The Wicked Girls

“The suspense keeps the pages flying, but what sets this one apart is the palpable sense of onrushing doom.” - Stephen King, “The Best Books I Read This Year”, Entertainment Weekly 

“Harrowing… while the received wisdom on violence committed by children seems to be that ‘some people just are born evil, Marwood makes a strong case that these crimes are more likely rooted in poverty, abuse and parental abandonment.” - Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Book Review

“In addition to being an excellent intelligent dark thriller in the vein of Gillian Flynn, The Wicked Girls presents an intriguing insiders account of salacious British tabloid journalism” - BoingBoing

“The swirling mass of perceptions and happenings behind the main drama of Kirsty and Ambers past crime is what makes The Wicked Girls more than a plot-driven mystery novel. (Not that it isnt also that; Marwood sacrifices no speed, no engaging details or cliffhangers for the sake of the books spiky undercurrent).” - The Rumpus

“If Tana French and Gillian Flynn stayed up all night telling stories at an abandoned amusement park, this is awfully close to what they might come up with.” - Booklist (starred review)

“The Wicked Girls is ingenious and original—a novel that surprises and rewards its readers, delivering a twist of an ending that I never saw coming, then realized it was the only ending that could truly satisfy. Real, chilling, true to its world and its characters. In short, a knock-out.”—Laura Lippman, New York Times bestselling author of And When She Was Good

“Genuinely disturbing and emotionally unsettling. The Wicked Girls is irresistible.”—Val McDermid, author of A Place of Execution

“The Wicked Girls is utterly compelling. It's psychologically rich, complex and masterfully plotted. I couldn't put it down, even when I sensed it was taking me somewhere very dark indeed. I can't wait to see what Alex Marwood comes up with next.”—Jojo Moyes, New York Times bestselling author of Me Before You

“I loved it. It was cleverly plotted and pacy, with all the storylines thundering towards a final, gripping conclusion.”—Elizabeth Haynes, New York Times bestselling author of Into the Darkest Corner

“If you read Alex Marwood's THE WICKED GIRLS, her new one - THE KILLER NEXT DOOR - is even better. Scary as hell. Great characters.” - Stephen King

“Although not as dark as Marwoods first novel, The Wicked Girls, this psychological thriller is more macabre, in a creepy comic vein, and vividly nasty when it gets to the physical details. But in its own disturbing way, this is a story about love and friendship” - Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Book Review 

“Chilling, suspenseful, and darkly comic, The Killer Next Door is not only a terrific crime novel, but also a fascinating exploration of memorable characters, each individually lonely and secretive, and yet inextricably tied to one another by circumstance.” - Alafair Burke, author of All Day and a Night

“The Killer Next Door unfolds with tantalizing precision to reveal the lives and secrets of a group of boarders in a run-down apartment house - one whose secret is far darker than the rest” - Sara J Henry, author of Learning to Swim

“Marwoods emphatic yet pragmatic understanding of human nature at its worth and best is in equally fine form in The Killer Next Door” - Sarah Weinman, Macleans

“With her sophomore outing, Marwood has turned out not just a spooky, blood-and-guts thriller, but a cannily observant novel that explores social fissures while delivering a modicum of hope” - The Boston Globe

“Alex Marwoods second stand-alone novel delivers a multilayered plot that succeeds as crime fiction, a gothic tale, and a village mystery - all with an edge. While some scenes are gruesome enough to give Thomas Harris pause, The Killer Next Door is lyrically insightful [and a] gripping thriller.” - The Associated Press

“Marwood keeps readers guessing which resident is the killer till the end, a nice feat in an enjoyably dark story.” - The Cleveland Plain Dealer

“A taut, fascinating tale [that] not only creates a cast of memorable characters, but also ratchets up the suspense…[Marwood] proves shes got staying power in this addictive tale.” - Kirkus (starred review)

“This tightly plotted story that grabs you from the opening paragraphs and will keep you up far too late at night is highly recommended for fans of  Laura Lippman, Tana French, and Gillian Flynn.” - Library Journal (starred review)

“A well-plotted ending filled with unexpected surprises.” - Publishers Weekly

“Marwood is emerging as a master of contemporary British suspense.” - Booklist

“[A] deliciously creepy book!” - Suspense Magazine

“Taut, assured and reminiscent of Ruth Rendell's psychological novels, Marwood's second book more than lives up to the promise shown in her splendid debut, THE WICKED GIRLS” -  The Guardian

“Nasty, compelling and original, the author has done it again with her second novel” - The Sun

“The swirling mass of perceptions and happenings behind the main drama of Kirsty and Ambers past crime is what makes The Wicked Girls more than a plot-driven mystery novel. (Not that it isnt also that; Marwood sacrifices no speed, no engaging details or cliffhangers for the sake of the books spiky undercurrent).” - The Rumpus

“[Alex] Marwood is equally at home with terrifying, potentially violent scenes and quieter ones revealing the tensions of work and family life. She is also adept at depicting the subtle and not so subtle ways differences in class shape the lives of the girls and the women theyve become.”—Columbus Dispatch

“The pacing is whip-smart…The Wicked Girls makes a compelling novel not easily forgotten.” - South Florida Sun Sentinel

“Riveting from first page to last… A suspenseful, buzz-worthy novel.” - Kirkus (Starred Review)

“If Tana French and Gillian Flynn stayed up all night telling stories at an abandoned amusement park, this is awfully close to what they might come up with.” - Booklist (starred review)

"The Wicked Girls is ingenious and original -- a novel that surprises and rewards its readers, delivering a twist of an ending that I never saw coming, then realized it was the only ending that could truly satisfy. Real, chilling, true to its world and its characters. In short, a knock-out."—Laura Lippman, New York Times bestselling author of And When She Was Good and What the Dead Know

“The Wicked Girls is utterly compelling. It's psychologically rich, complex and masterfully plotted. I couldn't put it down, even when I sensed it was taking me somewhere very dark indeed. I can't wait to see what Alex Marwood comes up with next.”—Jojo Moyes, New York Times bestselling author of Me Before You

“I loved it. I thought it was a brilliant exploration of the sins of the past colliding with the mistakes of the present; really well-written, multi-faceted characters, who behave in ways you wouldnt expect them to: in other words, like real people. I particularly enjoyed seeing the effects of serious crime on the transient, seaside community and how the press apportion blame according to their own agenda - a really interesting insight into the way they conduct their business. So having read it and devoured every page, I will debase myself and say… I really wish Id written it! It was cleverly plotted and pacy, with all the storylines thundering towards a final, gripping conclusion.”—Elizabeth Haynes, New York Times bestselling author of Into the Darkest Corner

“This incredible story will play on your mind. Two weeks after I read it, I cant stop thinking about it. The book of the year.”—The Sun (UK)

“I devoured The Wicked Girls over one weekend and loved it. I held my breath during the last few chapters.”—Erin Kelly, author of  The Poison Tree

“The most gripping novel I've read in years. Dark, haunting, thought-provoking, brilliant - I couldn't recommend it more.”—India Knight, author of My Life on a Plate

 “A psychological thriller which jumps off the page, grabs you and takes you on a roller-coaster ride of emotions.”—Bookseller (UK)

Alex Marwood's new book, The Darkest Secret, is available now from Penguin Books

The Edgar Award-winning psychological thriller that asks the question--how well can you know anyone?

On a fateful summer morning in 1986, two eleven-year-old girls meet for the first time. By the end of the day, they will both be charged with murder. Twenty-five years later, journalist Kirsty Lindsay is reporting on a series of sickening attacks on young female tourists in a seaside vacation town when her investigation leads her to interview carnival cleaner Amber Gordon. For Kirsty and Amber, it's the first time they've seen each other since that dark day so many years ago. Now with new, vastly different lives--and unknowing families to protect--will they really be able to keep their wicked secret hidden?

Gripping and fast-paced, with an ending that will stay with you long after you've read it, The Wicked Girls takes you to a thrillingly dark place you've never been before. For fans of Gillian Flynn, Liane Moriarty, and Tana French.

"The Wicked Girls is ingenious and original. Real, chilling, true to its world and its characters. In short, a knock-out." --Laura Lippman, New York Times bestselling author of And When She Was Good and What the Dead Know

Alex Marwoods debut novel, The Wicked Girls, earned her lavish praise from the likes of Stephen King, Laura Lippman, and Erin Kelly, and won the Edgar Award for Best Paperback Original. Now Marwoods back with a brilliant, tightly paced thriller that will keep you up at night and make you ask yourself: just how well do you know your neighbors?

Everyone who lives at 23 Beulah Grove has a secret. If they didnt, they wouldnt be renting rooms in a dodgy old building for cash—no credit check, no lease. Its the kind of place you end up when you youve run out of other options. The six residents mostly keep to themselves, but one unbearably hot summer night, a terrible accident pushes them into an uneasy alliance. What they dont know is that one of them is a killer. Hes already chosen his next victim, and hell do anything to protect his secret.