Somewhere in the middle of the flurry of short scenes that make up Two Women, I realised I was watching something rare and cherishable: the theatrical equivalent of a page-turner. Yes, some of the acting, from the EastEnders school of shouty emoting, is perfunctory, and no one could accuse the script of finesse. It doesn’t matter. We’re simply entranced by that thrilling, primal function of storytelling.

Stratford East hasn’t always been the smartest programmer on London’s theatrical block but it’s a canny move to offer the first ever stage adaptation (writer Patrick Prior) of a novel by that queen of East End crime fiction, Martina Cole. Cole hasn’t sold a gazillion books without knowing how to construct plots with vice-like grips, and as soon as we meet posh Matty (Laura Howard) and working-class Susan (Cathy Murphy) after their imprisonment for the murders of abusive husbands, we know we’re in for something juicy.

The title is a misnomer; the lengthy flashbacks over the years of Susan’s gruesome marriage would make One Woman and An Occasional Add-on more fitting. “Your father’s a scummy, devious, violent bastard – but he’s all I’ve ever wanted” sums up the general ambience of low female expectations and domestic violence. Murphy, stuck in unflattering woolly jumper and tracksuit trousers for the duration, could usefully give Susan more definition but Ryan Romain directs with clinical efficiency and the box office cash registers should soon be clinking merrily.

Women until 20 March (020 8534 0310, www.stratfordeast.com)