The Cleaner

At the start of this propulsive, fairy tale–inspired adult debut from YA author Watson (Blood to Poison), Esmie Lorenzo arrives in Ireland on a mission to identify and exact revenge on the lover whose betrayal transformed her brother, Nico, from golden neuroscience grad student into a drug-addicted shell of a man lying comatose in their unidentified homeland. To start, Esmie heads to the Woodlands, an exclusive enclave outside Dublin where Nico rented a room from New Agey young widow Ceanna. She manages to finagle a job as a temporary cleaner for Ceanna and her two neighbors, and is soon sifting through an embarrassment of dirt on the cul-de-sac’s privileged denizens. At the same time, Esmie ducks a barrage of threatening texts apparently from Nico’s enraged fiancée, Simone, back home. As the time-jumping narrative takes increasingly surprising turns—with adultery, drug-dealing, and murder entering the frame—it soon becomes clear that Esmie is hiding some game-changing secrets of her own. Though several characters never develop beyond glossy soap opera archetypes, Watson’s vivid sense of place and devious plotting make her a writer worth keeping tabs on. It’s a hair-raising good time. Agent: Claire Wilson, RCW Literary. (July)