{"product_id":"little-darlings-isbn-9781683319979","title":"Little Darlings","description":"\u003cb\u003eA Refinery29 Best Summer Thriller  ·  An Amazon Best Book of the Month  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The anxieties of motherhood take center stage in this “atmospheric and very creepy” debut psychological thriller that reinvents the changeling myth with the flair of Angela Carter (\u003ci\u003eGuardian\u003c\/i\u003e).\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Everyone says Lauren Tranter is exhausted, that she needs rest. And they’re right; with newborn twins, Morgan and Riley, she’s never been more tired in her life. But she knows what she saw: that night, in her hospital room, a woman tried to take her babies and replace them with her own...\u003ci\u003ecreatures\u003c\/i\u003e. Yet when the police arrived, they saw no one. Everyone, from her doctor to her husband, thinks she’s imagining things.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e A month passes and one bright summer morning, the babies disappear from Lauren’s side in a park. When they’re found, something is different about them. The infants look like Morgan and Riley—to everyone else. But to Lauren, something is off. As everyone around her celebrates their return, Lauren begins to scream, \u003ci\u003eThese are not my babies\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Determined to bring her true infant sons home, Lauren will risk the unthinkable. But if she’s wrong about what she saw...she’ll be making the biggest mistake of her life.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Compulsive, creepy, and inspired by some of our darkest fairy tales, \u003ci\u003eLittle Darlings\u003c\/i\u003e will have you checking—and rechecking—your own little ones. Just to be sure. Just to be safe.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Chilling story, beautiful prose.”\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e—Clare Mackintosh, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eI Let You Go\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003ePraise for \u003ci\u003eLittle Darlings\u003c\/i\u003e:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eOne of:\u003cbr\u003eAmazon's\u003c\/b\u003e Best Books of the Month for May: Mystery, Thriller \u0026amp; Suspense\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eRefinery29's\u003c\/b\u003e \"Best Summer Thrillers 2019\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBustle's\u003c\/b\u003e \"10 Horror Retellings Of Your Favorite Classic Stories\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Nerd Daily's\u003c\/b\u003e \"14 Debut Authors to Discover This April\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eGoodreads'\u003c\/b\u003e \"Spring's Most Anticipated mysteries \u0026amp; Thrillers\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e's\u003c\/b\u003e \"The Best Recent Crime and Thrillers\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"\u003cb\u003eUnforgettable\u003c\/b\u003e . . . One suspects that the real sorceress here is Golding, whose writing has given a voice to every wronged mother.\"\u003cbr\u003e—\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e Book Review\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"A lyrical and atmospheric folktale for the modern age,\u003c\/b\u003e \u003ci\u003eLittle Darlings\u003c\/i\u003e is a gorgeously crafted story that makes even the grimmest of subjects shine.\"\u003cbr\u003e—\u003ci\u003eBustle\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Atmospheric and very creepy indeed.”\u003cbr\u003e—\u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Golding's novel will strike true fear into the heart of any parent. At the same time, the novel \u003cb\u003eexplores the fierce and desperate love we have for our children, written with beautiful intensity . . . A gorgeous, creepy, modern fairy tale\u003c\/b\u003e reminiscent of Angela Carter.\"\u003cbr\u003e—\u003ci\u003eKirkus\u003c\/i\u003e starred review\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"\u003cb\u003eA modern story of ghosts and fairy tales . . . \u003c\/b\u003eGolding beautifully blends the supernatural with the everyday, keeping readers riveted to the page as they question what is true.\"\u003cbr\u003e—\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e starred review\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"\u003cb\u003eSinister and sickeningly real\u003c\/b\u003e, \u003ci\u003eLittle Darlings\u003c\/i\u003e is fairy tale-inflected horror . . . that touch[es] on our deepest, most instinctive fears and fairy tales.\"\u003cbr\u003e—\u003ci\u003eForeword Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e starred review\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"\u003cb\u003eHaunting . . .\u003c\/b\u003e Fans of psychological thrillers will look forward to Golding’s next novel.\"\u003cbr\u003e—\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"It'll make you question whether mother really does know best or if motherhood is truly the dream it's made out to be.\"\u003cbr\u003e—\u003ci\u003eFangoria Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Chilling story, beautiful prose. \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLittle Darlings\u003c\/i\u003e is stunning.\u003c\/b\u003e”\u003cbr\u003e—Clare Mackintosh, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eI Let You Go\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Ingenious, chilling, and completely absorbing, \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLittle Darlings\u003c\/i\u003e is destined to be the hit of 2019. The scariest book I have read in many years.\u003c\/b\u003e\"\u003cbr\u003e—A. J. Banner, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Good Neighbor\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Deep. Dark. \u003cb\u003eUtterly addictive. I read this extraordinary book in one breathless gulp\u003c\/b\u003e...Be warned—you can't unread this story. \u003cb\u003eIt will haunt you.\u003c\/b\u003e”\u003cbr\u003e—Teresa Driscoll, author of \u003ci\u003eI Am Watching You\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I love this book! Compelling from the first page to the very last, Golding took me by the hand and pulled me softly but persistently through mystery and myth...\u003cb\u003eA masterfully-told story and a beautiful and nuanced work of art.\u003c\/b\u003e”\u003cbr\u003e—Susan Crawford, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Pocket Wife\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Dark, compelling and \u003cb\u003eterrifyingly relatable\u003c\/b\u003e, \u003ci\u003eLittle Darlings\u003c\/i\u003e takes every parent’s worst fear and deftly twists it into something even more horrific. \u003cb\u003eIt will have you checking every shadow for what you hope isn’t really there.\u003c\/b\u003e”\u003cbr\u003e—Megan Hart, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"\u003ci\u003eLittle Darlings\u003c\/i\u003e is \u003cb\u003ethe perfect marriage of taut psychological thriller and nail-biting horror.\u003c\/b\u003e A changeling-inspired page-turner of note with a highly satisfying ending, it'll stay with you long after you've read it. \u003cb\u003eI loved it and can't wait to see what Melanie Golding does next.\u003c\/b\u003e”\u003cbr\u003e—Sarah Lotz, author of \u003ci\u003eThe White Road\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"\u003cb\u003eA twisty, chilling exploration of the dark side of motherhood\u003c\/b\u003e, brilliantly told by a debut author whose skill is evident from the first page. Any parent—any human, for that matter—will have a hard time putting this book down once they start.\"\u003cbr\u003e—Brad Parks, international bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Last Act\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A story that is in turn \u003cb\u003eenthralling, creepy and downright sinister\u003c\/b\u003e, Melanie Golding turns fairy tales on their heads in \u003ci\u003eLittle Darlings\u003c\/i\u003e, making this \u003cb\u003eone to watch out for in 2019\u003c\/b\u003e. A brilliant, heart-pounding read.”\u003cbr\u003e—Lisa Hall, author of \u003ci\u003eBetween You and Me\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Rich and satisfying, this is \u003cb\u003epart who-done-it, part fairy tale, part psychological thriller...Will continue to rattle you\u003c\/b\u003e, long after you have put it down.”\u003cbr\u003e—Felicity Everett, author of \u003ci\u003eThe People at Number 9\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003cb\u003eRiveting, terrifying and at times heartbreaking\u003c\/b\u003e...Melanie Golding’s disturbing portrait of a new mother’s paranoia is superbly written, cleverly plotted and gruesomely beautiful in an unforgettable way. \u003cb\u003eA stunning debut.\u003c\/b\u003e”\u003cbr\u003e—Annie Ward, author of \u003ci\u003eBeautiful Bad\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLittle Darlings\u003c\/i\u003e is brilliant\u003c\/b\u003e—beautifully written, disturbing and deliciously creepy.”\u003cbr\u003e—Roz Watkins, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Devil’s Dice\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Dark, richly evocative, tense, and thought-provoking. \u003cb\u003eTaps into every woman's fear that she will not be believed.\u003c\/b\u003e\"\u003cbr\u003e—Mel McGrath, author of \u003ci\u003eGive Me the Child\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Viscerally creepy and compelling—\u003cb\u003ea contemporary dark fairy tale\u003c\/b\u003e that reeled me in like tales of old.\"\u003cbr\u003e—Angela Clarke, author of \u003ci\u003eFollow Me\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"\u003ci\u003eLittle Darlings\u003c\/i\u003e gives a thrill so deep it dips at times into pleasure, at Golding's sheer creativity, at her ability to take our most natural and primal life experience and weave into it our most ancient myths, transforming it into high horror. She keeps the reader spellbound until the very end . . . \u003cb\u003eThe psychological intensity of this novel is on par with the best.\u003c\/b\u003e\"\u003cbr\u003e—Katherine Forbes Riley, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Bobcat\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"A psychological thriller with a suggestion of the supernatural . . . Golding provides enough reasonable doubt about Lauren’s view of events to keep readers guessing.\"\u003cbr\u003e—\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003eMelanie Golding\u003c\/b\u003e is a graduate of the MA in creative writing program at Bath Spa University, with distinction. She has been employed in many occupations including farm hand, factory worker, childminder and music teacher. Throughout all this, because and in spite of it, there was always the writing. In recent years she has won and been shortlisted in several local and national short story competitions. \u003ci\u003eLittle Darlings\u003c\/i\u003e is her first novel, and has been optioned for screen by Free Range Films, the team behind the adaptation of \u003ci\u003eMy Cousin Rachel\u003c\/i\u003e.","brand":"Crooked Lane Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46299717140709,"sku":"NP9781683319979","price":26.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9781683319979.jpg?v=1767731524","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/little-darlings-isbn-9781683319979","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}