First published 2025
Clara and Dempsey became strangers after their mother Serene disappeared into the Thames years ago. Clara built a career as a celebrity author while Dempsey chose isolation. Then Clara sees a woman on London's streets who appears identical to Serene, unchanged by time and living without children. Clara becomes convinced this woman is their mother returned. Dempsey dismisses her as a fraud. The sisters find themselves locked in conflict over this mysterious figure who may or may not be Serene. Their dispute escalates into a confrontation that puts both their lives at risk. Facing this crisis forces Clara and Dempsey to examine their shared trauma and fractured relationship. Daley-Ward crafts a story that spans multiple realities, examining how Black women navigate the tension between family obligations and personal freedom. The novel asks whether choosing yourself can ever be wrong.
Genres: literary-fiction, contemporary, adult-fiction, psychological-thriller, family-drama
Vibes: dark, emotionally-intense, intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: confrontation-and-reckoning, fractured-family, shared-trauma, unreliable-perception
Setting: London, Thames
Period: Contemporary
368 pages · Paperback · Liveright
Content warnings: death, mental-illness