De Lint is just about as frank as any writer, even Judy Bloom, when it comes to formerly taboo subject matter for fiction.

Early in "In the House of My Enemy," Jilly says, "I guess I was around three years old when my oldest brother started molesting me"; later she says, "I didn't know that what he was doing was wrong.... " Such phrases may make many parents jump in surprise, and even young readers may be offended. Librarians may be forgiven if they are torn between where to shelve such a book: the young adult section because it focuses on young adult issues, or the grownup section because its subject matter is bluntly presented and the language is more appropriate to adult audiences.

Yet the subject of "In the House of My Enemy" is an ugly one, and it is part of Jilly's character that she...