The Day of the Accident by Nuala Ellwood (Penguin paperback, £7.99)

Nuala Ellwood, who lives and works in York, is in crime writer mode with her latest book, an edge-of-your-seat psychological thriller that will have everyone talking.

Imagine waking up in a hospital bed and having no recollection how you got there? That is just the start of the nightmare for Maggie, as she then finds out the horrendous truth: why she is there and what happened to her daughter. Oh, and her husband is missing.

While dealing with huge grief, Maggie also has to work out the circumstances behind the night of the accident.

You can’t help but want to keep reading to find things out, as Maggie does. The pain of both losing a child and finding out your marriage was not what you thought, plus the horror of not being able to remember and the fear that you might just be losing your mind: these are all areas Ellwood likes to delve into and poke at.

She uses our greatest fears to crank up the tension in the narrative. The clever slow-reveal plot has many a twist and turn, some pretty shocking and unexpected.

This is the sort of book you can devour in a couple of sittings. It will make you miss your bus stop or stay up too late on a weeknight. A totally absorbing read which deserves to hit those bestseller shelves.

Philippa Morris

Nuala Ellwood will be at the York Literature Festival on March 28: details from yorkliteraturefestival.co.uk/

Limited signed copies of the Day of the Accident are available at the Little Apple bookshop.