Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Jun 2017
320 pages
Genre: Thrillers
Publication Information
An exhilarating debut novel that follows one woman's hunt for the truth when she realizes she might have married a killer.
They said her death was a tragic accident. And I believed them…until now.
Carmen is happily married to Tom, although she knows she'll always live in the shadow of another woman - the mistress who ended his first marriage: Zena. Mercurial, mesmerizing, manipulative Zena - a woman who, Carmen begins to discover, had the potential to incite the darkest of emotions. Zena, who drowned in the sea late one night.
Zena seems ever-more present, even in death, and when Carmen unknowingly stumbles on evidence that her husband has not been telling her the whole truth, she can't shake her unease. As she uncovers documents and photographs, a very different tale than the one Tom has led her to believe begins to unfold, and she finds herself increasingly isolated and paranoid. As the twisted events of that night begin to come to light, Carmen must ask herself if it's really a truth worth knowing…even if it destroys her and the lives of the people she loves most.
"Starred Review. Echoes of Daphne du Maurier's classic Rebecca reverberate throughout British author Heathcote's impressive debut... [An] intense psychological thriller." - Publishers Weekly
"While some of the relationships seem a bit stilted at times, the resolution will leave readers shocked and satisfied. Recommended for fans of Gillian Flynn." - Library Journal
"This fine piece of psychological suspense was originally published in the UK but is little known here and deserves to find a new audience." - Booklist
"Buckle up for this gripping psychological thriller." -Marie Claire (UK)
"An immersing story ... The "hidden currents" that keep us submerged in Undertow are not only those of the sea, but the fear and suspicion that swell catastrophically through the most intimate relationships." - The Observer (UK)
"Absolutely gripping." - Rosamund Lupton, New York Times bestselling author of Sister
This information about Undertow was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Elizabeth Heathcote worked as a feature writer and editor on newspapers and magazines for many years before writing her first novel, Undertow. Her jobs have included women's editor and deputy features editor at the Independent on Sunday, as well as freelance writing for publications such as the Independent, Observer, Guardian, Psychologies and Marie Claire. She lives in London.
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