Two things struck me about Gail Honeyman’s debut novel Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine: how well the unreliable first-person narrator construct worked and how the chick lit comedy of the first third set up the harrowing revelations later.

Eleanor is a finance clerk who loves shopping at Tesco and completing newspaper crosswords. She reads to strengthen her puzzle-cracking skills and falls in love-at-first-sight with a debonair musician. Lovestruck, Eleanor embarks on a thorough physical makeover, and all is frothy: drama at the salon, fashion fun, hair styling.

“I have always enjoyed reading, but I’ve never been sure how to select appropriate material. There are so many books in the world - how do you tell them apart? How do you know which one will match your tastes and interest? That’s why I just pick the first book I see.” Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, p313

But as Eleanor narrates, the reader glimpses altogether darker elements: things Eleanor herself won’t or can’t acknowledge. Eleanor’s use of the word Mummy unsettles and the telephone calls between them are deeply saddening. A dual narrative develops as the reader turns detective, collecting clues to Eleanor’s past. It’s effectively done.

For bookworms, there are plenty of bookish references: Jane Austen, Michael Bond, Arthur Conan Doyle, Thomas Hardy, Emily Dickinson, Charlotte Brontë... Tell me if you find others!