Sinopsis

How long would you let someone else’s secret control your life?

Eliza has lived two lives – one before she fell into an obsessive teenage friendship with Eric and Maggie, and the one after it was destroyed in a single afternoon. To Eliza, Eric and Maggie were irreplaceable, so she hasn’t. Instead, drifting through life alone, she spends every morning diving into her memories as she swims in Hampstead Ponds, her guilt never far below the surface.

Twenty years might have passed, yet Eliza still can’t help searching for Maggie everywhere. Then one day she spots a woman who looks just like her. Eliza has spent half her life wondering what really happened that afternoon and if Maggie’s back, will it help her finally get answers?

But memories are like ripples on water, and can be deceptive. As the past and present collide, Eliza begins to wonder: will learning the truth set her free – or will it only drag her down deeper?

From the Publisher

Our past is never far away, no matter how far we swim; it is always lurking beneath the surface. Sometimes we are able to glide over it unnoticed and undisturbed, but other times an errant kick stirs it all up again. For Eliza, there is no escape from the memories of her final summer with her friends Eric and Maggie and the heatwave that seemed to deposit a sticky residue as soon as you stepped outside, leaving the imprint of those last days of hazy pre-university life forever on her skin.

Their friendship ended shockingly in one afternoon, and Maggie disappeared, taking the truth of what happened with her. Now twenty years later, Eliza’s daily morning swim at the Hampstead Ponds is her only way to remember those picture-perfect days and attempt to outswim her guilt. Until she spots a woman who looks just like Maggie…

This might be Eliza’s last chance to find out the truth. As the memories of that summer begin to unfurl, will they help her unravel the past or only pull her further under? This unputdownable and beautiful novel explores the addictive and oppressive teenage friendships that can maintain a hold on us long after they are over.

—Victoria Oundjian, Editor

About the Author

When she’s not writing fiction, Hilary Tailor runs a design consultancy, specialising in colour and trend forecasting. She has worked with adidas and Puma and sits on the Pantone View colour committee. Hilary was raised on the Wirral Peninsula and graduated from the Royal College of Art. Her debut novel, The Vanishing Tide , was published in 2022 and has thousands of five-star reviews. Where Water Lies is her second novel.