A Good House for Children

More about the book

Once, Orla was a painter and a lover; now she is a mother and wife. When her husband Nick suggests they move from their city apartment, she agrees, partly because she feels it's true and partly due to her exhaustion. Nick finds an antiquated Georgian house on the Dorset cliffs, claiming it’s perfect for children with ample space and beautiful grounds. However, as they settle in—Nick commuting to the city for work—Orla becomes increasingly unsettled. She hears voices when alone, experiences doors opening and closing mysteriously, and her son Sam, who hasn’t spoken in six months, seems to have an imaginary friend with dubious intentions. Four decades earlier, Lydia arrives as a live-in nanny for a grieving family in the same house. She, too, becomes aware of eerie presences and grows fearful for the children’s safety. Yet, like Orla, she finds no one believes her; her concerns dismissed as fanciful, stemming from the imaginations of women who spend too much time with children. Are both families headed for tragedy? Are Orla and Lydia imagining things? What secrets does the house conceal? This feminist gothic tale weaves an atmospheric mystery with themes of motherhood, madness, and the significance of a woman’s work.