{"product_id":"such-an-odd-word-to-use-secrets-dont-hide-they-echo-9781917523622","title":"Such an Odd Word to Use: Secrets don't hide, they echo","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis unsettling psychological thriller follows Mark as he spirals into a state of paranoia after moving to a secluded house. Constantly feeling watched, he's forced to question what is real.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAfter years on the move, Mark believes he has finally found quiet: a secluded Clerkenwell house, once a music studio, tucked behind Georgian terraces. But small disturbances ripple - a glance held too long; a neighbour who seems to know too much; watchers hovering just out of frame - and a routine planning request appears to trigger a response too coordinated to be chance. Unease becomes vigilance.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGuided, unexpectedly, by Lana - the observant child next door whose hand-drawn map records what adults miss - and emboldened by chess moves with hidden meanings, Mark begins to trace faint threads: a misplaced notebook, failing technology, curious Dickensian figures, and a house with a past that resists being archived. In a city of doorbell cameras and polite surveillance, the line between caution and obsession thins. Is he being targeted - or reading patterns into noise?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSuch an Odd Word to Use is a slow-burn psychological mystery - literary in tone, quietly propulsive - about neighbourliness, urban isolation and the stories we tell to feel safe. A novella for the digital age, where even silence may be scripted.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFor readers of Jonathan Lethem, Paul Auster, Tana French and Louise Candlish; for fans of Black Mirror and The Capture.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'An atmospheric novella... creating an unsettled feeling that lingers after the final page.' - LoveReading, Indie Books We Love\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'Smart slow burn of a London mystery, with lively puzzles and literary heft.' - BookLife Reviews, Editor's Pick\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eGoodwin, Carl:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - Carl Goodwin is a London-based author. With a background in data science and strategy, he writes quietly unsettling fiction exploring the intersections of psychology, systems, and the stories we tell ourselves.","brand":"Whitefox Publishing Limited","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51764160659730,"sku":"9781917523622","price":10.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_250af33e-a51f-40d8-9c7d-4ebb02196b07.jpg?v=1764758297","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/such-an-odd-word-to-use-secrets-dont-hide-they-echo-9781917523622","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}