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DO YOU REMEMBER THE SUMMER THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING?

‘A thrilling look at mothers and daughters, adolescence, sex, suburbia and secrets’ NELL FRIZZELL

‘Unsettling, challenging and utterly immersive’ CLARE MACKINTOSH

‘A sultry, stifling debut exploring power, consent and womanhood’ COSMOPOLITAN

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Rachel and her daughter have never had secrets. Until now.

Lily is somewhere she shouldn’t be. With someone she shouldn’t be with.

Mia misses her best friend. But she let her down.

In the middle of a stifling heatwave, Rachel, Lily and Mia stand on the edge of irrevocable change. Soon, just one burning question will remain… how could they let things go this far?

A provocative debut novel for fans of My Dark Vanessa, The Push by Ashley Audrain and Megan Nolan’s Acts of Desperation.

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‘Barkworth is excruciatingly good’ OBSERVER

‘I am addicted… dark and twisty with beautiful, poetic writing’ EMMA GANNON

‘Gripping and intensely atmospheric… you won’t want to put this down’ HEAT magazine’s READ OF THE WEEK

‘Stylish and sensual’ KIRAN MILLWOOD HARGRAVE

‘Twists, turns and revelations in all the right places’ EVENING STANDARD

‘A stunning new voice… I couldn’t tear myself away’ ERIN KELLY

‘Sexy and provocative’ LAURA JANE WILLIAMS

‘Pulls you into its sweaty interior and keeps you gripped’ RENEE KNIGHT

‘Compulsive, sticky and full of gorgeous writing’ KIRSTIN INNES

‘Read next if you loved Three Women by Lisa Taddeo’ WHISTLES newsletter

Publisher Review

Barkworth is excruciatingly good at encapsulating that point in life where Mia and Lily stand - on the edge of growing up... Intense and claustrophobic, this is an impressive first book * Observer * A sultry, stifling debut * Cosmopolitan * Gripping and intensely atmospheric... beautifully explores the complicated relationship between mothers and teenage daughters... you won't want to put this down * Heat * An atmospheric read that will draw you into its tangled web * Woman & Home * Dark and unsettling * Red * Painfully real, and so beautifully written I wanted to stay within its pages forever. Heatstroke is unsettling, challenging and utterly immersive -- Clare Mackintosh Stylish and sensual -- Kiran Millwood Hargrave Tense, sultry, unsettling, sweaty and evocative . . . A thrilling look at mothers and daughters, adolescence, sex, suburbia and secrets -- Nell Frizzell Pulls you into its sweaty interior and keeps you gripped to the end. Darkly atmospheric and so well written -- Renee Knight Sexy, sensual, difficult, provocative - I was hooked for every twist, turn and revelation. This is definitely one of the best reads of the summer. I was blown away -- Laura Jane Williams I am addicted!... A gripping, dark and twisty read with beautiful, poetic writing -- Emma Gannon I gulped this whole thing down in one sitting. It's compulsive, sticky and full of gorgeous writing -- Kirstin Innes Raw, unsparing and almost unbearably tender. Perfect sentences swim gracefully across every page, overlaying a narrative that delights in wrong-footing the readers' assumptions. I couldn't tear myself away -- Erin Kelly A scorching tale of obsession, betrayal and the wounds that mothers and daughters inflict on each other in the name of love -- Tammy Cohen Fevered and claustrophobic -- Jane Healey, author of The Animals at Lockwood Manor