This month’s Six Degrees of Separation, hosted by Kate at Books are my Favourite and Best starts with Stephen King’s It – where a horror clown is on the rampage and everyone should stay away from drains!

It was published in 1986 and subsequently turned into a movie, as was The Prince of Tides, Pat Conroy’s sweeping epic story of the Wingo family, as told to psychiatrist Sarah Lowenstein.

Psychiatry is also at the heart of Pat Barker’s Regeneration, which features army psychiatrist William Rivers who is treating shell-shocked soldiers during World War 1.  Rivers’s job is to make the men in his charge healthy enough to fight again, a job that becomes increasing conflicting for the doctor.

Sarah Waters The Paying Guests explores the fall out of World War 1 from a different perspective as Frances Wray and her mother are forced to take in lodgers following the deaths of the men in their family. Their decision will have life-changing implications for everyone involved.

That idea of the cuckoo in the nest is central to The Lodger by Maria Belloc Lowndes as the Buntings begin to think that the strange Mr Sleuth who is lodging with them may in fact be the Jack The Ripper-like killer The Avenger.

Taking another real life serial killer as inspiration, in The Girls Emma Cline retells the story of the Manson Murders from the point of view of the girls who carried out the crimes. In her novel Manson becomes the enigmatic Russell, the cult leader and lynchpin to a series of gruesome murders.

So there we have it – from horror clowns to real life murderers via WW1 in six easy steps. Looking forward to seeing where the rest of you ended up!

Uncategorized 6 degrees of sepation emma cline it marie belloc lowndes pat barker pat conroy regeneration sarah waters stephen king the girls the lodger the paying guess the prince of tides