“Sharp and unflinching—a wonderfully unnerving tale.” —Ashley Audrain, New York Times bestselling author of The Push. A taut, effective mother-noir mental thriller following a mom who should confront a sudden and terrifying exchange in her daughter after the abrupt death of their babysitter Charlotte’s daughter Stella is touchy and great, possibly even a genius, but a current alternate in her behavior has alarmed her dad and mom.
Following the surprising death of Stella’s babysitter, Blanka, the once disruptive and anti-social child has become docile and agreeable. But what’s unsettling is that she has began to reflect Blanka’s personality, from Blanka’s repetitive terms to her accessory, to fierce cravings for Armenian meat stew after being raised a vegetarian. Charlotte is pregnant together with her second toddler, and depleted and unwell with the pregnancy.
She is convinced that Blanka herself is by some means accountable for Stella’s transformation. But how ought to Blanka, dead, still be entwined in their lives? Has Blanka by some means possessed Stella? Has Stella end up Blanka? As Charlotte becomes increasingly more obsessed, she is sure that simplest she will keep her daughter. . . Even though it’s soon clear that her husband believes that is all in Charlotte’s head.
Helena Echlin’s singular, chilling voice holds mild to the blurred strains of prognosis in youngsters and to the essential power of maternal instinct. Kaleidoscopic and stressful, pulse-pounding and definitely creepy, and infused with sunglasses of the supernatural, Clever Little Thing is an ode to motherhood and a nuanced critique of the caretaking industry, a page-turner a good way to haunt readers long after its epic, unexpected finale.