The Dead Lie Down

Ruth Bussey once did something wrong – horribly wrong – and was nearly destroyed by her punishment. Now, she has tentatively rebuilt her life and unexpectedly found love with a man named Aidan Seed. But Aidan also has a secret, and one day he confides in Ruth: years ago, he killed a woman named Mary Trelease. Ruth's initial horror turns to confusion when she realizes that she knows Mary Trelease, and Mary is very much alive. So why does Aidan insist that she’s dead?

'Little Face is a wonderful work, a brilliant use of mirrors and the writer's magic.  Chilling, tantalizing, and ultimately fair and deeply satisfying.'-Barbara D’Amato, author of Death of a Thousand Cuts

'Hannah adapts to crime fiction with arresting aplomb: Her characters are vivid, the novel’s challenging double narrative is handled with flair, and its denouement is ingenious.'-The Sunday Times (London)

'Outstandingly chilling.'-The Spectator

'Superb . . . good, old-fashioned spine-tingling stuff, but also a fine modern thriller.'-The Times (London)

'A terrifying mystery of manipulation, counter-manipulation and, finally, astounding revelation. It’s a haunting story told with bewitching skill.'-The Scotsman

'Impressive.'-The Mail on Sunday

The first time she goes out after their daughter is born, Alice leaves the two-week-old infant at home with her husband, David. When she returns two hours later, she insists that the baby in the crib is not her child. Despite her apparent distress, David is adamant that she is wrong.

The police are called to the scene. Detective Constable Simon Waterhouse is sympathetic, but he doubts Alice’s story. His superior, Sergeant Charlie Zailer, thinks Alice must be suffering from some sort of delusion brought on by postpartum depression. With an increasingly hostile and menacing David swearing she must either be mad or lying, how can Alice make the police believe her before it’s too late?

Sophie Hannah is an award-winning and best-selling poet in the United Kingdom. She has also previously published fiction. This is her first psychological crime novel. She lives in West Yorkshire with her husband and two children.

A chilling exploration of a mother's unspeakable betrayal from the author of Little Face

Sally Thorning is watching the news with her husband when she hears an unexpected name-Mark Bretherick. It's a name she shouldn't know, but last year Sally treated herself to a secret vacation-away from her hectic family life-and met a man. After their brief affair, the two planned to never meet again. But now, Mark's wife and daughter are dead-and the safety of Sally's own family is in doubt. Sophie Hannah established herself as a new master of psychological suspense with her previous novel, Little Face. Now with accomplished prose and a plot guaranteed to keep readers guessing, The Wrong Mother is Hannah's most captivating work yet.

The New York Times - Marilyn Stasio

Hannah goes in for all those bizarre plot twists and outlandish behaviors that have come to define the psychological-suspense story, but she does it with style and wit. And while these Gothic chords bring a dissonant note to the realistic chapters written in the police-procedural format, they can't muffle the voices of the women in this story who persist in speaking intimately and honestly about the pressures on them as supermoms.

A chilling, compulsively readable novel of psychological suspense from the author of Little Face and The CarrierSally Thorning is watching the news with her husband when she hears a name she never thought she'd hear again: Mark Bretherick.It's a name she shouldn't recognize. Last year, a work trip Sally had planned was canceled at the last minute. Desperate for a break from juggling her job and a young family, Sally didn't tell her husband that the trip had fallen through. Instead, she treated herself to a secret vacation in a remote hotel. While she was there, Sally met a man—Mark Bretherick. All the details are the same: where he lives, his job, his wife Geraldine and daughter Lucy. Except that the photograph on the news is of a man Sally has never seen before. And Geraldine and Lucy Bretherick are both dead...With the international bestseller Little Face, Sophie Hannah established herself as a striking new voice in psychological suspense. The Wrong Mother, a riveting exploration of a mother's unspeakable betrayal, confirms her reputation as a master of the form. A chilling exploration of a mother's unspeakable betrayal from the author of Little Face Sally Thorning is watching the news with her husband when she hears an unexpected nameMark Bretherick. It's a name she shouldn't know, but last year Sally treated herself to a secret vacationaway from her hectic family lifeand met a man. After their brief affair, the two planned to never meet again. But now, Mark's wife and daughter are deadand the safety of Sally's own family is in doubt. Sophie Hannah established herself as a new master of psychological suspense with her previous novel, Little Face . Now with accomplished prose and a plot guaranteed to keep readers guessing, The Wrong Mother is Hannah's most captivating work yet. Published as The Point of Rescue in the United Kingdom "It's every mother's worst nightmare. When Alice Fancourt leaves her newborn daughter at home with her husband for the first time, she comes home to a horrifying discovery: her child has been swapped with another baby. In near hysterics, Alice rushes to call the police, but soon discovers that no one, not even her husband David, believes her. When the police arrive, Detective Simon Waterhouse is drawn to the lovely Alice but doubts her story and suspects that she is suffering from postpartum depression. Meanwhile, David is growing increasingly hostile and Alice begins to fear that her baby's disappearance may be linked to his first wife's untimely death. Can Alice convince the police before it's too late?"-- Provided by publisher It's every mother's nightmare ... The first time Alice Fancourt goes out after their daughter is born, she leaves the two-week-old infant with her husband, David. When she returns only two hours later, she swears the baby in the crib is not her child. Despite her distress, David is adamant that she is wrong. The police are called to the scene. Detective Constable Simon Waterhouse is sympathetic, but he doubts Alice's story. His superior, Sergeant Charlie Zailer, thinks that Alice must be suffering from some sort of delusion brought on by postpartum depressions. With an increasingly hostile and menacing David swearing she must either be mad or lying, how can Alice make the police believe her before it's too late? Sally Thorning is shocked when she hears that a man she had an affair with while on a secret vacation the previous year has been found dead, she is shocked and frightened, especially when the picture on the news is not the man she had fallen in love with It's been a year since Sally Thorning's brief affair with Mark Bretherick. The two planned to never meet again. But now, Mark's wife and daughter are dead--and the safety of Sally's own family is in doubt.