Two elderly sisters tend a large walled garden, planting and reaping crops according to the plans left to them in an almanac by their mother. They are entirely self-sufficient, they believe that the outside world is a wilderness and that they will only survive if they remain in the garden and live as their mother dictated. They live in one part of a large house inherited house, the doors to the upper levels sealed off - the secrets of their past sealed along behind them. And they dare not look beyond the walls for fear of what lurks outside. But then the arrival of a young boy unsettles their careful lives and makes them begin to question the existence they have so carefully forged and the ''truth'' that has been laid out for them in this strange new world. One sister believes that everything their mother has taught them will keep them safe; the other longs for the possibilities of a different life she might have lived. Meanwhile the boy is perhaps not quite as innocent as he seems...

Autorentext
Nick Newman is the pseudonym of critically acclaimed children's author Nicholas Bowling. He has written four novels for young readers including In the Shadow of Heroes (shortlisted for the Costa Children's Book Award) and The Undying of Obedience Wellrest (Financial Times Best YA Books of 2023, Guardian Children's Roundup December 2023). He works as a bookseller at Daunt Books.

Klappentext

A literary twist on The Secret Garden for fans of Shirley Jackson, Piranesi and Unsettled Ground

'Extraordinary... it already feels like a classic' Emerald Fennell, Oscar-winning director of SALTBURN

'Glitters with menace and mystery' Emma Stonex, bestselling author of The Lamplighters

'An intriguing mix of psychological mystery and dystopian gothic' Guardian

'Part fable, part literary thriller...The Garden may be the elusive inheritor to Susanna Clarke's Piranesi' Vulture

Nothing had come over the wall for a very long time. ....

In a place and time unknown, two elderly sisters live in a walled garden, secluded from the outside world. For as long as they can remember, Evelyn and Lily have only had each other.

What came before the garden, they have forgotten; what lies beyond it, they do not know.

Each day is spent tending the bees, planting the crops, dutifully following the instructions of the almanac written by their mother.

But then one of them makes a startling discovery.

What if their carefully curated life is an illusion? What if the walls no longer keep them safe?

'Reminiscent of John Wyndham....absolutely exquisite' Daily Mail

'Darkly beautiful... a Gothic, dystopian inversion of The Secret Garden' **Good Housekeeping **

'A brilliantly drawn folie à deux ... like Shirley Jackson's We Have Always Lived In The Castle - SFX

READER'S RESPONSES to THE GARDEN:

'Definitely one of the most original books I've ever read and I loved every moment of the reading experience' 5-star reader review

'LOVED this. Reminiscent of Shirley Jackson's "We Have Always Lived In The Castle" and Susanna Clarke's "Piranesi"' 5-star reader review

'Newman's writing style and world-building are poetic and evocative, yet also eerie and suspenseful.' 5-star reader review

'WOW! I was absolutely engrossed in this genre-bender for two days straight.' 5-star reader review

'Fans of Emily St. John Mandel, Lily Brooks-Dalton, and Charlotte McConaghy will enjoy this book.' 5-star reader review

'Part Whatever Happened to Baby Jane, part Lord of the Flies, part Shirley Jackson : all itself' 5-star reader review

'Nick Newman's distinctly creepy, quirky, mountingly tense post apocalyptic Gothic Garden of Eden novel is definitely weird, and remarkably wonderful.' 5-star reader review

'Gave me a mixture of We Have Always Lived in the Castle and I Capture the Castle vibes' 5-star reader review

'Outstanding. I was hooked on the story from the beginning. It had such a weird, evocative vibe from the beginning.' 5-star reader review

'Whatever else I read in 2025, it's definitely going to be one of my top ten.' 5-star reader review