Faith Severn's aunt, Vera Hillyard, was hanged for murder - and the reason behind her dark deed died with her. For three decades the family conspired to forget the crime. Now, an inquiring journalist prompts Faith to peer back to the day when her aunt took knife in hand and entered a child's nursery. Bit by bit, Faith reveals a shattering new portrait of her family, one of passion and deceit, jealousy and resentment ... until all the shocking truths are bared... all the long-buried secrets unearthed... and all the shadows yield their mysteries to A Dark Adapted Eye.

Like most families they had their secrets. And they hid them under a genteelly respectable veneer. No onlooker would guess that prim Vera Hillyard and her beautiful, adored younger sister, Eden, were locked in a dark and bitter combat over one of those secrets. England in the fifties was not kind to women who erred, so they had to use every means necessary to keep the truth hidden behind closed doors, even murder. 'A rich, complex and beautifully crafted novel' - P. D. James.