A Double Life

The Times Thrillers of the Year 2020

’Superbly crafted with heart-stopping twists and chills galore. A new star has arrived in the thriller firmament’ The Times, Book of the Month

Gabriela is a senior negotiator in the Foreign Office. When she returns to her young family after a seven-month stint in Moscow, something doesn’t seem right.

Isobel is a journalist on the local paper in Camden. After witnessing a violent attack, she starts to investigate. But someone saw her watching, and is making themselves known in increasingly frightening ways.

As Gabriela’s life begins to unravel, Isobel gets closer to the truth, and the two women’s lives converge in this deeply chilling examination of deceit.

Reader reviews for A Double Life

‘A sensational story packed full of twists. What an unbelievable book, I'm absolutely flabbergasted by the ending… it's a cliffhanger, so I hope Philby is already working on a sequel because I NEED to know what happens next’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘A riveting and tense thriller exploring the actions of two women whose lives are about to collide’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Can’t wait for book 3!’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Great read’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Amazingly brilliant’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Loved loved LOVED! I was hooked after the very first chapter. Engrossed in the story all the way through. The end hit me like a tonne of bricks!!! CANNOT WAIT for the 3rd book!!' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Complex, chilling, fascinating. LOVED it’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Addictive’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Chilling’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Gripping’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Praise for A Double Life

‘I was utterly gripped’ LUCY FOLEY

‘I fell into the vivid, frightening world Charlotte Philby creates so skilfully and didn't resurface until long after I'd turned the last page’ JANE CASEY

‘A Double Life confirms Charlotte Philby as the master of a sub-genre she basically invented’ ERIN KELLY

‘Brilliantly executed and tense’ SUNDAY TIMES

‘Terribly compelling… persuasive and absorbing’ OBSERVER

‘A pacy, gripping read that kept us on the edge of our seats’ INDEPENDENT

About the author

CHARLOTTE PHILBY worked for the Independent for eight years as a columnist, editor and reporter, and was shortlisted for the Cudlipp Prize for her investigative journalism at the 2013 Press Awards. A former contributing editor and feature writer at Marie Claire, she has written for the New Statesman, Elle, The Telegraph, Guardian and Sunday Times, and presented documentaries for the BBC World Service and The One Show. Charlotte is the granddaughter of Kim Philby, Britain’s most infamous communist double-agent, the elusive ‘third man’ in the notorious Cambridge spy ring. This is her third novel.