Celia Fremlin (1914–2009) was a British graduate of Oxford, Somerville College, same as Dorothy L. Sayers. She published two sociological books about the effects of the war on everyday people before turning to psychological thrillers that focused on domestic suspense. She published 16 novels between 1958 and 1994 with four collections of short stories to her credit. Her first piece of crime fiction The Hours Before Dawn (Victor Gollancz, 1958) won the Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers’ Association in 1960. An informative analysis of Fremlin and her work can be found here: https://shinynewbooks.co.uk/celia-fremlin-a-life-of-crime

Her second book Uncle Paul (Victor Gollancz, 1959) is about three sisters all still dealing in their own ways of an encounter with a murderer years before. Isabel telegraphs Meg, the youngest, to come to the coast where she is vacationing with her two sons and newish second husband to help with their older sister Mildred. Mildred is their half-sister 20 years older who has taken up residence nearby in great distress. Some 15 years earlier Mildred married Paul Hartman, a charming handsome man with whom all three of the sisters were smitten, even Meg who was seven years old at the time. They quickly discovered that Paul was being sought for a nearly lethal attack on his first wife. He was sentenced to 15 years. Now Mildred is convinced that Paul will be released any day and will come to exact revenge on her for failing to stand by him.

Between Mildred’s hysteria and Isabel’s anxiety over her children and new husband, Meg has her hands full. Mildred has actually rented the cottage where they were living at the time Paul was arrested, much to Meg’s dismay. A solitary bungalow set back from the road and miles from town hardly seems an ideal place to seek safety. Meg convinces Mildred to stay in town at one of the hotels and Meg ends up sleeping in the cottage, because Isabel has no room for her in her family’s vacation digs.

Fremlin’s description of Meg’s night alone in the cottage is one of the most unnerving chapters I’ve read in awhile. It had me checking my surroundings and I was reading in broad daylight. Some funny scenes surrounding Isabel’s ineptitude as a housekeeper in a caravan far too small for four people and the idiosyncrasies of the other holidaying visitors in Mildred’s hotel leaven the tension of wondering where Paul is. The ending was completely unexpected.

The plot is based on the lack of information about the whereabouts of the would-be killer. It wouldn’t work now during this time of victims’ rights. There also seem to be some character inconsistencies driving the plot, which might not otherwise gel, but the creepiness factor was so high on this storyI did not want to examine it more carefully. Do not read this book alone at night.