‘I’ve come about the bodies. I know who they are.’

Mary is eighty-six years old, and she’s tired of being quiet.

She has a story to tell, and she’s only going to tell it once, so she won’t be rushed.

Especially as it’s not just a story, it’s a confession.

Because Mary has a dark secret, buried decades before. And while William, the nice young constable, might think she just wants someone to talk to, everything she says forces him to confront his own difficult past.

A unique and poignant novel about passion, regret and heartbreak, set during one of the most tumultuous periods of modern British history.

‘An unputdownable combination of thriller and psychological drama.’ EMMA THOMPSON, actor and screenwriter

‘Charming, gleeful, a delight…brings Britain at war to vivid life.’ GUINEVERE GLASFURD, author of The Words in my Hand

‘An intriguing and atmospheric novel, cleverly interweaving different times and crimes through an elderly and most unreliable narrator…absorbing.’ AMANDA CRAIG, author of The Lie of the Land

‘Vivid and brilliantly gripping. I was captivated from the first page.’ ESTHER FREUD, author of Hideous Kinky

‘This ingenious page-turner, set in a Dorset police station in 1944,will keep you guessing until the end…Marianne Kavanagh has produced an original brainteaser of a read.’ MARY KILLEN, The Lady

‘Compelling, absorbing and surprising – I adored this novel.’ CARYS BRAY, author of A Song for Issy Bradley

‘Succeeds on so many levels. It’s a thriller, a love story, a vivid portrait of wartime England, a cautionary tale, but above all, it’s a fascinating study of suppressed guilt and the human need for absolution through confession. I absolutely loved it.’ DAVID HAIG, actor and playwright

‘A moving Hardy-esque story of love, lies and loss thrown into sharp relief by its vivid WW2 setting. Indomitable Mary Holmes is a memorable character.’ ELISABETH WILHIDE, author of If I Could Tell You

‘SHOULD YOU ASK ME is a beautifully written and gripping novel – boldly traversing genres and historical eras, yet always compassionate, wise and humane.’ JOANNA KAVENNA, author of A Field Guide to Reality

‘This was such a joy to read and I can’t praise it highly enough…lots of heart and wonderful poetic writing.’ Brew and Books

‘A genuinely mysterious thriller, with an intense sense of time and place – a historical novel of a very different sort.’ ANDREW MARR, journalist and television presenter