First published 2017
In 1895 England, 13-year-old Robert Coombes stands trial for the murder of his own mother. As the trial unfolds, a portrait emerges of a complex, intelligent boy trapped in a dysfunctional household. With his father absent and his mother's health declining, Robert and his younger brother make a fateful decision that will haunt their family for years to come. In the trial's aftermath, the true story of the Coombes family's tragic past is slowly revealed, challenging assumptions about Robert's guilt.
Genres: drama, historical-fiction, 20th-century, mystery, crime, 19th-century
Vibes: dark, emotional, intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: dysfunctional-family, unreliable-narrator
Setting: England
Period: 1895
400 pages · Paperback · Penguin Publishing Group
Content warnings: child-abuse, murder, violence