One Came Back - The twisty, gripping thriller you won't be able to put down!

'' Dark and devastating... a story that haunts you'' - Heather Critchlow, author of Unsolved "On impact, the boy seemed to fold down and disappear, as if maybe he hadn''t been there in the first place..." It''s New Year''s Eve in Edinburgh when Emily sees Nicky. Or at least she thinks she does. He looks, laughs, and moves just like Nicky. But how can that be? Nicky died when they were teenagers, in an accident on a remote road up in the Highlands... didn''t he? A week later, Emily sees the man again. He says his name Nicholas . This man not only looks like an adult version of her friend, but he also knows things that only Nicky should know. As her encounters with Nicholas become more frequent and her fixation intensifies, the truth becomes murkier, and more unsettling. Is Emily being haunted, is she going mad - or is something altogether darker going on... ONE CAME BACK is a powerfully tense debut novel combining the chill of the modern gothic with the hook of a thriller, exploring the depths of grief, memory, and obsession.

About the author

Rose McDonagh was born and grew up in Edinburgh. She studied English Literature and History, has worked in community health for many years, including working as a trauma counsellor, and lives in Midlothian with her husband, their baby, and two cats.

Her writing has been shortlisted for the Bridport Prize, the London Magazine Short Story Competition, the Dinesh Allirajah Prize and the Bristol Prize. Her first short story collection, The Dog Husband, was published in 2022 by Reflex Press.

One Came Back - which was longlisted for the Caledonia First Novel Award and the Lucy Cavendish Fiction Prize - is Rose's debut novel.

Product details

• Authors: Rose McDonagh
• Publisher: Trapeze
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback
• Release: 26.02.2026
• EAN: 9781398717695
• ISBN: 978-1-398-71769-5
• No. of pages: 288
• Subjects: Fiction > Narrative literature; FICTION / General, Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945), FICTION / Thrillers / Supernatural, Gothic, FICTION / Ghost, FICTION / Occult & Supernatural, FICTION / Thrillers / Suspense, FICTION / Romance / Historical / Scottish, Thriller / suspense fiction, Thriller / suspense, Horror & ghost stories, Fiction: general and literary, Horror and supernatural fiction, Ghosts and poltergeists, Contemporary horror and ghost stories