"The others used to say I was psychic." The opening chapter of The Story of Before introduces the reader to an 11-year-old narrator who believes she has the gift of foresight. The reliability of young Ruth Lamb is soon called into question as she looks back on her family's disastrous move to a suburban housing estate in 1970s Dublin. The sense of a tragedy looming is well flagged from the beginning of this debut novel. At times this is done heavy-handedly, and the tragedy when it comes is not a surprise. The story is saved by Susan Stairs's ability to evoke a sense of place and create a suspenseful read around who is to blame for the misfortune of the Lamb family. The neighbourhood green of Hillcourt Rise and its cast of believable characters will transport readers back to those precarious days of childhood, a time when playground antics are often a matter of life and death.
