself, but is it ?
This novel deals with some dark issues which are slowly revealed to the reader and the whole tale has a dark tone and underlying menace throughout. The story also has a pervading air of sadness which none of the characters seem to be able to escape. Others have likened its style to that of 'Rebecca' and I can certainly see why, and I shall be seeking out more of Sarah Hilary's work having read this tale.

Thank you for the advanced copy.
Sadly this book has to sit in my not for me category.
It’s quite dark and exceptionally sad in places. I found it quite a heavy read. Am sure others will love it.

I have enjoyed Sarah Hilary's police procedurals and so was looking forward to this her first standalone psychological thriller. Fragile has much to recommend it- it is beautifully written with stunning and intense prose that draws the reader in and it is full of Gothic atmosphere. However for me it was too slow paced to really work as a thriller and I never quite believed in the plot or characters.
3.5 stars
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC.

Not fragile at all.
This is a wonderful gothic style tale that draws you in.
A debut stand alone of style and a great plot and characters. I was not familiar with her crime series but may well read some now although this novel stands as a great literary offering.
One I will buy for my shelf to read again.
Rightly receiving accolades and gaining fans for the author.

Nell and Joe are on the run, living rough. But one night, Joe takes off with another woman. Nell followed him, saw him leave with her, saw him disappear into a building, and that was it.

Determined to find Joe, Nell manages to get hired on as housekeeper at the house where she last saw Joe. But there's no sign of him. In fact, it's just a man living in a house filled with boxes and dust. But Nell's new position gives her an opportunity to dig further and the secrets this house holds are darker than she'd expected.

As Nell searches for traces of Joe, someone else is searching for Nell.

Sarah Hilary breaks from her DI Marnie Rome series with this taut and suspenseful stand alone!

Nell has secrets. Secrets she's trying to escape.

She grew up in a foster home where she made herself useful. Cleaning, helping with the little kids, that sort of stuff. From her perspective it wasn't a happy existence, but it had its good points. Namely, Joe and Rosie.

But something happened to Rosie. And Meaghan, the woman who fostered them, isn't going to forget.

In her attempts to hang on to the things she cares about—in this case, Joe—Nell lands herself in a situation that isn't what she expected.

Teasing out truth from lies, staying one step ahead of the Meaghans of the world, and, above all, taking care of the things that are important to her, take all of Nell's energy.

Interestingly, though, we're given both Nell's and Meaghan's perspectives in the narrative. And while the beginning of the book sets up Nell as our heroine and Meaghan as the bad guy, that set up becomes murkier as the story takes off.

This is twisty—and somewhat bleak—psychological suspense of the highest order!

I listened to this audio book and enjoyed the narration by Imogen Church. Nell Ballard runs away to London, from her welsh care home, with her friend Joe taking with them a dark secret. When Joe disappears she goes in search of him and tricks Robin Wilder into employing her as a housekeeper at Starling Villas. Sarah Hilary's descriptions bring this dark and chilling place to life and all the way through there is a sense that things will not end well, it is a tense read. Thank you to Sarah Hilary, Imogen Church, Macmillan and Net Galley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have read and enjoyed Sarah Hilary’s Marnie Rome series and was looking forward to reading her new standalone. Fragile is a very dark, sad and tragic tale, which was difficult to read in places. Although the settings of both time lines were quite atmospheric, I didn’t find any of the characters particularly intersecting and couldn’t force myself to finish the book.

Fragile is an unsettling read. From the very first page, the reader is drawn into Nell's world as she takes up a position in Starling villa working as a housekeeper for the current occupant, Dr Robin Wilder, who likes things done in a very particular way. The book reads a little like a modern-day Rebecca, in my opinion, although in this case, it is Robin's wife, Caroline, who takes up the role of Mrs Danvers as she tries to undermine and abuse Nell when she unexpectedly returns to the house one day. I found this particularly harrowing to read, as Caroline unpicks Nell's insecurities, making her feel shameful of her background and status.

The story is also told from the perspective of Nell's old foster carer, Meghan, who we find out was in the foster world for the money rather than anything else, and the plot dips and twists between the present and what's happening in the house, and the past and what led Nell to become homeless and taking the job at Starling villa.

I won't share much more, as I don't wish to spoil this one for anyone reading it; suffice to say, many secrets are eventually revealed.

This is my first book by Sarah Hilary, but it won't be my last. Some of the writing was beautiful, and there were moments when I reread sentences and paragraphs to absorb the words on the page.

This is a book I'd recommend to others. It's not an adrenaline-filled thriller, more of a slow burn that gets under your skin.

Fragile by Sarah Hilary is a very powerful standalone psychological thriller and I was hooked within the very first few pages.

"Everything she touches breaks"

"Nell Ballard is a runaway and a former foster child with a very dark secret she is desperate to keep, close and never tell anyone!
However, all Nell wants is to find a place she can belong and to be loved.

A great job has comes up at Starling Villas, and home to the enigmatic Robin Wilder, Nell, seizes the opportunity with both hands and goes for it. However, her new lodgings may not be a safe haven that she was hoping for. and her new employer lives by a set of rigid rules and very soon Nell will soon sees that he is hiding secrets of his own.

This new job seems to be to good to be true and her arrival at the Villas seems to be a con

But is Nell’s arrival at the Villas really are coincidence? Nell of all people knows more than most how fragile people can be – and how easy they can be to break !!!

This book was brilliant and I really enjoyed this book. I am looking forward to read more books by Sarah in the future.

Big thank you to Netgalley, Pan Macmillan, and the author for a chance to read and review this book. All opinions are expressed voluntarily.

Nell Ballard is a former foster child whose short life is brimming with secrets and dark memories she’d rather forget. So when she gets a job as live-in housekeeper for the enigmatic Robin Wilder, it seems like a new beginning.
But Nell’s reasons for taking the job are more complicated than they might first appear. And her new employee, it transpires, is someone with secrets of his own. He has a set of strict rules that she must adhere to – but as Nell’s role continues, who is really in charge becomes increasingly blurred. Far from the job being a fresh start, it isn’t long before Nell’s past begins to catch back up with her.
From the author of the award-winning DI Marnie Rome crime series, Fragile sees Sarah Hilary swapping police procedurals for psychological thrillers. There’s a dark, Gothic feel to this novel that makes for a moreish and an unsettling read, with echoes of Barbara Vine and Belinda Bauer.

(Review for various Living Magazines, June 2021)

Fragile by Sarah Hilary

I’m conflicted about this one. It was an intriguing read, very dark and intense with a great storyline, but sadly, I just didn’t warm to any of the characters and found it a bit too slow. However it isn’t my usual type of read so I may not be the best person to review. I would call it a gothic thriller. I’m sure it will appeal to many readers …Sarah Hilary is obviously a very talented author
Thanks to NetGalley and to Macmillan for giving me the opportunity to read and review this title.

Fragile follows Nell, a young woman who takes a job at Starling Villa.

The POV alternates between that of Nell and and her ex foster mother, Meagan. I have to admit, from the blurb on the book, I really had NO idea what this book was going to be about.

I really enjoyed Sarah's writing style, because even though I found the book incredibly slow....the writing kept me engaged and interested enough to keep turning the pages. There was also enough mystery and a curiosity w.r.t where this story was going during the first half. I was also extremely touched by the scenes that involved how the kids ended up in the foster care system. I got quite emotional during those scenes, and again, this speaks to the fantastic writing skills of the author.

I felt for Nell's character, but she was a bit confusing in what her initial mission was, vs how quickly things turned for her. Besides her character, I just did not like any of the other characters. The 2nd half of the book did not develop as much as I would have hoped...the story stayed kind of flat, though I was glad there was one reveal we'd been waiting for during the entire book, that she did finally reveal to us.

Fragile is a well written psychological story of secrets and lies. Nell and Joe are two teenagers that run away from their foster home that is run by the controlling Meagan. Meagan is controlling, neglectful and lazy and makes the children carry out much of the housework which includes Nell looking after Rosie, a young girl that Meagan fosters. Following a traumatic event Nell and Joe Nell runaway to London.
In London, Joe mysteriously disappears with an older woman from a club one night and Nell ends up, scheming her way into the house she believes he went into and gets herself employed as a housekeeper by the the owner, Dr Robin Wilder who is a strange controlling man. He provides Nell with a list of house duties that must be carried in the exact manner he stipulates. Robins wife turns up some days later and Nell realises that she is the woman that Joe went off with.
As a reader you are faced with a number of mysteries. What happened to Rosie? Where is Joe? Why has Nell insinuated herself into Robins house? What is going on in this strange house with Robin and his wife?

A dark and sinister mystery filled with damaged characters which carefully builds the tension as the novel proceeds to a satisfying conclusion.

Fragile is a standalone novel by acclaimed author Sarah Hilary that is a very different kind of read to her DI Marnie Rome crime thriller series of books. It has a dark and chilling gothic feel to it that draws you in from the very first page, hooking its claws into you and never letting go. It reads very much like a classic novel from yesteryear but with a modern day twist that is more than relevant to the times we live in today. Touching on themes of child abuse and a broken system that fails to safeguard those most in need, Fragile is a powerful and thought provoking read that I haven’t been able to stop thinking about since I turned the final page.

I don’t want to go into too much detail about the plot as this is a book you need to read and experience for yourself, but I will say it is a deeply unsettling read that had me on the edge of my seat at times as the claustrophobic feel of the setting sent shivers up and down my spine. The storyline was so intense and otherworldly that I had to keep on reminding myself that this was a book set in modern times, not in the time of Rebecca or other such classic novels. Starling Villas itself is a character in its own right, the chilling atmosphere seeping from its walls as we discover the secrets that lie within each room along with runaway Nell, as she begins to wonder exactly what it is she has let herself in for…

To say I adored this book would be an understatement. Sarah Hilary’s writing is superb, her ability to hit the nail square on the head when it comes to hard to talk about issues of modern times is astonishing. There is an authenticity to her writing that brings these characters vividly to life, my heart aching for them as the layers are carefully peeled away to reveal a devastating sequence of events that tore my heart in two.

Sarah Hilary is an author who just keeps on going from strength to strength and I can’t wait to see what brilliance she is going to come up with next. Fragile is a stunning standalone modern day classic that I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend. A dark, intense and unsettling read that will stay with me for a long time to come.

Outstanding!