The fates of three separate women unfold against the backdrop of the Bass Rock, which sits in a bay off the Scottish mainland. In 1720s Scotland, Sarah has been accused of witchcraft and flees for her life. In the aftermath of WWII, Ruth marries a widower, becoming stepmother to two young boys. She lives in a large house near the sea, haunted by those who have come before her. Fifty years later, the house is empty. Viviane is recovering from a breakdown by cleaning up her dead grandmother’s home, where she uncovers the secrets of the old house, which may offer her a way forward in her own life.

The women are separated by centuries, yet their interlinked stories contain similar elements of cruelty, madness and psychological and physical abuse. All the women have violence inflicted on them by the men in their lives and simmering female rage underlies these stories. There are a couple of unsettling incidents where the men take part in what they see as harmless fun but which the women (and reader) perceive very differently. Wyld shows the difference between fun and frightening is not a fine line but an absolute gulf.

This modern Gothic novel is intricately crafted, leaping across time and generations and weaving together the separate narratives into a satisfying conclusion. The novel simmers with anger at the violence women endure but there are notes of hope. It is haunting and riveting and I couldn’t put it down.

Reviewed by Melinda Woledge