The Caretakers

Paperback Published on: 02/02/2023
Price: £9.99
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Synopsis

'[This] emotionally riveting debut novel focuses on several dynamic women in a wealthy suburb of Paris and a tragic event that changes their lives. Bestor-Siegal had me at Paris and she never let go. The Caretakers is extraordinary' Laura Dave, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Last Thing He Told Me

In a smart Parisian suburb, in the wake of the Paris 2015 terrorist attacks, an au pair is arrested after the sudden and suspicious death of her nine-year-old charge...

The truth behind what happened is unravelled through six women: Geraldine, a heartbroken French teacher who struggles to connect with her vulnerable students; Lou, an incompetent au pair fired by the family next door; Charlotte, a chilly socialite and reluctant mother; Holly, an anxious au pair who yearns to feel at home in Paris; Nathalie, an isolated French teenager desperate for her mother's attention; and finally, Alena, the au pair accused of killing a child.

All of them play a part in nine-year-old Julien's death...

For fans of Celeste Ng's Everything I Never Told You and Liane Moriarty's Big Little Lies, The Caretakers is a compulsive and gripping read about who takes care of children, the yearning for belonging that extends beyond the homes left behind, and issues of identity, privilege, and class in both American and French culture.

Publisher information

  • Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
  • ISBN: 9780349144771
  • Number of pages: 352
  • Dimensions: 206 x 126 x 26 mm
  • Weight: 280g
  • Languages: English

Customer Reviews

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The Caretakers
Set in Paris this is a well told story
Set in Paris we meet a number of wealthy women and their child minders, some of them young Americans. Most of the characters are hard to get to know. The c... READ MORE
Carolyn Huckfield
The Caretakers
An ok read
Firstly, I would like to thank Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book. A story set in Paris about three au pairs - Lou, Holly and Alexa, and the... READ MORE
Joan Moir
The Caretakers
Too depressing
2.5 stars This book starts as quite innocent. All we can see is a deeply upset mother that is grieving the death of her youngest son on her front lawn, fo... READ MORE
Justyna Grochala
The Caretakers
Breathtaking
A brilliantly written look at isolation and the struggles that come with it. I devoured this book and was honestly bereft when I finished. It kept me on ... READ MORE
Sarah Milgate
The Caretakers
Complex but interesting
The Caretakers - a poignant name for au pairs - girls/young women who have come to France from various countries to live with host families and look after ... READ MORE
Dana Farren
The Caretakers
Stunning Debut
Thank you to the publishers this is a stunning debut, it really got right under my skin and I just had to sit and read it in one sitting. A good cast of ch... READ MORE
Fiona Sharp
The Caretakers
A good read
"The Caretakers" by Amanda Bestor-Siegal refers to the au-pairs who look after the children of suburban Parisian families. It revolves around the death of... READ MORE
Mel Pretorius
The Caretakers
I never want to be an au pair
As a person who is not French, I found this book harder to review than I would have thought. This book follows various au pairs around the time that one o... READ MORE
Yuhannah Anderson
The Caretakers
Amanda Bestor-Siegal - The Caretakers
When Lou comes to Paris, she has quite different ideas from those of the family she works for as an au pair. Yet, her greatest concern is to leave behind h... READ MORE
miss.mesmerized
The Caretakers
Well written , but the story wasn’t for me.
Unfortunately this book wasn’t for me. The writing is descriptive which is a plus point but I found the story contained too many characters and this mad... READ MORE
Zoe Hitchen