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The Jealous One: 'Britain's Patricia Highsmith'
The Jealous One (1964), Celia Fremlin's fifth novel, opens on its protagonist Rosamund as she wakes from a mid-morning nap to find, to her delight, that she is running a temperature. Surely that explains her blinding headache, and even the weird, delirious dream in which she had murdered her overly seductive neighbour, Lindy? A great relief, then, to find this was merely the work of a fevered imagination. Until her husband exclaims, 'Rosamund! Have you any idea what's happened to Lindy? She's disappeared!...' 'A tense situation, ultimately resolved by a beautifully fitting plot-twist. Even more memorable than the suspense story is the witty and acute comedy.' New York Times 'A brilliant example of the psychological thriller. The little worm of jealousy devours its way into the mind, gradually, page by page.' Hampstead & Highgate Express
209 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1965
15 people are currently reading
1085 people want to read
About the author
Celia Fremlin
78 books91 followersCelia was born in Kingsbury, now part of London, England. She was the daughter of Heaver Fremlin and Margaret Addiscott. Her older brother, John H. Fremlin, later became a nuclear physicist. Celia studied at Somerville College, Oxford University. From 1942 to 2000 she lived in Hampstead, London. In 1942 she married Elia Goller, with whom she had three children; he died in 1968. In 1985, Celia married Leslie Minchin, who died in 1999. Her many crime novels and stories helped modernize the sensation novel tradition by introducing criminal and (rarely) supernatural elements into domestic settings. Her 1958 novel The Hours Before Dawn won the Edgar Award in 1960.
With Jeffrey Barnard, she was co-presenter of a BBC2 documentary “Night and Day” describing diurnal and nocturnal London, broadcast 23 January 1987.
Fremlin was an advocate of assisted suicide and euthanasia. In a newspaper interview she admitted to assisting four people to die.[1] In 1983 civil proceedings were brought against her as one of the five members of the EXIT Executive committee which had published “A Guide to Self Deliverance” , but the court refused to declare the booklet unlawful.
[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celia...]
With Jeffrey Barnard, she was co-presenter of a BBC2 documentary “Night and Day” describing diurnal and nocturnal London, broadcast 23 January 1987.
Fremlin was an advocate of assisted suicide and euthanasia. In a newspaper interview she admitted to assisting four people to die.[1] In 1983 civil proceedings were brought against her as one of the five members of the EXIT Executive committee which had published “A Guide to Self Deliverance” , but the court refused to declare the booklet unlawful.
[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celia...]
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews
February 6, 2022
Creeping tension, passive aggression, and domestic disharmony
This is another hugely entertaining 'domestic noir' from Fremlin. Originally written in the mid-1960s, this is a precursor to those contemporary 'cuckoo in the nest' psychological thrillers that deal with jealousy, women competing for one man, and rising tensions that threaten to escalate and explode.
Lindy, the third woman in this book, who gets her claws into the marriage of Rosamund and Geoffrey is deliciously awful with her manipulations, her malicious one-up-(wo)manship, and her sly charm.
But what really makes this so good is Fremlin's own sense of humour (think Patricia Highsmith-lite) and the way she uses the genre to comment on suburban coupled-up smugness, and the deadly mundane nature of women's lives centred on looking after their husbands, children, home and garden. The scene of competitive hostessing at coffee mornings, for example, is hilarious, but also makes a point of how a woman who 'works outside the home' is regarded by her stay-at-home peer group.
This one slightly fizzles out at the end, I'd say, but Fremlin crams more creeping tension, passive aggression, and domestic disharmony into 200 pages than most contemporary writers manage in double that number. Oh, and probably the best use of a dog in a plotline that I've seen in ages!
This is another hugely entertaining 'domestic noir' from Fremlin. Originally written in the mid-1960s, this is a precursor to those contemporary 'cuckoo in the nest' psychological thrillers that deal with jealousy, women competing for one man, and rising tensions that threaten to escalate and explode.
Lindy, the third woman in this book, who gets her claws into the marriage of Rosamund and Geoffrey is deliciously awful with her manipulations, her malicious one-up-(wo)manship, and her sly charm.
But what really makes this so good is Fremlin's own sense of humour (think Patricia Highsmith-lite) and the way she uses the genre to comment on suburban coupled-up smugness, and the deadly mundane nature of women's lives centred on looking after their husbands, children, home and garden. The scene of competitive hostessing at coffee mornings, for example, is hilarious, but also makes a point of how a woman who 'works outside the home' is regarded by her stay-at-home peer group.
This one slightly fizzles out at the end, I'd say, but Fremlin crams more creeping tension, passive aggression, and domestic disharmony into 200 pages than most contemporary writers manage in double that number. Oh, and probably the best use of a dog in a plotline that I've seen in ages!
February 1, 2022
I am so pleased that I discovered Celia Fremlin and have not, so far, read anything by her that I haven't loved. "The Jealous One," is Fremlin's fifth novel, first published in 1965 and I am delighted to say that I enjoyed it as much as the previous books I have read by her.
Rosamund and Geoffrey Fielding live with their teenage son, Peter. At first they are intrigued by their new neighbours, sisters Lindy and Eileen. Eileen has recently separated from her husband, while Lindy is single. Before long, Rosamund realises that Lindy's free and easy manner hides a rather passive-aggressive nature. Lindy insists that Eileen drove her husband away and tends to belittle all wives, placing them in a bad light, while husbands are seen as put-upon, nagged and neglected.
Before long, Lindy has insinuated herself into Rosamund and Geoffrey's lives, and marriage. Geoffrey is flattered and eager to assist, while Rosamund is beset by jealousy. Fremlin sets the scene so well, showing how Rosamund is gradually overcome by jealousy, resenting Geoffrey's attentions to their neighbour, her constant appearances whenever they plan to go anywhere and her taking over of her life. It is cleverly done, not obvious, and you can feel Rosamund's distress as she hesitates over the unfolding situation. Of course, there is a twist, as Lindy vanishes and Rosamund cannot recall what happened... A clever, intelligent and realistic psychological crime novel - Celia Fremlin is a fantastic author and deserves to be rediscovered by a new audience.
Rosamund and Geoffrey Fielding live with their teenage son, Peter. At first they are intrigued by their new neighbours, sisters Lindy and Eileen. Eileen has recently separated from her husband, while Lindy is single. Before long, Rosamund realises that Lindy's free and easy manner hides a rather passive-aggressive nature. Lindy insists that Eileen drove her husband away and tends to belittle all wives, placing them in a bad light, while husbands are seen as put-upon, nagged and neglected.
Before long, Lindy has insinuated herself into Rosamund and Geoffrey's lives, and marriage. Geoffrey is flattered and eager to assist, while Rosamund is beset by jealousy. Fremlin sets the scene so well, showing how Rosamund is gradually overcome by jealousy, resenting Geoffrey's attentions to their neighbour, her constant appearances whenever they plan to go anywhere and her taking over of her life. It is cleverly done, not obvious, and you can feel Rosamund's distress as she hesitates over the unfolding situation. Of course, there is a twist, as Lindy vanishes and Rosamund cannot recall what happened... A clever, intelligent and realistic psychological crime novel - Celia Fremlin is a fantastic author and deserves to be rediscovered by a new audience.
January 20, 2026
The Jealous One (1965) is the fourth book I have read by the wonderful Celia Fremlin aka the grandmother of psycho-domestic noir.
Rosamund and Geoffrey have been married for years. They bond over judgemental gossiping about their friends and neighbours, whilst also feeling anxious about their wayward teenage son. That all changes with the arrival of a new neighbour, the exuberant Lindy. Within hours Geoffrey's head has been turned.
Once again Celia Fremlin skewers the dynamics of mid 1960s, middle class, suburban London life. We view events through Rosamund's eyes. She is determined not to become a possessive and jealous wife, however inwardly she is becoming ever more troubled, tortured and convinced that Lindy is manipulating everyone around her.
The novel opens with a sick and feverish Rosamund having had a vivid dream about killing Lindy. We then circle back to Lindy's arrival and it is not until around halfway that we arrive back at that opening scene.
It's another Fremlin masterclass as she slowly increases the tension. The last few pages are gripping.
As with other Fremlin novel's, if there's a weakness it lies in the slightly anti-climactic final reveal. That said, if you are interested in a snapshot of the mid 1960s suburban English milieu, aligned to a page turner of a plot, then you will most likely be as enthralled as I was.
4/5
Rosamund and Geoffrey have been married for years. They bond over judgemental gossiping about their friends and neighbours, whilst also feeling anxious about their wayward teenage son. That all changes with the arrival of a new neighbour, the exuberant Lindy. Within hours Geoffrey's head has been turned.
Once again Celia Fremlin skewers the dynamics of mid 1960s, middle class, suburban London life. We view events through Rosamund's eyes. She is determined not to become a possessive and jealous wife, however inwardly she is becoming ever more troubled, tortured and convinced that Lindy is manipulating everyone around her.
The novel opens with a sick and feverish Rosamund having had a vivid dream about killing Lindy. We then circle back to Lindy's arrival and it is not until around halfway that we arrive back at that opening scene.
It's another Fremlin masterclass as she slowly increases the tension. The last few pages are gripping.
As with other Fremlin novel's, if there's a weakness it lies in the slightly anti-climactic final reveal. That said, if you are interested in a snapshot of the mid 1960s suburban English milieu, aligned to a page turner of a plot, then you will most likely be as enthralled as I was.
4/5
July 28, 2025
So very compelling.
February 7, 2022
I loved The Jealous One. Celia Fremlin was a completely new author to me and I’m very glad I’ve discovered her.
Written and set in 1964, this is a story of a 60s picture of settled suburban “domestic bliss” in the marriage between Rosamund and Geoffrey being disturbed by the arrival Lindy, the seemingly free-spirited, rather bohemian woman who moves in next door. She gradually infiltrates and disrupts all their routines and shared pleasures while Geoffrey begins to focus more and more on Lindy. And then Lindy disappears, but severe flu means that Rosamund cannot remember what happened that day...while sinister clues and dark imaginings begin to accumulate.
It began a little slowly for me, but I was soon hooked by Fremlin’s brilliant character portraits and witty, penetrating insights into people’s attitudes and what is really going on for all these seemingly contented, successful people. She captures perfectly the insecurities, pretences, competitiveness and so on endemic in the staid middle-class group for whom appearing supremely competent and perfectly happy is paramount. And all the while, a slow tension is building so that the final few chapters were truly gripping – although the climax and denouement didn’t quite live up to the rest of the book, I thought.
Nonetheless, I thought it was excellent. Fremlin’s writing, her witty and penetrating insights and her mastery of tension made this quite exceptional and I will definitely be revisiting her work. Very warmly recommended.
Written and set in 1964, this is a story of a 60s picture of settled suburban “domestic bliss” in the marriage between Rosamund and Geoffrey being disturbed by the arrival Lindy, the seemingly free-spirited, rather bohemian woman who moves in next door. She gradually infiltrates and disrupts all their routines and shared pleasures while Geoffrey begins to focus more and more on Lindy. And then Lindy disappears, but severe flu means that Rosamund cannot remember what happened that day...while sinister clues and dark imaginings begin to accumulate.
It began a little slowly for me, but I was soon hooked by Fremlin’s brilliant character portraits and witty, penetrating insights into people’s attitudes and what is really going on for all these seemingly contented, successful people. She captures perfectly the insecurities, pretences, competitiveness and so on endemic in the staid middle-class group for whom appearing supremely competent and perfectly happy is paramount. And all the while, a slow tension is building so that the final few chapters were truly gripping – although the climax and denouement didn’t quite live up to the rest of the book, I thought.
Nonetheless, I thought it was excellent. Fremlin’s writing, her witty and penetrating insights and her mastery of tension made this quite exceptional and I will definitely be revisiting her work. Very warmly recommended.
February 12, 2018
I adore Celia Fremlin's work; her writing is so controlled, yet builds to the most marvellous crescendoes. There is a real sense of claustrophobia in The Jealous One, as there is in most of her novels. I was immediately swept away, and cared tremendously for our protagonist, who was built realistically. The sense of foreboding slips in almost imperceptibly at first, but it is handled masterfully as it reaches its denouement. I did find the ending of The Jealous One a tad simplistic, but I was so 'in the zone' whilst reading the novel that I did not see it coming at all.
October 29, 2025
From 1965
A married woman feels the discomfort of her husband being enchanted by their female neighbor. This novel shows the anxieties then of whether a wife should work.
A married woman feels the discomfort of her husband being enchanted by their female neighbor. This novel shows the anxieties then of whether a wife should work.
February 11, 2022
I really enjoyed this book. In the main character of Rosamund, Fremlin has created another great 1960s housewife/heroine often worn by the trials and tribulations of everyday life. This story has Rosamund becoming jealous of her new neighbor Lindy who is spending a lot of time with her husband. Rosamund is a complex heroine the reader empathizes with but may not always sympathize with. A mystery entails. Unlike some of the book’s readers, I didn’t find the mystery’s ending to be anti-climactic - I thought it was appropriate and more realistically climactic.
I think the real pleasure of reading Fremlin is that so many of her observations about everyday people and life are incredibly sharp, witty, accurate and singular. I find myself often saying 'you are so right - and so clever." This book has many such observations.
A high-end Fremlin and satisfying reading experience. I rate it slightly above 4 stars.
I think the real pleasure of reading Fremlin is that so many of her observations about everyday people and life are incredibly sharp, witty, accurate and singular. I find myself often saying 'you are so right - and so clever." This book has many such observations.
A high-end Fremlin and satisfying reading experience. I rate it slightly above 4 stars.
December 6, 2018
A mighty rollercoaster of a reading that throws you up in a fraction of a nanosecond against a sky full of guessing games and then hurls you down painstakingly slowly towards the unfathomable.
Only this time that waiting climax that permeates every single of Celia's books did not meet my usual delicious misgivings. I (un)expected more shocking revelations and developments. It was getting there with ever page turned but it did not quite reached the brilliance of her books' fatal moments.
That said, I will never get tiered of saying...what a unique and singular talent, what an ingenious storyteller of the most intimate thoughts and sudden changes in paces, atmosphere and clues leaving the ecstatic but naive reader to simply be at the mercy of her trickery.
Only this time that waiting climax that permeates every single of Celia's books did not meet my usual delicious misgivings. I (un)expected more shocking revelations and developments. It was getting there with ever page turned but it did not quite reached the brilliance of her books' fatal moments.
That said, I will never get tiered of saying...what a unique and singular talent, what an ingenious storyteller of the most intimate thoughts and sudden changes in paces, atmosphere and clues leaving the ecstatic but naive reader to simply be at the mercy of her trickery.
May 15, 2022
I can't believe I'd never heard of Fremlin before! I wonder if she was eclipsed by Patricia Highsmith, who was writing in a similar era. I can't think of another reason she wouldn't be more well-known. Was Fremlin too dark for cozy-mystery readers, but not dark enough for those who would enjoy Highsmith?
Her stories are set in middle class suburban neighborhoods, full of housewives and mothers coping with the constraints of sexism, social expectations, and overwork,, but through every story, there runs a thread of darkness and suffocating fear. Like Highsmith, Fremlin saw the dark side of humanity, the boundaries people will cross out of desire and desperation.
In a way, she reminds me of Miss Marple, who knew her people and suspected everyone. No one in Fremlin's stories is entirely blameless and that is what can make it difficult to figure out who did it; in Fremlin's world, everyone is capable.
In this story, a flu-ridden, feverish wife has a dream about killing her single neighbor, Lindy. The thing is, in the dream, she's gleeful to see Lindy die, because Lindy has been monopolizing Rosamund's husband. But when Lindy subsequently disappears, Rosamund begins to wonder if it was a dream after all.
Something I love about Fremlin is how often I laugh aloud at her on-the-nose portrayals of humanity. I never laugh when I read Highsmith!
Here's an example:
Oh, and for anyone who read this book and was puzzled by the mentions of "Press Button A," I looked it up. From 1900s.org.uk: "Callers put their coins into the coin slot, dialled the number they wanted and pressed Button A to be heard or Button B to get their money back if no-one answered."
Also, "purple hearts" is a 1960s slang word for a combination of amphetamine and barbiturate. You're welcome!
Her stories are set in middle class suburban neighborhoods, full of housewives and mothers coping with the constraints of sexism, social expectations, and overwork,, but through every story, there runs a thread of darkness and suffocating fear. Like Highsmith, Fremlin saw the dark side of humanity, the boundaries people will cross out of desire and desperation.
In a way, she reminds me of Miss Marple, who knew her people and suspected everyone. No one in Fremlin's stories is entirely blameless and that is what can make it difficult to figure out who did it; in Fremlin's world, everyone is capable.
In this story, a flu-ridden, feverish wife has a dream about killing her single neighbor, Lindy. The thing is, in the dream, she's gleeful to see Lindy die, because Lindy has been monopolizing Rosamund's husband. But when Lindy subsequently disappears, Rosamund begins to wonder if it was a dream after all.
Something I love about Fremlin is how often I laugh aloud at her on-the-nose portrayals of humanity. I never laugh when I read Highsmith!
Here's an example:
"My goodness though, you do look washed out. Is it the 'flu? Do you have it very badly?"
"Yes, I suppose it is," she admitted. 'It's this one-day 'flu that everyone's been having, though it's lasted two days with me. My temperature was a hundred and two last night,' she added, warming to the recital.
Carlotta leaned forward, frowning anxiously. You might have supposed that the anxiety was for her neighbour's state of health, but even Rosamund could tell that this wasn't so. Carlotta was in fact being agonisingly torn between two treasured, but sadly contradictory, images of herself: one, as the woman who is never ill; the second, as the woman who has had a higher temperature than anybody else, ever, and much higher than Rosamund's paltry 102°.
Oh, and for anyone who read this book and was puzzled by the mentions of "Press Button A," I looked it up. From 1900s.org.uk: "Callers put their coins into the coin slot, dialled the number they wanted and pressed Button A to be heard or Button B to get their money back if no-one answered."
Also, "purple hearts" is a 1960s slang word for a combination of amphetamine and barbiturate. You're welcome!
August 6, 2020
WoW! This is a psychological thriller that has an extraordinary crescendo! This novel is the August selection from my Mysteries-Book-a-Month 2020 package from Bas Bleu or I might not have otherwise discovered this author/title independently.
Rosamund and Geoffrey Fielding have a new neighbor and they shared their usual delightful jokes with one another as they watched the activities of "move-in day." The new neighbors are 2 sisters, outgoing, single Lindy and reserved Eileen recently separated from her husband. With a setting in the London suburbs during the 1960s, the reader may not anticipate the full disruption that Lindy can bring to Rosamund and Geoffrey's domestic and habitual life.
As a former librarian, I had many conversations with readers at circulation desks and learned that some readers look at the number of pages as one of their determining factors for reading a novel. In the same way that some people determine 300+ pages is too long a book I've also viewed a book rejected as it is under 200 pages. For me, the number of pages in a book is never a factor. However, I do confess that I was surprised by the climax of this psychological thriller as I’ve read much longer psychological tales that were good stories but didn’t deliver the level of suspense in so few pages. I feel this is another credit to the Celia Fremlin’s writing style that she not only builds suspense in profiling the characters in their daily lives with perception and acute intricacies but delivers a power-packed punch ending.
Rosamund and Geoffrey Fielding have a new neighbor and they shared their usual delightful jokes with one another as they watched the activities of "move-in day." The new neighbors are 2 sisters, outgoing, single Lindy and reserved Eileen recently separated from her husband. With a setting in the London suburbs during the 1960s, the reader may not anticipate the full disruption that Lindy can bring to Rosamund and Geoffrey's domestic and habitual life.
As a former librarian, I had many conversations with readers at circulation desks and learned that some readers look at the number of pages as one of their determining factors for reading a novel. In the same way that some people determine 300+ pages is too long a book I've also viewed a book rejected as it is under 200 pages. For me, the number of pages in a book is never a factor. However, I do confess that I was surprised by the climax of this psychological thriller as I’ve read much longer psychological tales that were good stories but didn’t deliver the level of suspense in so few pages. I feel this is another credit to the Celia Fremlin’s writing style that she not only builds suspense in profiling the characters in their daily lives with perception and acute intricacies but delivers a power-packed punch ending.
March 12, 2023
It’s strange, having a deja vu feeling about this book when I am positive I have never read it in my life. It is exceedingly familiar however, and that might be because the story has been used in tiny ways to accelerate other more modern thrillers.
What a plot. I really enjoyed it and actually found myself getting scared at nervy as the story went on. My favourite of the Fremlin books I have read so far (I think this is the 3rd)
What a plot. I really enjoyed it and actually found myself getting scared at nervy as the story went on. My favourite of the Fremlin books I have read so far (I think this is the 3rd)
Read
February 2, 2026Leaving unrated because I skimmed to the end. Not really my cup of tea but that’s my own thing here. It is very well written and very suspenseful.
August 18, 2025
So very British! Een spannend verhaal op meesterlijk subtiele wijze verteld.
June 1, 2018
I have never read a book by Celia Fremlin. I never even heard of Celia Fremlin. Now I'm sitting here thinking of all the time I have wasted. I couldn't run through my "To be read" list quick enough trying to find more books to add by her.
The Jealous One is a psychological thriller at it's best. When you read a mysterious story and you immediately feel that dread, that foreboding, unease from the start...ah, you want to read more...it pulls you in....you know it's going to be good. The characters are interesting. The writing style is well done. I learned that these books are reissued...rather old stories...but timeless and enjoyable.
Thanks to Dover Publications (Reprint) and to goodreads for this free giveaway. I received the book. I read the book. I reviewed the book voluntarily and honestly.
The Jealous One is a psychological thriller at it's best. When you read a mysterious story and you immediately feel that dread, that foreboding, unease from the start...ah, you want to read more...it pulls you in....you know it's going to be good. The characters are interesting. The writing style is well done. I learned that these books are reissued...rather old stories...but timeless and enjoyable.
Thanks to Dover Publications (Reprint) and to goodreads for this free giveaway. I received the book. I read the book. I reviewed the book voluntarily and honestly.
September 12, 2024
Gut geschriebener, kurzweiliger Ehe-, Eifersuchts-Krimi. Lesenswert.
July 30, 2021
Last night Rosamund dreamed she killed her husband would be seducer from that moment we go into the past and meet new neighbour Lindy who is moving next to happily married Rosamund and Geoffrey. A “friendship” develops between the three, but Rosamund becomes jealous when her husband spends more and more time alone with Lindy. Then she had a fever and a weird dream… now, Lindy is nowhere to be found!
It may sound like a very recent family in peril book by the title, but it’s from 1965 and it’s not a thriller. We see the story from Rosamund’s point of view, but she doesn’t know everything herself. It’s a slow developing mystery where the clues makes sense in a certain way, but is it the way they should fit?
I had heard that there was a final twist and I tried to guess it… but I think I made it more complicated that it was and ignored clues I should have gotten. The ending is almost funny in a bumbling way.
I’m really liking Celia Fremlin, her characters are well written, the situations seem to be always twisted from what they appear and I like to see the era she wrote in (1960-70s) through her eyes.
It may sound like a very recent family in peril book by the title, but it’s from 1965 and it’s not a thriller. We see the story from Rosamund’s point of view, but she doesn’t know everything herself. It’s a slow developing mystery where the clues makes sense in a certain way, but is it the way they should fit?
I had heard that there was a final twist and I tried to guess it… but I think I made it more complicated that it was and ignored clues I should have gotten. The ending is almost funny in a bumbling way.
I’m really liking Celia Fremlin, her characters are well written, the situations seem to be always twisted from what they appear and I like to see the era she wrote in (1960-70s) through her eyes.
June 19, 2025
The book starts with a literal dream of murder and a missing woman before rewinding to weeks before. Rosamund and Geoffrey lead a contented suburban life, giggling together at neighbours' foibles, including new neighbour Lindy. Carefree, vivacious, and bohemian, Lindy is a stark contrast to her painfully quiet and shy sister, Eileen. Lindy manages to manoeuvre herself into everyone's lives, whether they like it or not. Rosamund finds herself increasingly irritated but is no longer able to share and laugh at those irritations with Geoffrey as he spends more and more time with Lindy. Desperate not to appear the jealous wife, Rosamund inadvertently facilitates Geoffrey's time with Lindy.
Some might describe this as a slow burn to start, but for me, Fremlin doesn't disappoint in terms of slowly building tension. She's an absolute queen of social commentary, and even though this was published in 1965, the domestic and suburban situations she portrays are still relatable. The social pressures to outdo neighbours - whether it's the standard of food at gatherings to parenting dilemmas, unwanted guests, dealing with your kids' friends, the awkwardness of parties you don't want to be at or engaging in dull conversations. Narrated from Rosamund's persepective, she navigates these societal obstacles as Lindy plays cuckoo, until Rosamund does feel like killing her. When Lindy disappears and evidence mounts, can Rosamund work out what really did happen and her own role in it? The ending reminds me a bit of Hitchcock. I've enjoyed every Fremlin I've read so far and will continue to seek these out - and still loving the retro covers :)
Some might describe this as a slow burn to start, but for me, Fremlin doesn't disappoint in terms of slowly building tension. She's an absolute queen of social commentary, and even though this was published in 1965, the domestic and suburban situations she portrays are still relatable. The social pressures to outdo neighbours - whether it's the standard of food at gatherings to parenting dilemmas, unwanted guests, dealing with your kids' friends, the awkwardness of parties you don't want to be at or engaging in dull conversations. Narrated from Rosamund's persepective, she navigates these societal obstacles as Lindy plays cuckoo, until Rosamund does feel like killing her. When Lindy disappears and evidence mounts, can Rosamund work out what really did happen and her own role in it? The ending reminds me a bit of Hitchcock. I've enjoyed every Fremlin I've read so far and will continue to seek these out - and still loving the retro covers :)
January 18, 2026
3.5
Rosamund and Geoffrey are intrigued by their new neighbours - Lindy and Eileen. Lindy is charming and soon works her way into everyone’s lives with her seamless entertaining and carefree attitude. However - Rosamund suspects she has designs on her husband and notices all the ways Lindy undermines her and wives in general. Then Lindy suddenly disappears. Great wee thriller and whodunnit. 😊
Rosamund and Geoffrey are intrigued by their new neighbours - Lindy and Eileen. Lindy is charming and soon works her way into everyone’s lives with her seamless entertaining and carefree attitude. However - Rosamund suspects she has designs on her husband and notices all the ways Lindy undermines her and wives in general. Then Lindy suddenly disappears. Great wee thriller and whodunnit. 😊
September 1, 2025
This book surprised me quite a lot, I wasn't expecting the events which had happened, nor did I expect the outcome of the whole book, despite the time that the book was written in, I found that it was easy and smooth to follow, that the language felt fresh and not outdated at all.
July 7, 2025
A fun little read. Maybe lagged a bit in places but I did enjoy the ending and the character descriptions of the annoyingly whimsical and relaxed Lindy were brilliant!
August 5, 2025
Full of suspense but not quite as good as some of her others
July 11, 2025
1.5 stars
August 17, 2020
I picked up this slim thriller written in the 60's after hearing the author described as writing like Patricia Highsmith. It has a tense, moody feel but also seemed overwrought and at times didn't make sense to me. Rosamund and Geoffrey are a happy married couple who start to drift apart when a new neighbor, Lindy moves in. Lindy is a Holly Go-lightly type, throwing parties and eventually tagging along to their every outing. One day she disappears and we have t0 wonder who might have been involved in her disappearance.
This book has some interesting things to say about marriage and the role of women at time as well as parents attitudes towards raising children. I couldn't get past Rosamund n0t telling her husband she wanted him to herself sometimes or her not telling him when she was seriously ill. The ending seemed abrupt.
This book has some interesting things to say about marriage and the role of women at time as well as parents attitudes towards raising children. I couldn't get past Rosamund n0t telling her husband she wanted him to herself sometimes or her not telling him when she was seriously ill. The ending seemed abrupt.
October 8, 2025
Like her namesake, Celia Dale, Celia Fremlin is fast becoming one of my favourite writers from the mid-20th century. She wrote wonderfully suspenseful domestic noirs, slowly building tension by leveraging her protagonists’ understandable but sometimes irrational fears. First published in 1965, The Jealous One is another deliciously compelling novel in which a seemingly happy marriage – a picture of suburban bliss – is upended by the arrival of a flighty single woman. It’s a hugely enjoyable read, right up there with Fremlin’s other recently reissued novels, Uncle Paul and Appointment with Yesterday.
Rosamund and Geoffrey Fielding lead cosy suburban lives with their wayward teenage son, Pete, sharing confidences and little anecdotes about their neighbours as the days pass by. Nevertheless, their gentle routine is disrupted by the arrival of new next-door neighbours, Lindy, a fun-loving, single woman, and her quieter, younger sister, Eileen, recently separated from her husband, Basil. Within hours, Lindy has Geoffrey doing little jobs for her, rigging up lights in the back garden and other such manly tasks.
In an effort to be neighbourly, Rosamund gets Geoffrey to ask the newcomers to supper, but Lindy goes one better by suggesting they come to her. It’s an interesting evening, allowing Rosamund to get a glimpse into Lindy’s bohemian approach to life. Nevertheless, there are hints of a crueller, more selfish side to Lindy through her treatment of Eileen, who she casts as the boring, stuffy sister by comparison with her own ‘live now, pay later’ spontaneity.
Right from that very first day, Lindy starts to inveigle her way into Rosamund and Geoffrey’s marriage, gradually disturbing the easy, conspiratorial dynamic between the couple. Gossiping or making harmless little jokes about the neighbours is only enjoyable when both parties in the discussion feel broadly the same way, just as Rosamund and Geoffrey have found in the past. Now, however, their views about Lindy are diverging, with Geoffrey being eager to please the new arrival, while Rosamund finds her flighty behaviour increasingly hard to take.
Before long, Geffrey is spending more of his spare time next door, helping Lindy with all manner of projects, much to Rosamund’s annoyance.
…he wasn’t asking for information at all, she realised. Rather he was asking for some sort of backing—a reassurance from Rosamund that she didn’t mind his spending so much of his weekends over at Lindy’s. It was as if by getting Rosamund to tell him where the fork was, he was in some way bringing her into this plan for re-designing Lindy’s garden: making the whole project into a three-some, not just him and Lindy. (p. 43)
Rosamund is fully aware of just how petty her grievances appear to be; nevertheless, she cannot help feeling irritated by them! Perhaps, if she goes on being nice to Lindy, inviting her in, laughing at her jokes, not making a fuss when Geoffrey spends time with her, all this fascination on Lindy’s part will fizzle out? Consequently, Rosamund bends over backwards to be pleasant to Lindy, not letting a smidgen of jealousy show in public to spoil the illusion. The last thing she wants is for the neighbours to start gossiping, viewing her as the neglected wife. However, in her eagerness not to appear jealous, Rosamund begins to look like the third wheel to Geoffrey and Lindy, playing gooseberry for all the world to see.
She had chosen it, of course. Of her own accord she had urged Geoffrey to sit in front with Lindy, to help her with the map-reading, she’d said. As always, her status of odd one out in their trio was of her own deliberate choosing, and thus could not be felt as a humiliation. But it looked like a humiliation. Rosamund had been shocked, as they set out, to find how much she was hoping that the neighbours weren’t peering out from the Sunday somnolence behind their curtains; weren’t noticing how Lindy and Geoffrey were paired off in the front of the car, for all the world like a married couple, with the spinster sister of one of them lurking at the back. (p. 68)
Outwardly, Rosamund is all sweetness and light, but inside, she is raging, viewing Lindy as a significant threat. Without seducing Geoffrey, without so much as exchanging a kiss with him, Lindy seems to have ruined Rosamund’s marriage, but to what end? Where is all this leading?
To read the rest of my review, please visit:
https://jacquiwine.wordpress.com/2025...
Rosamund and Geoffrey Fielding lead cosy suburban lives with their wayward teenage son, Pete, sharing confidences and little anecdotes about their neighbours as the days pass by. Nevertheless, their gentle routine is disrupted by the arrival of new next-door neighbours, Lindy, a fun-loving, single woman, and her quieter, younger sister, Eileen, recently separated from her husband, Basil. Within hours, Lindy has Geoffrey doing little jobs for her, rigging up lights in the back garden and other such manly tasks.
In an effort to be neighbourly, Rosamund gets Geoffrey to ask the newcomers to supper, but Lindy goes one better by suggesting they come to her. It’s an interesting evening, allowing Rosamund to get a glimpse into Lindy’s bohemian approach to life. Nevertheless, there are hints of a crueller, more selfish side to Lindy through her treatment of Eileen, who she casts as the boring, stuffy sister by comparison with her own ‘live now, pay later’ spontaneity.
Right from that very first day, Lindy starts to inveigle her way into Rosamund and Geoffrey’s marriage, gradually disturbing the easy, conspiratorial dynamic between the couple. Gossiping or making harmless little jokes about the neighbours is only enjoyable when both parties in the discussion feel broadly the same way, just as Rosamund and Geoffrey have found in the past. Now, however, their views about Lindy are diverging, with Geoffrey being eager to please the new arrival, while Rosamund finds her flighty behaviour increasingly hard to take.
Before long, Geffrey is spending more of his spare time next door, helping Lindy with all manner of projects, much to Rosamund’s annoyance.
…he wasn’t asking for information at all, she realised. Rather he was asking for some sort of backing—a reassurance from Rosamund that she didn’t mind his spending so much of his weekends over at Lindy’s. It was as if by getting Rosamund to tell him where the fork was, he was in some way bringing her into this plan for re-designing Lindy’s garden: making the whole project into a three-some, not just him and Lindy. (p. 43)
Rosamund is fully aware of just how petty her grievances appear to be; nevertheless, she cannot help feeling irritated by them! Perhaps, if she goes on being nice to Lindy, inviting her in, laughing at her jokes, not making a fuss when Geoffrey spends time with her, all this fascination on Lindy’s part will fizzle out? Consequently, Rosamund bends over backwards to be pleasant to Lindy, not letting a smidgen of jealousy show in public to spoil the illusion. The last thing she wants is for the neighbours to start gossiping, viewing her as the neglected wife. However, in her eagerness not to appear jealous, Rosamund begins to look like the third wheel to Geoffrey and Lindy, playing gooseberry for all the world to see.
She had chosen it, of course. Of her own accord she had urged Geoffrey to sit in front with Lindy, to help her with the map-reading, she’d said. As always, her status of odd one out in their trio was of her own deliberate choosing, and thus could not be felt as a humiliation. But it looked like a humiliation. Rosamund had been shocked, as they set out, to find how much she was hoping that the neighbours weren’t peering out from the Sunday somnolence behind their curtains; weren’t noticing how Lindy and Geoffrey were paired off in the front of the car, for all the world like a married couple, with the spinster sister of one of them lurking at the back. (p. 68)
Outwardly, Rosamund is all sweetness and light, but inside, she is raging, viewing Lindy as a significant threat. Without seducing Geoffrey, without so much as exchanging a kiss with him, Lindy seems to have ruined Rosamund’s marriage, but to what end? Where is all this leading?
To read the rest of my review, please visit:
https://jacquiwine.wordpress.com/2025...
September 26, 2025
4.5 stars. When Rosamund awakes from a nap she feels confused. Why does she suddenly have a splitting headache? Perhaps it was the shock of the vivid dream she had about murdering her neighbour Lindy. Yes, Lindy, the vivacious, good humoured woman who lives next door, and the woman who Rosamund is convinced is trying to steal her husband Geoffrey away from her.
Thank goodness it was just a dream, Rosamund thinks. Until Geoffrey returns home and announces that Lindy has gone missing…
I love Celia Fremlin’s work. Her books, published in the sixties, were way ahead of their time and I’m so happy to see these stunning reissues because they really do deserve to be read in the 21st Century.
The Jealous One is Fremlin at the top of her game. It’s a wonderfully atmospheric and often sinister read, portraying the domesticity of the 1960’s housewife perfectly. The characterisation is sublime; Rosamund and Lindy contrast beautifully, you can almost feel the dislike and tension between the two emanating from the pages and as the story intensifies so does the tension. However my favourite aspect about the author’s writing is the dark humour she scatters subtly throughout. I listened to this and I can’t tell you how many times I chuckled out loud at the sarcastic, deprecating remarks carefully woven into the story, providing light relief in contrast to the increasing sense of unease. This is domestic noir at its best.
Absolutely wonderful!
Thank goodness it was just a dream, Rosamund thinks. Until Geoffrey returns home and announces that Lindy has gone missing…
I love Celia Fremlin’s work. Her books, published in the sixties, were way ahead of their time and I’m so happy to see these stunning reissues because they really do deserve to be read in the 21st Century.
The Jealous One is Fremlin at the top of her game. It’s a wonderfully atmospheric and often sinister read, portraying the domesticity of the 1960’s housewife perfectly. The characterisation is sublime; Rosamund and Lindy contrast beautifully, you can almost feel the dislike and tension between the two emanating from the pages and as the story intensifies so does the tension. However my favourite aspect about the author’s writing is the dark humour she scatters subtly throughout. I listened to this and I can’t tell you how many times I chuckled out loud at the sarcastic, deprecating remarks carefully woven into the story, providing light relief in contrast to the increasing sense of unease. This is domestic noir at its best.
Absolutely wonderful!
August 3, 2025
So pleased I was introduced to Celia Fremlin's books at Daunt. They are dark but blessed with good humour too, sometimes farcically so. This is no exception as love thy neighbour is far from the premise here, indeed Rosamund's profound dislike of her newly arrived neighbour Lindy leads her to believe at one moment that she may have done her great harm. Fremlin, whose own life was traumatic to say the least, mixes up the plot extremely well. Her innate ability to make suburban life, or the humdrum daily lives of ordinary people, appear exciting and filled with tension is sublime.
'Rosamund could see at once that she (Lindy) was being charming. No one could have guessed from her flattering comments on Norah's pictures, her wall-paper, her iced walnut cake and the view from her window that the speaker considered Norah to be a nagging wife, a possessive and incompetent mother. Though of course, Rosamund reminded herself, there was no real inconsistency, lots of nagging wives live in pretty houses.....'
All the characters are fabulously drawn from the adults to the children, and also the reciprocated disillusionment from both sides. The climax is excellent too.
A must read.
'Rosamund could see at once that she (Lindy) was being charming. No one could have guessed from her flattering comments on Norah's pictures, her wall-paper, her iced walnut cake and the view from her window that the speaker considered Norah to be a nagging wife, a possessive and incompetent mother. Though of course, Rosamund reminded herself, there was no real inconsistency, lots of nagging wives live in pretty houses.....'
All the characters are fabulously drawn from the adults to the children, and also the reciprocated disillusionment from both sides. The climax is excellent too.
A must read.
April 14, 2018
3.5 stars.
Celia Fremlin’s works have recently been reissued by Faber Finds, in neat little ebooks with come-hither pricing. I hadn’t heard of her before, but was intrigued by her themes of suburban unease and mystery, and chose The Jealous One as my introduction to her novels. First published in 1964, it occasionally shows its age, but its essential story is one that doubtless remains painfully familiar in the present world. Rosamund and Geoffrey have been married for years, united by their gossiping about their London neighbours and by shared despair over their feckless teenage son. But when the exuberant Lindy moves in next door and inches her way into their lives, Rosamund discovers how painful jealousy can be. And then, one day, she wakes from a feverish sleep and a dream of murder… to find that Lindy has vanished...
For the full review, please see my blog:
https://theidlewoman.net/2018/04/14/t...
Celia Fremlin’s works have recently been reissued by Faber Finds, in neat little ebooks with come-hither pricing. I hadn’t heard of her before, but was intrigued by her themes of suburban unease and mystery, and chose The Jealous One as my introduction to her novels. First published in 1964, it occasionally shows its age, but its essential story is one that doubtless remains painfully familiar in the present world. Rosamund and Geoffrey have been married for years, united by their gossiping about their London neighbours and by shared despair over their feckless teenage son. But when the exuberant Lindy moves in next door and inches her way into their lives, Rosamund discovers how painful jealousy can be. And then, one day, she wakes from a feverish sleep and a dream of murder… to find that Lindy has vanished...
For the full review, please see my blog:
https://theidlewoman.net/2018/04/14/t...
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