FANNY BLAKE

DIRTY LAUNDRY by Disha Bose (Viking £14.99, 320pp)

In a village outside Dublin, Ciara is found dead at the bottom of her stairs. alive, she was one of a small clique of women who fell in and out of friendship. Dead, she poses the question: could one of them or one of their husbands be guilty of murder?

as the novel flashes back over their changing relationships and marital histories, Bose rips the plaster off the underbelly of sunny, content suburban life, revealing what festers beneath.

I was glued to this entertaining story of motherhood, marriage and friendship. Well-developed characters, some surprising twists and a cracking narrative are overshadowed by the question of how Ciara met her end.