'The Safekeep' by Yeal Van Der Wouden

This is very much a book of the moment. It was shortlisted for last year's Booker, recently won the Orange Prize (absurdly only open to only female writers) and is being heavily promoted in bookshops following its recent release as a paperback.

I loved it and have been heartily recommending it to every serious reader of my acquaintance. However, I strongly think that it is best started while knowing very little about what is coming. It is one of those novels that contains an almighty twist about two thirds of the way through that can only be fully satisfying if you do not see it coming.

So I am going to refrain from saying anything much here about the details of the story or its setting, beyond that it is Dutch.

It is all wonderfully claustrophobic, focusing in depth on two main characters and just a handful of others. The two central figures are very different women - I guess in their early thirties (?) - who circumstances bring together and whose relationship is as peculiar as it is compelling. I was not completely convinced by the ending, but that is a minor complaint. Overall I found this just to be a pretty original, beautifully written and absorbing read.