The Sleepwalkers

A WATERSTONES THRILLER OF THE MONTH WHAT DARK SECRETS WAIT TO BE UNCOVERED WHEN YOU CHECK IN TO THE VILLA ROSA…? The scintillating new novel from the author of The End of Mr Y 'This is fiction roaring on all cylinders.' Guardian "Gloriously dark and tangled . . . clever . . . I highly recommend it." Observer 'A dark, twisty, savagely humorous plunge into a cauldron of toxic relationships . . . as well as a mystery loaded with menace, this is a smart, layered, stinging look at power and its abuse.' The Times 'Through her bold storytelling, "The Sleepwalkers" becomes a work of peculiar, gonzo genius.' New York Times 'Once more she earns her place in a postwar British canon of playfully serious mavericks that runs from Muriel Spark and Brigid Brophy to Nicola Barker and Ali Smith.' Spectator 'Like a darker, funnier The White Lotus, The Sleepwalkers is horrifying in the best possible way. I loved every moment of it.' James Smythe 'The Sleepwalkers is brilliant, savage and hilarious.This is Scarlett's best yet, and I don't say that lightly.' Bidisha Mamata 'A twisty Gothic tale of vertiginous depths and haunting power.' Sandra Newman, author of Julia 'This original thriller has plenty of surprises.' Good Housekeeping Still reeling from the chaos of their wedding, Evelyn and Richard arrive on an idyllic Greek island for their honeymoon. It's the end of the season and out at sea a storm is brewing. They check in to an exclusive hotel, the Villa Rosa, where the proprietor Isabella — a strangely intense woman of indeterminate accent — flirts outrageously with Richard while treating Evelyn with a rudeness bordering on contempt. Isabella tells them the story of 'the sleepwalkers': a couple who stayed at the hotel the year before and drowned in a tragic and unexplained accident. It starts to feel like the entire island is obsessed with 'the sleepwalkers', but what at first seems like a fun tale to tell before bed quickly evolves into a living nightmare. Caught in a web of deception and intrigue, where nothing and nobody are quite what they seem, Evelyn and Richard discover that their island paradise may in fact be hell on earth and that their only means of escape is to confront dark truths about themselves and those they love. Exhilarating, suspenseful, and subversively funny, in The Sleepwalkers Thomas takes elements of Daphne Du Maurier and Patricia Highsmith and blends them with her own unique sensibility to create an unforgettable thriller of rare intelligence that cements her reputation as the most exciting and original author of her generation. 'Muriel Spark's disreputable niece.' Spectator 'She's a genius.' Douglas Coupland

Scarlett Thomas was born in London. She is the author of highly acclaimed contemporary cult novels including The End of Mr. Y, which was longlisted for the Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction, Oligarchy, The Seed Collectors, PopCo, and the Worldquake series of middle grade books. Her novels have sold over half a million copies worldwide, and been translated into twenty-six languages. Scarlett is professor of creative writing and contemporary fiction at the University of Kent. Find out more at ScarThomas.com.