A Spell of Winter

WINNER OF THE WOMEN''S PRIZE FOR FICTION ''Tense, dark and intensely gripping . . . written so seductively that passages sing out from the page '' Sunday Times Cathy and her brother, Rob, don''t know why they have been abandoned by their parents. Alone in their grandfather''s decaying country house, they roam the wild grounds freely with minds attuned to the rural wilderness. Lost in their own private world, they seek and find new lines to cross. But as the First World War draws closer, crimes both big and small threaten the delicate refuge they have built. Cathy will do anything to protect their dark Eden from anyone, or anything, that threatens to destroy it. ''An electrifying and original talent, a writer whose style is characterized by a lyrical, dreamy intensity'' Guardian ''Stops you in your tracks with the beauty of its writing'' Observer ''Has a strong and sensuous magic'' The Times ''Her spellbinding, lyrical prose is close to poetry'' Daily Mail