Beautiful written and deeply unsettling. Layer upon layer of thoughtful horror. Slams up against the horror of mundanity and normality. The encroaching zombie takeover, meshed with the anxiety causing new procurement system at work, the bullying boss , the requirement to 'love' a nephew and how it gets in the way of the relationship you value with your sibling. And in that sense it’s reminded me of We Need to Talk About Kevin. But at its darkest, most f-----d up it plucked out the shuddery judderiness of Michael Faber's Under the Skin. It’s clear that MV Clark loves film. Every chapter screams to be made into something on the medium size screen - Netflix and “kill”. And that’s testament to her writing which is warm and familiar - drawing you in before thumping you in the gut with something deliciously putrid - for example the grand guignol of an infected child posting his rotting teeth through a letter box with a distraught mother on the other side. So many vivid images - that’s what I want in my horror novels. The ending left me slightly dazed and wanting more. It required a couple of re-reads and made me hopeful for a sequel.  KEN