The first hundred or so pages of Apple Tree Yard are among the most arresting I can ever remember reading. Louise Doughty's description of how 50-something Yvonne Carmichael - respected geneticist, happily married wife and mother - fell into a dangerous and addictive sexual relationship with a man she'd not previously met was breathless, compelling, and dare I say it, disturbingly exciting.
As the tale starts with Carmichael in the dock at the Old Bailey, it's clear from the outset that the relationship has led her somehow to catastrophe, and so it's not just sexual tension fuelling the story. That story is narrated by Carmichael on a twin track - with the history of the relationship intertwined with the hearing that seeks to unravel the truth.
It's a clever and disconcerting novel that emerges, focused on the human mind's ability to deceive both itself and others - the tales we tell ourselves are often more fascinating than those we tell others.
Given that Doughty reveals the location for the denouement of her plot so early, the success of the novel rests in no small measure on her ability to maintain sufficient mystery and intrigue while moving the story on. This she does, leading an impatient reader through the present and the past with both pace and control. Only during the latter stage of the book, when the trial comes into sharper focus, does Doughty stumble slightly; I found some of the twists in the trial a little implausible and the narrative less riveting than earlier phases.
That said, the exploration of the pscyhology Yvonne Carmichael is brilliantly executed throughout and stands as a stark warning to those who think they know everything there is to know about their partner, or indeed about themselves!
This is a cracking dark thriller, one of those books that will keep you tied into it long after you've turned the final page. For me, Doughty's back catalogue has just gone to somewhere near the top of this summer's holiday reading list.