The Safekeep
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4.3 • 326 Ratings
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
* SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2024 BOOKER PRIZE *
* WINNER OF THE NATIONAL JEWISH BOOK AWARD FOR DEBUT FICTION *
* WINNER OF THE 2025 WOMEN’S PRIZE FOR FICTION *
Shortlisted for the 2025 Dylan Thomas Prize and Aspen Words Literary Prize • A Best Book of 2024: The New York Times, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Time, The Economist, The Globe and Mail (Toronto), Kirkus Reviews, The Independent, BookPage, The Sunday Times (London)
“Remarkable…Compelling…Fine and taut…Indelible.” —The New York Times • “Moving, unnerving, and deeply sexy.” —Tracy Chevalier, author of Girl with the Pearl Earring • “A brilliant debut, as multi-faceted as a gem.” —Kirkus Reviews
A “razor-sharp, perfectly plotted” (The Sunday Times, London) tale of desire, suspicion, and obsession between two women staying in the same house in the Dutch countryside during the summer of 1961—a powerful exploration of the legacy of WWII and the darker parts of our collective past.
A house is a precious thing...
It is 1961 and the rural Dutch province of Overijssel is quiet. Bomb craters have been filled, buildings reconstructed, and the war is truly over. Living alone in her late mother’s country home, Isabel knows her life is as it should be—led by routine and discipline. But all is upended when her brother Louis brings his graceless new girlfriend Eva, leaving her at Isabel’s doorstep as a guest, to stay for the season.
Eva is Isabel’s antithesis: she sleeps late, walks loudly through the house, and touches things she shouldn’t. In response, Isabel develops a fury-fueled obsession, and when things start disappearing around the house—a spoon, a knife, a bowl—Isabel’s suspicions begin to spiral. In the sweltering peak of summer, Isabel’s paranoia gives way to infatuation, leading to a discovery that unravels all Isabel has ever known. The war might not be well and truly over after all, and neither Eva—nor the house in which they live—are what they seem.
Mysterious, sophisticated, sensual, and infused with intrigue, atmosphere, and sex, The Safekeep is “a brave and thrilling debut about facing up to the truth of history, and to one’s own desires” (The Guardian).
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
The bonds of family, the weight of the past, and the complicated mysteries of desire all drew us into this captivating period novel. It’s 1961 and the Netherlands is still littered with the destruction of World War II. This is where Isabel lives alone in the house that used to belong to her mother, looking after the home and its heirlooms with obsessive detail. One day, her irresponsible brother, Louis, informs Isabel that his girlfriend, Eva, will need to stay there for a few weeks while he’s otherwise occupied. Isabel immediately dislikes and mistrusts Eva, but as Isabel looks for evidence of her misdeeds, her hate transforms into desire, and the two stumble into an intense sexual relationship. The Safekeep pulls you in with the sure hand and steamy power of its storytelling.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Van der Wouden sets her accomplished debut in the Netherlands in 1961, where WWII-era secrets about a family's country home come to light. Isabel, who's nearly 30 and has never been kissed, has lived alone in the house since her mother's death years earlier. She's close with her gay younger brother, Hendrik, but officious with their older sibling, Louis, who inherited the property. When the family moved there in 1944, the house was fully furnished, down to the dinnerware, cooking pots, and sheets. Isabel, fastidious and compulsive, fiercely protects each item, and is distressed when she unearths a shard from a missing plate in the vegetable garden. Then Louis shows up with his girlfriend, Eva, and announces she'll be staying at the house with Isabel while Louis travels. Eva's efforts to engage Isabel are met with rudeness and distance; Isabel resents both Eva's friendliness with the maid and her careless messes. When more items start disappearing—a teaspoon, a letter opener, a thimble—Isabel is perplexed and suspicious, and the story takes an unexpected and dramatic turn that leads to stunning realizations about the women's entwined history. Van der Wouden's sensuous writing and flair for drama make this a winner.
Customer Reviews
Quite a twist
An easy read, evocative and erotic, almost to the point of being a turn off - but the twist and its development makes it deserving of the Short List.
A surprise
One of those novels where you think you know what it’s about, but several new layers are slowly revealed.
The Safekeep
Though this book held me sufficiently to want to finish it, the main characters, Isabel and Eva we’re difficult to genuinely believe or care about. Somehow, they remain caricatures for me rather than true characters. I also felt that the ending was somewhat contrived and predictable.