The Stone Boy

French author Loubière makes her U.S. debut with a creepy psychological thriller. After 10 years convalescing, Madame Préau, a retired headmistress, returns to her home near Paris, distraught to find that her doctor son, Martin, has neglected the house. What’s more, the woodland view outside her window has been replaced by the home of a young family. She focuses her binoculars on the yard across the street, where an energetic boy and girl swing and quarrel, while alone in a corner playing with stones is a scrawny boy who looks uncannily like Bastien, the grandson Martin keeps from her. Convinced that the boy is being abused, she vows to save him. With every page, Préau seems more unhinged: she’s hearing mice, making outrageous accusations against Martin, and doing very nasty things to cats. Is the boy real? Is Martin a loyal son or a conspirator? The truth is as chilling as the rest of this unsettling tale. (July)