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A review by amrap
The Devil's Staircase by Helen Fitzgerald
5.0
Bronny is a naïve 18 year old Aussie who runs away from life and ends up in London, trying to hide from her problems in extreme partying. She’s made new friends who live on the fringes of society and are squatting in an empty house where she hears noises coming from the walls that no one else hears. Is it a drug induced hallucination or something more sinister?
I came to this book having already read FitzGerald’s previous work and she did not disappoint. She has a knack for being simultaneously creepy and laugh out loud funny.
I could really relate to Bronny and her naivety as she tries to figure out what she wants in life and engaged with all the characters. There was tension and suspense galore right until the last page with FitzGerald employing the device of shifting points of view with Bronny in first person, and other characters in third. I haven’t seen this technique used often before, but it really worked.
I was riveted by The Devil’s Staircase and ended up reading it in one sitting, not a mean feat with a toddler. This is one book that will remain with me for a long time, and I can see myself reading it again.
I came to this book having already read FitzGerald’s previous work and she did not disappoint. She has a knack for being simultaneously creepy and laugh out loud funny.
I could really relate to Bronny and her naivety as she tries to figure out what she wants in life and engaged with all the characters. There was tension and suspense galore right until the last page with FitzGerald employing the device of shifting points of view with Bronny in first person, and other characters in third. I haven’t seen this technique used often before, but it really worked.
I was riveted by The Devil’s Staircase and ended up reading it in one sitting, not a mean feat with a toddler. This is one book that will remain with me for a long time, and I can see myself reading it again.