After letting the police in on a little secret—her mother is a serial killer and a child abuser, too—15-year-old Milly is given a new identity and placed with a posh foster family. Then her foster sister starts bullying her, a teacher apparently discovers her past, and a new friend seems way too enticingly vulnerable, and Milly's intentions to be good—unlike her mother—start to buckle. Lots of buzz for this debut novelist.

When 15-year-old Annie Thompson, the unflinching narrator of British author Land's chilling debut, tells the Devon police that her mother, Ruth, is a serial killer who preys on young children, the police arrest Ruth. Annie, who changes her name to Milly, moves in with the family of London psychologist Mike Newmont, who will help her prepare to testify at her mother's trial. Saskia, Mike's wife, knows Milly's true identity, but the couple's teenage daughter, Phoebe, believes that Milly is just an ordinary foster kid who's monopolizing her parents' attention. Milly attends the same school as Phoebe, who turns the other students against Milly in an effort to drive her away. Milly does her best to ignore the bullying, but the worse things get, the louder Ruth's hectoring voice rings in Milly's head, forcing Milly and the reader to question whether it's possible to overcome both nature and nurture. A deliberate pace and a skillfully woven plot conspire to create a visceral read that's at once a gripping psychological thriller and a devastating exploration of the damage wrought by childhood trauma. Agent: Sasha Raskin, Agency Group (U.K.). (Sept.)