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BY THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE TALENTED MR RIPLEY, CAROL AND STRANGERS ON A TRAIN

‘Bears Highsmith’s unique, unsurpassed mixture of unsettling psychological insights’ THE TIMES

‘The original, the best, the gloriously twisted Queen of Suspense’ MARK BILLINGHAM

‘Highsmith’s novels are peerlessly disturbing . . . bad dreams that keep us thrashing for the rest of the night’ NEW YORKER

Sydney Bartleby has killed his wife. At least, he has thought about it, compulsively, repeatedly, plotting schemes, designing escapes, forging alibis. Of course he has; he’s a thriller writer. He even knows how to dispose of her body. But when Alicia takes a long, unannounced holiday, Sydney descends into the treacherous world of his own fantasy.

A masterpiece of noir fantasy in which Highsmith revels in eliciting the unsettling psychological forces that lurk beneath the surface of everyday life.

Publisher Review

Bears Highsmith's unique, unsurpassed mixture of unsettling psychological insights, moods of tension and malice, and an ending of brilliant ambiguity * The Times * Highsmith is a giant of the genre. The original, the best, the gloriously twisted Queen of Suspense -- Mark Billingham Highsmith was every bit as deviant and quirky as her mischievous heroes, and didn't seem to mind if everyone knew it -- J. G. Ballard * Daily Telegraph * A Suspension of Mercy, a masterpiece of noir fantasy. With this novel, Highsmith revels in eliciting the unsettling psychological forces that lurk beneath the surface of everyday contemporary life. For eliciting the menace that lurks in familiar surroundings, there's no one like Patricia Highsmith * Time * Highsmith's novels are peerlessly disturbing . . . bad dreams that keep us thrashing for the rest of the night * New Yorker * It's a curious and absorbing novel, almost unique in its fantastic and ironic tone -- Anthony Boucher * New York Times * A literary hall of mirrors in which reality and fiction are constantly reflected and, ultimately, confused -- Andrew Wilson