Bitter Orange

Frances Jellico is dying and a man called the vicar visits her to extract a deathbed confession. She recalls the relationship she forged with Cara and Peter in 1969, and the signs that led to the crime that split their lives open. Claire Fuller's novel is a compulsive page-turner that creates an atmosphere of simmering menace.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 288 pages
Publication date: 02 May 2019
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd

Frances Jellico is on her deathbed, and a man claiming to be a vicar visits her in hopes of extracting a confession. He seeks to know the truth about what transpired during the summer of 1969, when Frances was tasked with surveying a dilapidated country house and encountered the glamorous bohemian couple, Cara and Peter. She recalls the relationship they forged, filled with sweltering days, lavish dinners, and elaborate lies. Through a Judas hole, she would spy on them.

The vicar questions whether the signs were there from the beginning or if it was inevitable for the crime to split their lives open like rotten fruit. The novel is described as bewitching, otherworldly, and full of dark foreboding. Claire Fuller is praised for her storytelling skills, with the Scotsman describing it as an atmospheric page-turner that leads to a bloody climax of shocks and surprises. The Irish Times calls it sinister and suspenseful, simmering with guilt, lust, and envy. The Mail on Sunday describes it as multi-layered, lush, twisted, and brilliantly clever. The Sunday Mirror praises its multi-layered plot and vivid characters.

Weight: 204g
Dimension: 202 x 140 x 18 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780241983461