Book excerpt: It was the house of their dreams. Now it's their worst nightmare . . . THE GRIPPING NEW SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER AND CRIME BOOK OF THE MONTH 'A well-plotted tale . . . Intriguing. Twisty. Surprising. Touching. Enjoyed it' DOROTHY KOOMSON 'I couldn't think of anything else whilst reading this. The plot was so well crafted, the characters so realistic' 5***** READER REVIEW 'Secrets, skeletons, mothers and daughters - and some absolutely corking twists! A cracking thriller, I loved it' EVE CHASE 'Spine-chilling' SUNDAY TIMES _________ When Saffron Cutler and boyfriend Tom move into 9 Skelton Place, they didn't expect to find this. Two bodies, buried under the patio over thirty years ago. When the police launch a murder investigation, they ask to speak to the cottage's former owner - Saffy's grandmother, Rose, whose Alzheimer's clouds her memory. But it is clear she remembers something . . . What happened thirty years ago? What part did her grandmother play? And is Saffy now in danger? . . . _________ DON'T MISS THE BRAND NEW THRILLER FROM CLAIRE DOUGLAS, THE WOMAN WHO LIED - AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER NOW 'This book has everything I love: murder, a taut and fiendishly clever plot and nail-biting tension' EMMA CURTIS 'Combines a tight, gripping, plot and truly shocking twist, with beautiful writing and emotion. A thriller with a heart' NUALA ELLWOOD 'A darkly absorbing mystery' CRIME MONTHLY 'Twisty, nail-biting, and utterly absorbing, you won't be able to put The Couple at No. 9 down' LOUISE O'NEILL 'Expansive, emotional, with one of the very best end twists I've ever read. Douglas at her heart-stopping best' GILLIAN MCALLISTER 'Devotees of domestic noir will love the multiple perspectives and shifts in time that Claire Douglas uses to complicate her nervy narrative' THE TIMES CRIME CLUB NEWSLETTER 'The perfect gripping holiday read' LESLEY PEARSE Praise for Claire Douglas 'Few people do psychological thrillers as claustrophobic and as creepy as Claire Douglas' Tim Weaver, bestselling author of No One Home 'Thrillingly tense and twisty' B. A. Paris, bestselling author of Behind Closed Doors 'Stunning . . . with a killer twist' Closer 'Perfect for fans of The Girl on the Train' Marie Claire 'Twisty, exciting yet so very real' Gillian McAllister, bestselling author of Anything You Do Say