Mouths of Babes

“Nobody understands the dirty little secrets of the human heart better than Stella Duffy. I defy anyone to read this without squirming.”—Val McDermid

“Duffy has proved herself to be one of the very best.”—The Times (London)

“A promising writer has matured into a classic”—Guardian

The taunts are merciless, seemingly endless. Then, one day, the taunts end catastrophically.

New mother Saz Martin has quit the private investigator business for a more peaceful existence a lifetime away from that playground. But when her high school friend Will Gallagher—the now famous TV presenter—comes calling, there’s no way she can hide from her own dark memories.

This story of how the sins of our past always come back to haunt us asks whether it is still possible to believe in our heroes once their flaws are laid bare. In Mouths of Babes, Stella Duffy deftly shows that it is possible for a book to be a gripping page-turner while also addressing the moral dilemmas of our times.

Stella Duffy has published ten novels, including State of Happiness, which was longlisted for the 2004 Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction. Her short story “Martha Grace” won the 2002 CWA Short Story Award. Her work has been published in the United States, Italy, France, Germany, Spain, Brazil, Japan, and Russia. Duffy was born in London, grew up in Tokoroa, New Zealand, and has lived back in London since 1986.