High Season
The gripping new mystery thriller from the author of The Girls of Summer
Published on 14. August 2025
384 pages
978-1-5291-9297-1 (ISBN)
Description
Escape to the French Riviera with this totally addictive thriller about murder, memory and dark family secrets - the perfect summer read for fans of Lucy Clarke, Shalini Boland and White Lotus.
We never speak of that summer . . .
Twenty years ago, Nina Drayton's older sister Tamara drowned at their family's luxury villa on the Cote d'Azur.
And five-year-old Nina became the child witness who helped send their babysitter, Josie Jackson, to prison for ten years.
But now, true crime investigators are reopening the case - and Nina is no longer certain she remembers what really happened that summer.
Returning to the French Riviera for the first time since Tamara's death, Nina is plunged back into a world of sun-bleached terraces, glittering turquoise seas and the faded opulence of her family's once-splendid villa. But beneath the picture-perfect views lies a chilling possibility:
What if Josie was innocent?
And if Nina's memory was wrong . . . then the real killer is still walking free.
Atmospheric, twisty and impossible to put down, High Season is a gripping psychological suspense novel about trauma, guilt, obsession and the stories we tell ourselves to survive.
Praise for Katie Bishop and High Season:
'Beautifully written, transportive, and thought-provoking...sizzles with suspense.' Lucy Clarke, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Castaways
'Ripped me out of my reading slump' Ella Berman, author of Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick Before We Were Innocent
'What a great summer read! The kind of book that will keep you entertained till the last page' ? ? ? ? ?
'I could hear the waves and feel the summer heat as I read it. Definitely read this book!' ? ? ? ? ?
'I was sobbing by the last paragraph. If you do not feel something while reading that chapter, check your pulse' ? ? ? ? ?
'I just couldn't put the book down if I tried' ? ? ? ? ?
'I could definitely see this as a Netflix/Prime series and I'd 10000% watch' ? ? ? ? ?
We never speak of that summer . . .
Twenty years ago, Nina Drayton's older sister Tamara drowned at their family's luxury villa on the Cote d'Azur.
And five-year-old Nina became the child witness who helped send their babysitter, Josie Jackson, to prison for ten years.
But now, true crime investigators are reopening the case - and Nina is no longer certain she remembers what really happened that summer.
Returning to the French Riviera for the first time since Tamara's death, Nina is plunged back into a world of sun-bleached terraces, glittering turquoise seas and the faded opulence of her family's once-splendid villa. But beneath the picture-perfect views lies a chilling possibility:
What if Josie was innocent?
And if Nina's memory was wrong . . . then the real killer is still walking free.
Atmospheric, twisty and impossible to put down, High Season is a gripping psychological suspense novel about trauma, guilt, obsession and the stories we tell ourselves to survive.
Praise for Katie Bishop and High Season:
'Beautifully written, transportive, and thought-provoking...sizzles with suspense.' Lucy Clarke, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Castaways
'Ripped me out of my reading slump' Ella Berman, author of Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick Before We Were Innocent
'What a great summer read! The kind of book that will keep you entertained till the last page' ? ? ? ? ?
'I could hear the waves and feel the summer heat as I read it. Definitely read this book!' ? ? ? ? ?
'I was sobbing by the last paragraph. If you do not feel something while reading that chapter, check your pulse' ? ? ? ? ?
'I just couldn't put the book down if I tried' ? ? ? ? ?
'I could definitely see this as a Netflix/Prime series and I'd 10000% watch' ? ? ? ? ?
Reviews / Votes
Crime fiction rarely explores the afterlife of someone convicted of murder and Katie Bishop's sensitive novel reveals the impact of class on assumptions about guilt and innocence * Sunday Times * The writing brilliantly creates the hedonistic atmosphere of the South of France and it's an education in TikTok culture with a very unguessable outcome * Daily Mail * Katie Bishop is a master storyteller. In High Season, she weaves a beautiful, intricate mystery that tests the strength of memory and time and the harsh consequences of both. Complete with an exotic setting, flawed and complex characters, and spellbinding prose, High Season is an absolute masterpiece. * Sara Ochs, author of The Resort * High Season ripped me out of a reading slump as I found myself devouring this tale of privilege, loss, and the slippery nature of memory. The setting is so perfectly rendered that you can almost taste the saltwater, and the characters are so sensitively drawn I often had a knot in my stomach as I read late into the night. Bishop writes unbelievably beautifully about the complex relationships forged in youth, and the fragility of memory in the aftermath of tragedy. * Ella Berman, author of Reese Witherspoon Book Club-pick BEFORE WE WERE INNOCENT * I devoured this sparkling, slippery, dark and delicious book in days. Katie Bishop weaves an aching, impossibly tangled, but gorgeous tale of youth, hope, memory and desire. As compelling as it is subtle, intelligent and complex. With a backdrop of glittering privilege, it offers both sheer delight and a gut thump of dread. * Hazel Barkworth, author of HEATSTROKE * True crime meets the Cote d'Azur in this layered, insightful novel that transcends its absorbing premise. Mystery and secrets abound at the Pink House, but it's Katie Bishop's vividly drawn characters and their web of entanglements that will keep you turning pages. High Season handles its themes deftly-about trauma and memory, class and girlhood, family and forgiveness-while also offering a nuanced critique of true crime voyeurism. Propulsive, escapist, and sharp. * Emily Layden, author of ONCE MORE FROM THE TOP * [A] stunning thriller * My Weekly * I read the novel in three sittings. This author has such a clarity on young female friendships and class divide, which really added to the atmosphere * Prima * With brilliant writing and a clever plot, this is a quality read * Sun on Sunday, Fabulous Magazine * A dark, perfect summer read * That's Life Monthly *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Transworld Publishers Ltd
File size
1,69 MB
ISBN-13
978-1-5291-9297-1 (9781529192971)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Person
Katie Bishop is an author and journalist based in Birmingham, UK. Her journalism has been published in The New York Times, the Guardian, Vogue and many others. Her debut novel, The Girls of Summer published in 2023. High Season is her second novel.
