Beth lives in the tree-shrouded no-man's land by Camden Lock with her partner Sol and their daughter Fern. Life is peaceful, but Beth is troubled by increasing unease.

She cannot shake her uncertainty over her mother, who disappeared when Beth was a child, and she has a sense that her daughter is keeping secrets from her.

So she goes to therapy. Dr Tamara Bywater is there to help her patients. But what if the very person who is meant to be the solution becomes the most dangerous problem of all? And why is what's bad for us so enticing?

Taut and atmospheric, The Seduction is a disturbing journey into the darkness of the human mind. 

Praise for “The Seduction”

“As fans might expect, Briscoe’s new novel is a page-turning psycho sexual romp … As Briscoe folds generous swirls of melodrama into the mix, the novel’s temperature rises from feverish to volcanic … enjoy the helter-skelter ride” Daily Mail (read review)

“Through this addictive, macabre fairground ride of a novel, Briscoe reminds us to value the quieter forms of love” –  Guardian (read review)

Febrile, urgent taleThe Times (read review (paywalled))

“A gripping thriller” Independent (read review)

“Joanna Briscoe is one of those writers who manages to pull off that combination of pin-sharp prose with the pull of a plot that keeps you turning the pages. Richly observed, The Seduction is a rewardingly moreish read” Living Magazines

“Joanna Briscoe writes with elegance and passion about the clashes, misunderstandings and silences between generations” –  Maggie O'Farrell,

“Her prose is beguilingly good” –  Elizabeth Day, Observer

“A passionate and humorous storyteller, Briscoe is a writer who puts her reader's pleasure first” –  Independent

“Elegiac, beautiful, evocative ... Works in much the same way as an obsession ... you may wish to escape, but have already become addicted” –  Anita Sethi, Daily Telegraph

“A vivid and passionate writer. She plunges headlong into sticky themes of desire, love and hatred, uncovering the unpalatable parts of the psyche with an unflinching eye” –  Sunday Times

“Seductive, scary and almost frighteningly readable” –  Julie Myerson,

Buy “The Seduction”:


Interview: Front Row

Joanna talks to Kirsty Wark about her new Novel on”Front Row” on Radio 4. Click to Listen now on BBC iPlayer.


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