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Review | Stella Duffy delivers a chilling portrait of family and devotion

Duffy’s 15th novel is short on sensationalism as she explores the secrets of Laurie, raised in a cult and still keeping a secret from that time.

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Duffy’s 15th novel is short on sensationalism as she explores the secrets of Laurie, raised in a cult and still keeping a secret from that time.
James Kidd

The Hidden Room
by Stella Duffy
Virago

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The hidden room that gives Stella Duffy’s 15th novel its title is both real and metaphorical. Laurie, Duffy’s protagonist, discovers a secret space in the attic of the house she shares with wife Martha and their three children. It’s also a psychological manifestation of an unsettling past.

This private “place” is really a time: Laurie was raised in “a community”, a euphemism for a cult. She has shared some of those experiences with Martha, but keeps one part of it secret: her intense relationship with the magnetic Samuel, and the tragedy that results. One day, Laurie collects her mercurial daughter Hope from a dance class and discovers the teacher is none other than Samuel. Duffy, an award-winning crime writer, resists sensationalism, however, to deliver a genuinely chilling portrait of love, family and devotion.
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