The Book of Guilt

A creepy, compelling novel that takes place in a version of our world where some lives are valued less than others. It will shock you with each new revelation.England, 1979. Vincent, Lawrence and William are the last remaining residents of a secluded New Forest home, part of the government's Sycamore Scheme. Every day, the triplets do their chores, play their games and take their medicine, under the watchful eyes of three mothers- Mother Morning, Mother Afternoon and Mother Night.Their nightmares are recorded in The Book of Dreams.Their lessons are taken from The Book of Knowledge.And their sins are reported in The Book of Guilt.All the boys want is to be sent to the Big House in Margate, where they imagine a life of sun, sea and fairground rides. But, as the government looks to shut down the Sycamore Homes, the triplets begin to question everything they have been told.Gradually surrendering its dark secrets, The Book of Guilt is a profoundly unnerving exploration of belonging in a world where some lives are valued less than others.

Catherine Chidgey is a multiple award-winner whose novels have achieved international acclaim. The Axeman's Carnival was a number one bestseller in her native New Zealand, as was her previous novel Pet. Remote Sympathy was shortlisted for the Dublin Literary Award and longlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction. Her debut, In a Fishbone Church, won Best First Book at both the New Zealand Book Awards and the Commonwealth Writers' Prize (South-East Asia and South Pacific region). It also won the Betty Trask Award and was longlisted for the Orange Prize. Her second novel, Golden Deeds, was a Notable Book of the Year in the New York Times Book Review and a Best Book in the LA Times. The Axeman's Carnival and The Wish Child both won the Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction - New Zealand's most prestigious literary award. Other honours include the Prize in Modern Letters, the Katherine Mansfield Award, the Katherine Mansfield Fellowship, the Janet Frame Fiction Prize, and the Nielsen Independent New Zealand Bestseller award. Catherine Chidgey lectures in Creative Writing at the University of Waikato.

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