Moje chytrá holčička – Echlin Helena (2026)

Charlotte’s eight-year-old daughter Stella is an exceptionally intelligent, possibly gifted child. But Charlotte is troubled and frightened by a sudden change in her personality. After the unexpected departure and death of her beloved nanny Blanka, Stella develops entirely different tastes, interests, abilities and temperament. Her behaviour and appearance begin to resemble those of Blanka, who came from Armenia, down to her expressions, mistakes in English, hairstyle, handwriting and constant craving for stewed lamb, despite having previously been vegetarian. Pregnant with her second child and exhausted by morning sickness, Charlotte becomes convinced that Blanka is somehow behind Stella’s transformation. Has Blanka possessed her? Has Stella become her former nanny? Or does Blanka’s spirit have unfinished business? The more consumed Charlotte becomes by the mystery, the more certain she is that only she can save her daughter, even as her husband dismisses her suspicions as a product of her imagination. This Czech-language, chilling thriller explores the uncertain boundaries of childhood diagnosis and the fundamental importance of maternal instincts. A genuinely frightening supernatural novel in the style of Ira Levin, it is an ode to motherhood that keeps you reading until its grand and surprising finale.