Reviews

• “This [adult fiction] debut is captivating – and at times frighteningly relatable. /…/ This is not the first time I have read an unreliable narrator’s account or a psychological thriller, but it is the first time I have experienced the two phenomena coming together: a meeting that resulted in me being unable to put the book down before bedtime. Villadsen has written a gripping plot, and the reader is on edge from the first page.”

• “A convincing domestic noir about a woman that loses her grip of reality. /…/ Anyone who has seen a fair amount of film knows that uncovered windows invite potentially fatal voyeurism – just think of Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Rear Window’ and Brian de Palma’s ‘Body Double’ – and that you can thereby see something that you can’t unsee afterwards. It is not an innocent act to spy on others, and you can come to possess knowledge that you shouldn’t have – and that you don’t know whether to act on. It has always been good suspense material, and so it is here in Lise Villadsen’s story, where she is eminently able to put herself in Irene’s shoes as she slowly loses her grip on reality. The fine psychological empathy ensures the credibility of this juicy domestic noir story, where the suspense is maintained until the very last pages of the novel, while Irene goes from being a passive spectator to an active participant in her neighbors’ lives.”

• “Here are 290 intense pages, where I never quite know, where I have the protagonist. /…/ The language is short, precise and with a rotten undertone of something not being quite right. The characters are carefully composed and well suited to the plot. I’d like to ask for more books of this kind, Lise Villadsen! /…/ With Let The Little Children Come I has serious problems putting the book down, and I could easily have read it in one sitting.”

• “This is 290 pages of pure intensity and I was crazy about it! /…/ Lise Villadsen has truly achieved an utterly eminent psychological thriller where as the pages quietly turn themselves, you get the feeling of being trapped in Irene’s head (which isn’t a particularly great place) filled with jealousy and paranoia and of what those feeling can drive a person to do. The novel is incredibly well written and Lise Villadsen demonstrates yet again what an accomplished author she is! So in case you’re looking for a psychological thriller which really gets beneath your skin, whilst also giving you a sensation of not quite knowing which is up and what is down, then you really ought to read this book!”

• “There are books you read and think are decent, perhaps even great. Then there’s Let the Little Children Come that can be felt deep in your bones. /…/ I flew through the pages, captivated by Lise’s language and all that which constantly lures beneath the surface. /…/ Lise has really hit the spot. She portrays the dark side of humanity with an insane precision and at the same time she does so without ever losing her warmth or empathy. It’s tough, raw, crazy and moving at the same time. Let the little children come is a tale that stays with you long after turning the final page. I can only recommend it.”

• “With Let the Little Children Come, Lise Villadsen enters the adult fiction domain for the first time and does so with an assured hand. She brings a new and distinct voice to the Danish domestic noir genre. /…/ Irene comes across as both credible and complex./…/ Villadsen is in great control of her suspense build-up. The short chapters and the high tempo gives the novel almost a filmic quality, where new pieces continuously fall into place and increases the intensity. The novel’s theme meanwhile falls naturally into the contemporary literary trend that dares to deal with childlessness, a subject that long has been shrouded in taboo. Let the Little Children Come will appeal to readers that have enjoyed Paula Hawkins‘ The Girl on the Train, Liane Moriarty’s Big Little Lies and Colleen Hoovers Verity.”

• “The wildest psychological thriller. /…/ Lise Villadsen has written a banger of a novel that I can warmly recommend reading.”

• “Lise Villadsen has done it again! Nothing less than a brilliant, twisty psychological thriller that messes with your common sense right until the very end.”

• “If you like the sound of Danish domestic noir about envy, stalking, relationship problems, childlessness and morbid obsession, then I can guarantee this to be an exciting and highly entertaining page-turner.”

• “A masterpiece. /…/ Let the little children come is an ice-cold psychological thriller. /…/ The language flows, the story creeps beneath your skin and recalls classic horror tellings such as The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins. If you wish to enter fall with an evocative story stuck in the back of your head, I can only recommend reading Let the little children come.”

• “Let the little children come is one of those kinds of books that send chills down your spine. That was the effect it had on me at least. The narrative takes some truly surprising turns – and there is a lot at stake here. An intriguing and thrilling reading experience.”

• “What a debut! I had to force myself to put the book down and I turned the final page with wide-opened eyes. /…/ It’s scary, confusing, nerve-wracking, and insanely well-written. I was particularly intrigued by the way the characters were depicted, and how you couldn’t really pin any of them down – not even Irene who is the narrator after all. Bravo, Lise! /…/ One of this year’s most powerful reading experiences.”

• “Let the little children come has everything a reader of psychological thrillers could ask for. /…/ Irene was a thoroughly fascinating character to be inside the head of (…) I love the ’stream of consciousness’-esque way in which her thoughts are relayed. /…/ The language in Let the little children come is truly lush and I experienced it all as vividly as a film running though my head. I would like to advocate for it to be turned into a TV-series immediately, it’s a brilliant set up for one! Let the little children come is a scary little thing where something steadily smolders beneath the perfect facade. It gets beneath your skin and leave you breathless once you’ve finished the last page.”

• “I had such high expectations for this one. And WOW, were they satisfied in the most masterful ways. Let the little children come is an intense and gripping psychological thriller about the longing for motherhood, relationships in crisis and all that hides behind the facade. /…/ Villadsen masterfully portrays the way the seemingly normal can be crumbling beneath the surface. I read it with the constant sensation that something unavoidable and fateful would happen.”

• “Unsettling, fascinating and ice cold – this novel will keep you on the edge of your seat whilst an uneasy foreboding steadily grows throughout the read. /…/ Both the characters and their portrayed everyday life feels close to reality which makes the narrative hit particularly hard. You can’t help but ponder: Could this actually happen? Could this be…my neighbor? Villadsen has in my opinion constructed an excellent psychological thriller where the thrills aren’t explosive – but rather closely creeps in under your skin and remain as a trembling uneasiness.”

• “There is a constant undertone of unease here that propels the story forwards and one is constantly intrigued by what is actually going on behind the facade. /…/ I genuinely couldn’t put the book down (…) then it has remained constantly on my mind days after (…) and that is perhaps just what a psycholical thriller ought to do: send your thoughts in a flurry and not let go, even when the final page has been turned.  Let the little children come is a strong adult fiction debut that both entertains and challenges and I can only recommend reading it.”

• “It’s been a couple of days since I finished reading Let the Little children come and I still don’t think I’m done digesting it, in that great way where new fibers of the story appears in my system and demands processing. The story is so captivatingly told that you quickly devour the pages, but the themes around relationships, children, betrayal, envy rummages around your mind long after the final page has been turned.”

• “What a read! I had a hard time not letting this novel get too close to me. As the pages practically turned themselves, I had a creeping sensation of being trapped inside Irene’s head – and it wasn’t a pretty place to be in. The feeling of what jealousy and paranoia can do to a person and a relationship was intense, smothering and uncomfortably present – I sat on the edge of my seat. It is only when a book is exceptionally well-written that it goes straight for my nerves in this way. And this is deliciously well written! [Villadsen] elegantly balances between the spoken and unspoken. She portrays the characters just so vividly that you feel very close to them – yet not so far that you can see right through them. /…/ A brilliant reading experience!”

• “Extremely well-written domestic noir and psychological thriller about relationships, concealments, mistrust, obsessive envy and jealousy. /…/ The narrative [in Let the little children come] is effectively composed and it’s disturbing to follow the way that Irene’s paranoia escalates as her life appears to crumble.”