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A search for the truth. A lifetime of lies.

In the small hours of the morning, Abi Knight is startled awake by the phone call no mother wants to get: her teenage daughter Olivia has fallen off a bridge. Not only is Olivia brain dead, she’s pregnant and must remain on life support to keep her baby alive. And then Abi sees the dark bruises circling Olivia’s wrists.

When the police unexpectedly rule Olivia’s fall an accident, Abi decides to find out what really happened that night. Heartbroken and grieving, she unravels the threads of her daughter’s life. Was Olivia’s fall an accident? Or something far more sinister?

Christina McDonald weaves a suspenseful and heartwrenching tale of hidden relationships, devastating lies, and the power of a mother’s love. With flashbacks of Olivia’s own resolve to uncover family secrets, this taut and emotional novel asks: how well do you know your children? And how well do they know you?

I was unprepared for how heartbreaking this book would be, for the tears that flowed in the final chapters; something that hasn’t happened in a few years. There was an overwhelming sense of sorrow and the futile hope that the inevitable ending would change. An amalgamation of mystery, suspense, psychological thriller and tragedy, this is a book you won’t forget.

Abi Knight is woken one night with the call all parents dread: her 17-year-old daughter Olivia is in the hospital, brain dead after falling from a bridge. When the doctor tells her that they are only keeping her alive because of her unborn baby Abi is stunned. She had noticed her daughter wasn’t herself lately, and had even wondered if it was more than teen moodiness, but she was totally unprepared for this.

When the police rule the fall an accident Abi is incensed. To her it is obvious Olivia was pushed: she has bruising on her wrists and the charm bracelet she never took off is missing. With her pleas are falling on deaf ears the grieving mum begins to investigate herself, unaware she is now on a path that mean she will have to confront her greatest fears.

As Abi investigates, she realises how little she really knew about her daughter’s life, including her knowledge of the secret Abi has always tried to hide. Olivia was conceived during a passionate, clandestine relationship. So, with her former lover’s threats ringing in her ears for 17 years, Abi spun a web of lies about his identity, never considering her daughter doubts what she’s been told. When she discovers that Olivia had uncovered the deception and was secretly trying to find out the truth about her father, Abi is terrified. Thankfully she’s being helped by victim advocate Anthony who has the right knowledge and connections she needs to prove who hurt Olivia that night before time runs out.

This book started off to me like any other thriller. I was riveted by the prologue and loved the imagery used by the author. It felt like there was a movie reel playing in my mind as I read. The different language used depending on whether it was Abi or Olivia narraTing was perfect. Abi read exactly like a loving, devoted mother who was also a little overbearing, controlling and neurotic. She clearly has her daughter’s best interest at the centre of every move she makes and while her decision to tell lie about Olivia’s father proves to be the wrong choice, it is one that you can understand her making as a young, frightened girl. Her own past is marred by tragedy and parental abandonment and you can see how this has lead to her going to extremes to live her life as Olivia’s mum and nothing more. Her anguish as she tries to find the truth, grieve her daughter, face her past and find the strength she needs to possibly raise the grandchild who may not survive. In Olivia’s chapters I felt like I was reading narration by my own teenagers. You could tell Olivia was a bright, sensible girl who just wanted her mother to lay off the helicopter parenting and give her a bit of freedom. When she was struggling with the realisation her mum had lied to her all her life it was heartbreaking as you saw her lose her faith in the one person she’d always relied on. The chapter where Olivia narrated the fall was harrowing for me, particularly when she describes her feelings of slipping away. It took the air from my lungs and was a reminder of the unnecessary tragedy of the loss of a young girl’s future.

The final chapters of this book and the epilogue were the most emotional for me. The writing was beautiful yet full of heartbreak. But there was also a joyfulness as Abi learned to love and live even after losing the daughter who had been her whole life for seventeen years. I felt a kinship with Abi as my own “baby” is just turning 15, two years younger than Olivia, I was a single parent for most of his life, and my own history meant I had to protect him from his father most of that time. Unlike Abi I chose appropriate truths and he knew who his father was,although I do understand why Abi made the decisions she did with Olivia’s father being an illicit relationship. The indescribable loss Abi felt when learning her child wasn’t going to wake up tore me in two. A life was taken far too soon and not only was it Olivia’s future that was stolen, but a part of many other people’s too.

The questions raised in the synopsis were the crux of this novel: how well do you know your children? How well do they know you? For me, it was a reminder that as our children get older we know them less and they know us better. When they’re young they don’t leave your side for a minute, there’s no privacy. Who they are is transparent and they often tell us their secrets without realising it. As they become teenagers our children become an enigma, a stranger made of our own flesh. They tell their secrets to their friends, have whole sides to their personality that are hidden.They start to carve out their own path and find their place in the world. Teenagers also suffer from the delusion that they know best and that adults are just out to ruin their fun or make life difficult. They forget we were once that age and my own teenagers are regularly shocked we know their next move or true motivation. I now find myself sounding like my own parents did all those years ago: ‘We were your age once you know’, or ‘You’ll understand when you’re a parent’. Such a cliche! But our children are having the opposite experience to us. When they were younger they thought their parents knew everything, could do no wrong, had life figured out and existed solely as their mum or dad. Now they are seeing through the illusion and realising we had lives before they were born, that we are our own person with a life separate to them, that we have faults and make mistakes, and we have no idea what we’re doing half the time. Some, like Olivia, find out their parent has lied to them their whole life and questioning everything they thought they knew.

The Night Olivia Fell is a sensational debut novel. The author had the perfect mix of suspense, drama, tragedy, heartbreak and joy that made this a book I would highly recommend.

Out now on kindle.

Out in paperback 7th March.

A debut novel of family, fame, and religion that tells the emotionally stirring, wildly captivating story, of the seventeen-year old daughter of an evangelical preacher, star of the family’s hit reality show, and the secret pregnancy that threatens to blow their entire world apart.

Esther Ann Hicks–Essie–is the youngest child on Six for Hicks, a reality television phenomenon. She’s grown up in the spotlight, both idolised and despised for her family’s fire-and-brimstone brand of faith. When Essie’s mother, Celia, discovers that Essie is pregnant, she arranges and emergency meeting with the show’s producers: Do they sneak Essie out of the country for an abortion? Do they pass the child off as Celia’s? Or do they try to arrange a marriage — and a ratings-blockbuster wedding?

Meanwhile Essie is quietly pairing herself up with Roarke Richards, a senior at her school with a secret of his own to protect. As the newly formed couple attempt to sell their fabricated love story to the media–through exclusive interviews with an infamously conservative reporter named Liberty Bell–Essie finds she has questions of her own: What was the real reason for her sister leaving home? Who can she trust with the truth about her family? And how much is she willing to sacrifice to win her own freedom?

Seventeen-year-old Esther “Essie” Hicks knows no other life than being on TV. Star of Six for Hicks, a show that follows her fundamentalist family. The show has been airing since before Essie was born which along with her family’s extreme religious views makes her an outcast at school. But Essie is about to shock them all: she’s pregnant.

It is decided that Essie should be married as soon as possible so her mother, Celia, begins looking for a suitable husband. Roarke Richards, a football star in the year above, is the approached after he’s been deemed the perfect candidate and preparations soon begin.

After an interview to discuss her plans after graduation, Essie offers the journalist, Liberty Bell, a series of exclusive interviews covering her upcoming marriage. Though she’s taken aback by the offer, after all Essie has only minutes ago declared she was seeing her first boyfriend, Libby accepts the offer. But as we later learn Essie has her own motives for offering her the deal.

As plans are made for a wedding special that will boost the ailing show’s ratings, we learn more of Essie’s plan, watch as she and Roarke become closer, and find out dark secrets about her family that would tear them and their media empire apart if revealed.

I had heard that this book took an honest look at what it was like to grow up in religious fundamentalism, but other than that I had no idea what to expect. We first meet Essie when she’s eavesdropping on a meeting between her mother and some of the people who run their show as they discuss her pregnancy. When she dropped her bombshell she knew that any decisions made would not be hers. Like every other decision throughout her life it will be made by the people she’s listening to, only this time Essie has a plan to steer things into going her way. With the inevitable decision she should be married made, Essie drops the breadcrumbs to lead her mother to the “right” candidate and, as Essie hoped, it is decided that she should marry Roarke Richards, a football star a year older than Essie. His parents are invited for a meeting where a proposal is made by Celia and her team. Roarke is aghast when his parents first tell him of the idea and is adamant he would never marry Essie. But after she takes him aside at school she wins him over, though it still isn’t clear why she chose him and what her full plan is.

Part of Essie’s plan involves tracking down her sister, Lissa, who left the family when she was 18 and hasn’t been back or spoken to them since. To do this she enlists the help of journalist Liberty Bell, who is well known for the blog and podcast she had as a teenager, and the book she wrote preaching her religious doctrine, which included homophobia. She was raised in what she now realises was a cult and still carries guilt over the death of her twin sister, Justice, when they were children. At 21 Libby had her eyes opened and used the money she’d made from her book to fund her escape from the cult. But her past still haunts her and limits the jobs she can get as a journalist, which is how she ends up interviewing Essie about her plans after graduation one afternoon. But I couldn’t help but wonder if Essie was also looking at Libby as someone who could help her find a way out of her life. There’s no one more perfect for helping her escape than someone who has fled a similar existence themselves.

Whilst reading this book I was struck by three thoughts: that I’m in love with the name Essie, this book reminds me of the Duggar family, and that I’m glad my eyes were opened to indoctrination and the faults of some organised religion. While my own experience wasn’t of fundamentalism, I do know how easy it is to believe in things blindly because it’s all you’ve ever known and how hard it is when you begin to question that. The way this book highlights extreme religion, religious indoctrination, and the misuse of religion, all without judgement of those who believe without question and don’t take part in the murkier aspect of things, made it very relatable and will no doubt educate a lot of people. Faith and religion isn’t bad, but using those things to control, exploit, abuse or incite hatred is. And is those things that this book is critical of. Essie exhibits tremendous bravery in her plan to bring the terrible truth out of the shadows while knowing it is at a huge personal cost. I thought her character was well-written, though there were times I didn’t like her decisions but often these things were borne out of inexperience through her age or upbringing.

The Book of Essie covers numerous topics such as religion, fame, family, and motherhood. It is also a story about independence, being true to yourself, and standing up for what is right. The story was readable and though I wouldn’t describe it as ‘gripping’, it did hold my interest. even though I guessed the dark secret early on I enjoyed reading how Essie dealt with it and the choices she made. I was completely surprised however when her full intention for having Libby involved and was on captivated as this part of the story as it unfolded. This is a great debut novel that shows how you can break free of your past and find happiness in who you really are.

Out Now.

I feel like I say this about every month, but how are we at the end of January already? In some ways Christmas seems an eternity ago but in others I feel like I blinked on New Years Day and then it’s the 31st.

So how has everyone’s reading been this month? Despite illness that prevented me from reading for over a week I’ve still managed to read 14 books this month. Seven of those books were from NetGalley, I read two on Kindle Unlimited, one was the monthly read with #OurLittleBookClub and three others. I loosely plan my reads each month (I’m a mood reader) and out of the ten I planned I read seven.

It’s been a month filled with unputdownable books. I love it when almost all my reads that month are enjoyable, exciting and memorable and it’s hard to pick a favourite. Life’s too short for rubbish books!

1. ‘The Lie’ by C. L. Taylor ⭐⭐⭐⭐ – I’d heard that this author wrote fantastic thrillers but this was my first time reading any of them. Full of unexpected twists and turns this gripping thriller is told in dual timelines as we try to find out who Jane Hughes really is, what happened in her past that she’s running from and who is sending her messages threatening to expose her secret. It was full of anticipation and though I tried desperately I had no idea who had been tormenting Jane until it was revealed. Out Now                                                                                    
2. ‘In Safe Hands’ by J. P. Carter ⭐⭐⭐⭐ – This book is the first of a new crime series and I am so excited for the next installment. DCI Anna Tate and her team investigate the kidnapping of nine children from their nursery one summer morning. The situation is made all the more urgent when they discover that one of the children taken has Cystic Fibrosis and could die without his daily medication. Eventually the kidnappers get in touch demanding a ransom and threatening the lives of the children if they aren’t paid. This was a thriller full of heart pounding suspense. Out Now.
3. ‘The Binding’ by Bridget Collins ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Imagine if you could lock up your secrets and forget your pain. In this magical book apprentice binder Emmett Farmer finds that you can do just that, though he’s not sure if it’s right. I found that my interest wavered for most of part one but that part two redeemed the book and I fell in love. It is an enchanting tale about family duty, dark magic, love against the odds, lies and self discovery. You haven’t read anything like this before. Out Now.
4. ‘Verity’ by Colleen Hoover ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Wow! This breathtaking thriller was enthralling and genuinely terrifying. I can’t believe the author has never written this genre before and I’m going to need her to write more! The story follows struggling writer Lowen Ashleigh as she embarks on the task of finishing the final three books in the bestselling The Noble Virtues series. The author of the series, Verity Crawford, is unable to finish them after an accident that left her almost catatonic. Whilst looking through her office for Verity’s notes and outlines Lowen comes across a manuscript for the author’s autobiography. What is on those pages is more shocking and disturbing than any book she’s written and as Lowen’s feelings for Jeremy Crawford, Verity’s husband, deepen she begins to justify to herself that he should know what his wife is really like. The ending to this book had my jaw on the floor and I am still shocked by it. This is a must read for any thriller lovers out there. Out Now.
5. ‘No Exit’ by Taylor Adams ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Student Darby Thorne is forced to take shelter from a storm in a rest stop with four strangers. Whilst braving the weather to try and get a signal to call her dying mother she sees a young girl in a crate inside the van parked next to her car. What follows is a heart-stopping ride as Darby tries to figure out who kidnapped the girl, who she is and how to rescue her without endangering their lives. All on a night where there is no help coming and she has no idea who she can really trust. Out Now
6. ‘The Day of the Accident’ by Nuala Ellwood ⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Maggie Allan wakes in a hospital room with no recollection of how she got there. She is told she has been in a coma for ten weeks following a car accident that claimed the life of her daughter Elspeth. In a further blow she is told her husband, Sean, disappeared just after the funeral three weeks ago. Her world as she knew it now gone, Maggie is determined to find regain her memory and discover the truth about the accident and find her husband. A gripping thriller with a multilayered plot, this book was hard to put down. Fans of thrillers will love this story full of twists and turns and shocking revelations. Out 21st February.
7. ‘Call Me Evie’ by J. P. Pomare ⭐⭐⭐⭐ – I’d been highly anticipating this strange but addictive debut thriller. Evie is being held captive by a man who claims she did something terrible. But Evie is sure she did nothing wrong. And Evie isn’t even her real name. We are told the story in two timelines: before and after the night something awful happened. I found the book very confusing at first, but I think that was because the character was confused and we were reading from her perspective. The story soon became clearer and I was hooked. I devoured the book in one sitting. It is cleverly written and keeps you guessing until the end. Out 18th April.
8. ‘The Book of Essie’ by Meghan MacLean Weir ⭐⭐⭐⭐ – ‘Six for Hicks’ is a reality TV show that follows  17-year-old Essie Hicks and the rest of her fundamentalist Christian family. When she falls pregnant panic ensues before it is eventually decided that she will be married to Roarke Richards, a senior at her high school. As they sell their love story to the adoring public they are interviewed by Liberty Bell, a reporter with a famous conservative history of her own. As the wedding approaches, Essie tries to find out why her older sister left and hasn’t been in touch since, tries to decide how much she can trust those around her with the secrets her family is trying to hide, and learns if she has the courage to both be who she really is and stand up for what is right no matter the personal cost. This debut novel reveals the truth of growing up in religious extremism and what it takes to break free. Out now.
9. ‘What Happens in France’ by Carol Wyer ⭐⭐⭐.5 – This hilarious novel follows Bryony as she takes part in a new game show as part of a plan to try and find her sister, Hannah, who went missing thirty years ago. Byrony, her teammate Lewis and their fellow castmates, who are made up of colourful characters such as Oscar and his Instagram-famous dog, and Jim who is the epitome of everyone’s ideal lovable Grandad, are put through their paces in a variety of challenges as they battle for the top prize. But her goal isn’t the prize money, it’s to raise awareness of Hannah’s disappearance and hopefully find her at last. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It made me laugh and is perfect if you want to read something lighthearted. Out Now.
10. ‘My Lovely Wife’ by Samantha Downing ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – The first words that come to mind to describe this book are consuming, riveting, dark, twisted, and unforgettable. Narrated by Tobias who lives with his wife, Millicent, and their two children, this is a thriller about a seemingly normal family with a dark secret. Tobias thinks he knows the worst things about his wife and trusts her implicitly. But as a serial killer haunts their town he learns he doesn’t know Millicent at all. My review for this jaw-dropping thriller will be posted on release day. Out 2nd May.
11. ‘Jar of Hearts’ by Jennifer Hillier ⭐⭐⭐⭐.5 –This was my first read by Jennifer Hillier but it won’t be my last. This is not a thriller for the fainthearted but if you can handle dark, gruesome scenes then you will love this spectacular story about Geo who is trying to rebuild her life after serving time in prison for her role in the death of her best friend, Angela, fourteen years ago. Angela’s killer, The Sweetbay Strangler, who was Geo’s boyfriend at the time,  escaped from prison a few years before her release. Now bodies are turning up killed just like Angela was and it seems her former boyfriend isn’t done with Geo just yet. Out Now.
12. ‘The Husband’s Secret’ by Liane Moriarty ⭐⭐⭐ – This was the January read for #OurLittleBookClub19 . If you discovered a letter your husband wrote asking you to read it only in the event of his death but he’s still alive, would you open it? That’s the dilemma faced by Cecilia when she finds such a letter in her attic one day. A letter that if opened will have repercussions not just for Cecilia and her family, but others too. I had high hopes for this book. I enjoyed the narrators’ inner monologues, the symbolism of the Berlin Wall and loved the epilogue, but sadly the book generally fell flat for me. The plotting was all over the place, it lacked tension and just didn’t seem believable that these characters would make life changing decisions in the space of a few days. The group overall rated the book 3⭐ Out Now
13. ‘The Dreamers’ by Karen Thompson Walker⭐⭐⭐.5 – A mysterious sleeping sickness envelops a small Californian town in this unique and mesmerising book. As the sickness spreads you are hoping for answers to be found quickly and waiting to see if people will wake. The book started out poetic and magical but lost some of it’s charm as we got further into the story. This was partly because some of the mystery disappears as we know the characters, but also I think because I was unprepared for how philosophical this book would be. A beautifully written book that I enjoyed but felt a little unsatisfied with. Out 7th February.
14. ‘The Silent Companions’ by Laura Purcell ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐  – I read this book as a buddy read and thank goodness I did because I really needed to talk about the whole thing! This book was fantastically written, eerie, genuinely scary at times and absolutely phenomenal. I’ve literally just finished this an hour before the month ends and am still reeling from the ending. So, I will gather my thoughts and post a review in the next few days. Out Now.

Choosing a favourite has been harder this month than ever before with so many wonderful books. The books I’ve enjoyed most this month are ‘Verity’, ‘No Exit’, ‘Call Me Evie’, ‘My Lovely Wife’, and ‘The Silent Companions’. It is impossible for me to decide between ‘My Lovely Wife’ and ‘The Silent Companions’ so I will call January’s Book of the Month a tie between the two.

What was your favourite book this month? Have you read any of the ones I read this month? Comment below and let me know.

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon Books UK, Harper Collins UK, Penguin Books, Penguin UK, Michael Joseph, Little, Brown Book Group UK, Canelo and Simon and Schuster UK Fiction for the chance to read and review ARCs.

At first they blame the air.

It’s an old idea, a poison in the ether, a danger carried by the wind. A strange haze is seen drifting through the town that first night, the night the trouble begins. It arrives like weather, or like smoke, some say later, but no one can locate any fire. Some blame the drought which, for years, has been bleeding away the lake and drowning the air with dust. Whatever this is, it came over the town quitely: a sudden drowsiness, the closing of eyes. Most of the victims are found in their beds.

One night in an isolated college town south of the hills of Southern California, a first-year student stumbles into her bedroom, falls asleep–and doesn’t wake up.

She sleeps through the morning, into the evening. Her roomate cannot rouse her. Neither can the paramedics who carry the girl away, nor the perplexed doctors at the hospital.

The second girl falls asleep, and a third, and panic takes hold of the college and spreads the town.

Gorgeously written, The Dreamers is a breathtaking novel, startling and provocative, about the possibilities contained within human life–in our waking days and, perhaps even more, in our dreams.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster UK Fiction, NetGalley and Karen Thompson Walker for the chance to read and review this novel.

“She looks like an ordinary girl sleeping an ordinary sleep.”

The town of Santa Lora, California is enveloped by a mysterious illness known as the “sleeping sickness”. It originates in a dorm in the town’s college when a freshman comes home and falls asleep on her bed still wearing the clothes she’d gone out in. When she’s still sleeping almost 24 hours later her roommate calls an ambulance and she’s taken to hospital where baffled doctors try to figure out why she won’t wake. Then, another girl won’t wake up and the doctor’s start to worry.

Rumours are soon abound and local journalists begin to report on the events. But people aren’t overly concerned, it seems to just be something happening at the college on one dorm floor, no need for panic. As a precaution the students on that floor are isolated and monitored while the other students are evacuated; an overreaction in their opinion. But then others start to fall asleep and can’t be stirred. Specialists are called in, and the sleep specialists confirms the sleepers are dreaming. But other than that the only thing they know for sure is it is highly contagious. They begin to monitor everyone possibly exposed but it does nothing to slow the spread of the sickness, and soon extreme measures are taken to try and isolate this strange affliction to the small town.

“But isn’t every sleep a  kind of isolation? When else are we so alone?”

When I started this book I was immediately enthralled by the poetic way in which it is written. The author has a distinctive style that is haunting, graceful, and breathtakingly beautiful. My mind was full of images of young ladies laid like Sleeping Beauty, but this time a Prince’s kiss couldn’t save them. The fascinating story was cryptic but in a way that made me want to read on and see where it would take me. I was invested in the people of this small town and eager to know what the sleeping sickness was, hoping a cure would be found before too many were affected.

Unfortunately, I found that as the book went on not only did the writing lose some of its magic, but the charm of the story faded a little too. Some of it was inevitable as we became more familiar with the illness and the characters, but it felt like the story wasn’t sure itself where it was heading anymore. I also felt like there was no real conclusion and I was left feeling dismayed that none of the things that were hinted at early on were included. You are left puzzling what you’ve read and there was a lot of philosophical references that influenced the direction it took. I wasn’t expecting these and think it made the story require more contemplation than my brain was able to handle at the time.

“Not everything that happens in a life can be digested…Some images never leave the mind.”

The Dreamers is a unique, mesmerising, enchanting, memorable book that can be abstract at times and has a serene air that rarely leaves, even though there is tension in the moments it is needed. The unsatisfying ending only meant a lower rating for me and I would still recommend this book, especially if you want to read something that’s completely different.

Out now.

At the heart of The Husband’s Secret is a letter that’s not meant to be read.

My darling Cecilia, if you’re reading this, then I’ve died….

Imagine that your husband wrote you a letter, to be opened after his death. Imagine, too, that the letter contains his deepest, darkest secret – something with the potential to destroy not just the life you built together, but the lives of others as well. Imagine, then, that you stumble upon the letter while your husband is still very much alive…

Cecilia Fitzpatrick has achieved it all – she’s an incredibly successful business woman, a pillar of her small community, and a devoted wife and mother. Her life is as orderly and spotless as her home. But that letter is about to change everything – and not just for her: Rachel and Tess barely know Cecilia – or each other –  but they too are about to feel the earth-shattering repercussions of her husband’s secret.

Acclaimed author Liane Moriarty has written a gripping, thought-provoking novel about how well it is really possible to know our spouses – and ultimately ourselves.

Cecilia Fitzpatrick is in the attic looking for her piece of the Berlin Wall to show her daughter, Esther, who’s currently obsessed with that particular point in history. When she knocks over some shoe boxes of paperwork she is surprised to find a letter addressed to her in her husband’s hand that says it should only be opened in the event of his death. Unnerved and curious, she takes it with her from the attic and racks her brain to think why John-Paul would have written it. What did he need to tell her so badly upon his death that he couldn’t tell her while alive? With no answers in mind she then ponders her dilemma: whether or not to open the letter. As Cecilia does this you inevitably consider what you’d do in her position, beginning a theme of this novel where you will ask yourself that question many times as the characters face life changing situations and decisions that may initially seem black and white, but are actually coloured multiple shades of grey.

The book is narrated by three very different women: Cecilia, a woman who, like her house and children, is always perfectly put together, she’s very active socially in her children’s school and the local community and runs a successful business. Cecilia is happily married and prides herself on perfection and order. Then there’s Rachel, a widow who works as St Angela’s school secretary, is still grieving the death of her daughter, Janie, many years ago to the point where it has almost become her identity. She barely leaves the house except for work and finds joy in the days she cares for her young grandson Jacob. Finally we have Tess, who’s come back to Sydney to stay with her mother after her husband and cousin have announced they are in love. Socially anxious she tries to avoid talking to the other mothers and is desperately trying to find a way to come to terms with the bomb that was dropped into her life and put the pieces back in some kind of order.

As I started reading I was intrigued and thought the women were relatable characters. Though I probably related most of all to Tess I found it was her storyline I had the least investment in and, if I’m honest, I didn’t understand the reason for having her as a narrator rather than a secondary character. While some of that did become clearer, I still think the book could have been as good, maybe even better, if it had just focused on Cecilia and Rachel. Also, while they were relatable and at times I had empathy for them, I didn’t like any of the protagonists. They all became increasingly unlikeable as the book went on and I found Tess particularly aggravating at the end.

Throughout the book there are many references to, and facts about, the Berlin Wall. It starts off as simply being Cecilia’s middle daughter’s latest obsession and her reason for searching the attic. But not only does her daughter keep bringing up the wall, there are also facts mentioned at other points and sometimes we will be told what some of the characters were doing at that same time. I realised that the symbolism was each character was facing their own Berlin Wall of sorts; a time of division in their lives and the choice to knock it down and rebuild their lives or allow it to remain standing and plod along. I thought it was an interesting choice and I enjoyed learning more about the history of the wall as I was just ten when it came down and only really remember that aspect of it.

I wanted to love this book. The synopsis sounded exciting but for me the book fell flat. I guessed the secret very quickly but that wasn’t something that impacted my enjoyment. For me it was that once the secret was revealed, which is quite early on in the book, the small amount of tension that had been there dissipated, the plotting was all over the place and it was a chore to reach the end. I read this book as part of my book club and one of the readers said something that I feel sums up how I felt about this book: it seemed purposeless. An issue I had was the timescale: the whole book takes place over just one week. These characters are trying to come to terms with things that have rocked their whole world and make life changing decisions, something that doesn’t happen quickly. Yet we were expected to believe they did so over the course of less than a week. I’m not going to give any spoilers but I didn’t like the final decisions any of the characters made or the tone the book ended on before the epilogue. It felt too cliched, syrupy sweet and there were no real conclusions.

There were some things I did really enjoy about this story, for example I liked the character’s inner monologue and how that drove the story. I also liked the chapters written from Janie’s perspective the day of her death as they made her a real person, someone we cared about so we felt the tragedy of her death along with her family.  But the thing I enjoyed most of all was the epilogue. If the whole book was as beautiful, emotional and amazing as that I’d be writing a very different review. The “sliding doors” aspect in relation to Janie’s death was haunting and tragic as we see what could have been. I felt like it enforced one of the book’s themes which was that secrets have far reaching consequences and every decision we make has an impact on others besides ourselves and can set us on a completely different and unexpected course in life.

Her Husband’s Secret was an okay book but I don’t think I’d recommend it. The author is highly regarded so I think if you’re going to pick up one of her novels then it is best to start with a different title.

Out Now.

Imagine you could erase your grief.

Imagine you could forget your pain.

Imagine you could hide a secret. Forever.

Emmett Farmer is working in the fields when a letter arrives summoning him to begin an apprenticeship.  He will work for a Bookbinder, a vocation arouses fear, suspicion and prejudice – but neither one he nor his parents can refuse.

He will learn to hand-craft beautiful volumes, and within each he will capture something unique and extraordinary: a memory.  If there’s something you want to forget, he can help. If there’s something you need to erase, he can assist. Your past will be stored safely in a book and you will never remember your secret, however terrible.

In a vault under his mentor’s workshop, row upon row of books – and memories – are meticulously stored and recorded.

Then one day Emmett makes an astonishing discovery: one of them has his name on it.

The Binding is an unforgettable, magical novel, a boundary-defying love story and unique literary event.

Thank you to NetGalley, HaperCollins UK and Bridget Collins for the chance to read and review this book.

This mystical tale of family, duty and expectation, dark magic, love against the odds, lies, and self discovery is a story like no other, you will not be able to forget or stop talking about this magnificent novel.

Emmett Farmer is still recovering from a mystery illness that struck him down in the summer. He’s struggling to keep up with the work and is still weak, but is trying to hide this from his parents and sister, Alta, and make up for the work that piled up while he convalesced. As he arrives back at home one evening he hears his parents arguing about a letter that has arrived: Emmett has been summoned as an apprentice Bookbinder. He is confused when hear his Father saying he must go as years ago he told him he must never touch or read a book. Ultimately, it is decided there is no other choice but for him to go, he can not refuse the call from the Binder.

Arriving at the secluded Bindery Emmett is full of fear and trepidation. Books are bewitched, evil and that anyone who binds them is a sorcerer. His concerns are not allayed when he is greeted by the Binder, a thin, feeble and decrepit old woman named Seredith. As he is set to work he feels lost and still doesn’t understand why he was requested but at the same time keeps having a strange sense of deja vu. Emmett is even more confused when he enquires after the books they sell and is told they don’t sell books. Seredith explains that the books they bind are memories that people have asked to be bound in a book so that they don’t remember. They are stored in a vault and shouldn’t be read or sold, but there are some that create trade books for for profit or illegally sell the bound books. Emmett is horrified. How could he ever make such wicked things and take people’s memories?  Seredith reassures him he’s “Binder-born”, that in time he will feel able to do the job at hand and all will become clear. Emmett can’t imagine that to be true and his first binding is a frightening experience that he feels ill-prepared for.

I found the first part of this book  very confusing. We know only as much as Emmett and the author conveys his feelings so acutely that I found myself experiencing the same terrible bewilderment and desperate need for answers. When Emmett discovers a book with his name on he finally understands his feelings of deja vu and the story becomes clearer as we read about the memories he erased.  This part of the book is where we see more of Emmett’s character and I felt I connected with him. He is a man of morals, a good, but flawed character who tries to do what is right. Sometimes I understood him, other times I empathised with him, and there were times I was aghast he could do or think what I was reading. I felt his turmoil at what he was expected to do, especially when he learned that it wasn’t always used to help people, as Seredith had taught him. We also get to know his sister, Alta, and aristocrat Lucian Dornay and as the fates of the three are entwined a love story that challenges social bounds and sets them all on an ill-fated collision course that only being bound in a book can help them forget.

The Binding is a book I could write about for hours. The multi-layered plot slowly unfolds over the three parts and takes some surprising twists and turns. I did see one of the these twists coming fairly early on but this facet of the story took unexpected turns which made the book unputdownable and an entirely different story to the one I thought I would read. The author filled this book with memorable characters, some of whom are so sinister they made my stomach turn. I liked how even the ‘good’ characters became misguided as it made them real. I loved how the author introduced the concept of ‘fake’ books (novels) that were seen as more outrageous and confounding at the time, as were the people who would write such things. It was an interesting take on something that is the norm and did make me think how ludicrous such a thing as making up a tale rather than retelling something that happened, or was thought to have happened, could be when it was introduced.

This is an enchanting book that will take you on a rollercoaster of emotions. If you want to read something totally different that everyone will be talking about then this is the book for you.

Out now.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin UK, Michael Joseph and Gytha Lodge for the chance to read and review this novel.

Get ready for the biggest crime debut of 2019…..

Six friends. One killer. Who do you trust?

“A dark, deep, terrific thriller and scorching portrait of friendship and it’s betrayal” – Nicci French

On a hot July night in 1983, six school friends go camping in the forest.  Bright and brilliant, they are destined for great things, and young Aurora Jackson is dazzled to be allowed to tag along.

Thirty years later a body is discovered.  DCI Sheens is called to the scene, but he already knows what is waiting for him: Aurora Jackson, found at long last.

But that is not all.  The friends have all maintained their innocence, but the body is found in a hideaway only the six of them knew about.

It seems the killer has always lurked very close to home….

Seven teenagers go into the New Forest for a night of camping, drinking, drugs, frolics and fun. In the morning one of them, 14-year-old Aurora Jackson, is missing. After an extensive investigation lasting months it becomes a cold case, her fate remaining a mystery that haunts the small town she lived in and those who knew her. Thirty years later a 10-year-old girl is hiding in the woods when she finds a hole that’s the perfect spot. She feels a branch in her back and pulls it away only to discover it is infact a human finger. Aurora has been found at long last, close by to where she disappeared. DCI Jonah Sheens is called in to investigate. He was new to the Police Force when Aurora vanished and seems haunted by something that happened at that time that he hopes isn’t discovered.  What is he hiding and is it connected to Aurora’s disappearance and death?

As DCI Sheens talks to the others who were there that night they maintain their original claims of innocence despite the fact that only the six of them know about the hideout Aurora’s body was found in.  As he digs deeper cracks appear, one time loyal friends start to turn and long held secrets begin to be revealed.

Along with the original six it seems there was another suspect in the woods that day but lead wasn’t followed up correctly, and the more Jonah looks into it, the more it appears that thirty years ago the police just might have let the killer slip from their grasp. When it’s confirmed that Aurora was in fact murdered the pressure is on to wade through the murky subterfuge and find the truth of what really happened that night.

This debut novel is set in Hampshire’s New Forest, something that immediately endeared it to me as I used to live nearby. I love having a personal connection to a book, whether that be in subject matter or geography, and find that it instantly makes the read more enjoyable. The story was in dual timelines: the present day and the night of July 22nd 1983.  I liked this style of narration as it gave us a glimpse into that night’s events as they occured, but they slowly unfurled so we didn’t know Aurora’s final moments until the big reveal in the present day also revealed the killer. I think the dual timeline also helped add tension as it connected us to Aurora and we saw her as a person rather than her simply being some bones buried years ago. All the characters camping that night were well written and interesting.  I found it harder to connect with Jonah and found him dull at times.

The claim that this is the biggest crime debut of 2019 had me apprehensive as I started reading.  Would it live up to the claim or would it fall flat? I think for me it fell in the middle. I enjoyed this book, but it wasn’t so gripping that I couldn’t put it down. It seemed to go at a pace you’d expect of a book about a cold case but the hype made you expect something else. The big reveal was an unexpected and brilliantly written so it genuinely takes you by surprise.

Expectations aside, this was a good debut novel and a book I’d recommend if you enjoy crime thrillers.

Out Now on Kindle. Out March 21st on Paperback.

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“She stood and took her place in front of the camera… It was now or never.”

Bryony Masters has been looking for her long-lost sister, Hannah, for years, but when their father has a stroke her search takes on a new urgency.  So when primetime game show, What Happens In France, puts a call-out for new contestants, Bryony spots the ultimate public platform to find her reality TV-obsessed sister, and finally reunite their family.

With the help of handsome teammate Lewis, it’s not long before she’s on a private jet heading for the stunning beauty of rural France. With a social media star dog, a high maintenance quiz show host and a cast of truly unique characters, Bryony and Lewis have their work cut out for them to stay on the show and in the public eye.

Yet as the audience grows and the grand prize beckons, they find the search that brought them together may just fulfil more than one heart’s wish..

This heartwarming romantic comedy of friendship, family and laugh-out-loud adventures is perfect for fans of Kirsty Greenwood, Colleen Coleman and Marian Keyes.

Thank you to NetGalley, Canelo and Carol Wyer for the chance to read and review this book.

Thirty years ago Bryony’s 16-year-old sister, Hannah, ran away from home and has never been heard of since. Bryony has always blamed herself and is sure her parents do too. She has tried everything to find her sister: the police, the press, private investigators, and her blog “Searching For Hannah” that she still updates regularly. When her father suffers a massive stroke and they are told he will not survive another Bryony realises she’s running out of time to put her family back together and knows she must find a way, any way, to find Hannah and bring her home.

When a new show, “What Happens In…” is announced and puts out a call for contestants Bryony sees the opportunity she’s been waiting for. Not only would getting on the show give her a huge audience to make aware of her sister’s disappearance and plead for help in finding her, but Hannah was a massive game show fan so there’s a chance she could tune in herself. With the help of her best friend Melinda she completes the application and waits to see if she’s chosen.

When she’s invited to audition Bryony is surprised to see a familiar face amongst the other hopefuls, Lewis, who she recently met at a get together at her best friend’s house. The two had instantly hit it off so when they find they have both been successful in their auditions and have to partner with someone for the show, they ask to work together. Their wish granted they are soon on a private jet on their way to France for a week of surprise challenges and a battle to stay on the show and raise awareness of Bryony’s quest to find her sister.

I don’t read many romantic comedies but when one is written by one of my must-read authors I can’t say no, especially when the plot sounds so fun and novel. While the book did start slow for me I found once we got to the part where Bryony is heading off to France and taking part in the show I couldn’t stop reading. I wasn’t surprised to find out how much research the author had done before writing this book as the chapters about the show were hilarious and full of great little details that only someone “in the know” would think of. The challenges were fun to read and I learned a lot myself when the characters were being quizzed about their general knowledge. The live broadcasts added a great element of tension as you were on the edge of your seat along with the contestants waiting to find out who was going home each night.

There were an array of colourful characters among the other contestants, particularly Oscar and his Instagram famous dog who were probably my favourite duo of all the characters, and Jim, who was what you imagine every Dad/Grandad to be. I liked Bryony and how the letters to her sister she wrote via her blog gave us a gradual insight into what happened when Hannah left and why Bryony is so sure it’s her fault. I can’t imagine how heartbreaking it must be to have someone you love missing, with no idea if they’re alive or dead for thirty long years, so I was definitely rooting for the plan to work. The dynamic between Lewis and Bryony was another thing I liked about the story. Their jovial and playful repartee made me think there was a burgeoning romance behind their friendship. Once again I was hoping Bryony would get a happy ending with Lewis, who seemed to be a lovely and decent guy.

Overall What Happens In France is a funny, interesting story about love, family and finding the truth. I learned some new trivia and now want to go on holiday to Brittany as it sounds so beautiful. An entertaining and easy read that is perfect for fans of romantic comedies, and even for those who don’t usually read them like me.

Out January 28th

A brilliant, edgy thriller about four strangers, a blizzard, a kidnapped child, and a determined young woman desperate to unmask and outwit a vicious psychopath.

A kidnapped little girl locked in a stranger’s van. No help for miles. What would you do?

On her way to Utah to see her dying mother, college student Darby Thorne gets caught in a fierce blizzard in the mountains of Colorado. With the roads impassable, she’s forced to wait out the storm at a remote highway rest stop. Inside, are some vending machines, a coffee maker, and four complete strangers.

Desperate to find a signal to call home, Darby goes back out into the storm… and makes a horrifying discovery. In the back of the van parked next to her car, a little girl is locked in an animal crate.

Who is the child? Why has she been taken? And how can Darby save her?

There is no cell reception, no telephone, and no way out. One of her fellow travelers is a kidnapper. But which one?

Trapped in an increasingly dangerous situation, with a child’s life and her own on the line, Darby must find a way to break the girl out of the van and escape.

But who can she trust?

With exquisitely controlled pacing, Taylor Adams diabolically ratchets up the tension with every page. Full or terrifying twists and turns, No Exit will have you on the edge of your seat and leave you breathless.

This fast-paced, heart-stopping thriller had me completely absorbed. There had been a buzz on bookstagram about it so I was full of anticipation when I started reading, hoping that it lived up to the hype. I’ve now become part of that hype; this is a book you don’t want to miss.

“Tonight, every decision would leave footprints.”

Student Darby Thorne is on her way home to Utah from college in Colorado two days before Christmas. She hadn’t planned on making the trip but a message from her older sister telling her that their mother has late stage pancreatic cancer and will undergo surgery on Christmas Eve means that she’s on her way home. Unfortunately also on it’s way is what Darby calls ‘Snowmageddon’, a huge snow storm that derails her plans and forces her taking shelter at a rest stop with four strangers for company and no cell service. Desperate to speak to her mother before the surgery Darcy braves the cold to try and find a signal, but instead makes an unexpected and frightening discovery: a seven year old girl trapped in an animal cage in the back of the van parked next to her car. Who is this girl? Which of the four strangers in the rest stop took her? How can Darby set her free without fatal consequences for herself and the child?

Assuring the girl she will come back and help, Darby goes back inside to try and deduce who is responsible for the crime. Is it Ed and his cousin Sandi who say they are on their way home for a family Christmas, Ashley the self proclaimed magic man who won’t stop talking, or ‘rodent face’, the strange looking man that gives her the creeps that she later discovers is called Lars? Even when she thinks she’s figured out who owns the van she still needs to figure out how to help the girl. But with a battery that’s fading fast, her charger at home, no signal, no idea who she can trust and no chance of help from authorities before the morning, Darby desperately tries to decide how to secretly save the girl without alerting the kidnapper and putting everyone else’s life in danger.

“No panic, no fight, no flight, just that shivery little moment when life goes rancid.”

Darby is a well meaning character who can’t imagine just sitting back doing nothing until the roads clear and then hoping the police catch up to the van later. Despite the risk she has to help, a decision that changes the fate of everyone at the rest stop that night. Not knowing who to trust complicates matters and she makes many mistakes that night, but ultimately her concern is saving the little girl trapped in that filthy cage. The cast of characters were a varied group. Lars was a dubious individual that you should keep an eye on at all times, Ashley had a cocky confidence, and Ed and Sandi were the unassuming duo you’d not pay attention to under normal circumstances. But is there more to this group than what first appears to be true? Are some of them hiding behind an elaborate facade?

“..she’d almost clawed her way out of this fiery, blood-drenched nightmare.”

No Exit starts with a sinister discovery at an isolated rest stop and the book simmers with a rising tension from the outset. I was on tenterhooks throughout as I rooted for Darby to save the girl and get them both to safety. The author has a devilish talent for the macabre and writes in a way that makes each page more tense than the one before as the twist and turns leave you reeling. Right up until the final sentence you aren’t sure what fate holds for these characters, making this a must-read book that you won’t forget.

Out now. Available on Kindle Unlimited.

When Esther Thorel, the wife of a Huguenot silk-weaver, rescues Sara Kemp from a brothel she thinks she is doing God’s will. Sara is not convinced being a maid is better than being a whore, but the chance to escape her ‘grasping’ madam is too good to refuse.

Inside the Thorels’ tall house in Spitalfields, where the strange cadence of the looms fills the attic, the two women forge an uneasy relationship.  The physical intimacies of washing and dressing belie the reality: Sara despises her mistress’s blindness to the hypocrisy of her household, while Esther is too wrapped up in her own secrets to see Sara as anything more than another charitable cause.

It is silk that has Esther so distracted. For years she has painted her own designs, dreaming that one day her husband will weave them into reality. When he laughs at her ambition, she strikes up a relationship with one of the journeyman weavers in her attic who teaches her to weave and unwittingly sets in motion events that will change the fate of the whole Thorel household.

Thank you to Quercus Books, NetGalley and Sonia Velton for the chance to read and review this book.

This beautifully written piece of historical fiction was a joy to read from beginning to end. The author instantly transported me in to the 18th Century with her vivid and eloquent storytelling and the opening chapter had me hooked. When I read her description of how Sara came to work at the brothel after her arrival in London my heart broke and from that point I was unable to put this book down.

The story is narrated in alternate chapters by Sara and Esther, a choice that I loved. Told in the past tense, it was fascinating to read the same events from different perspectives and see the subtle variations in their accounts. It also showed us how naive the women were in their own ways, neither one understanding or thinking of things from the other’s viewpoint. Both women were flawed, complex and had many layers to their character. This meant I would vary at times between which character I empathised with and enabled me to find something about each of them I could relate to. I did find their intense dislike of each other an amusing part of the story and enjoyed their scathing comments about each other. The decision to make Sara resentful of her new position was a choice I think made the story more interesting and that inevitably fed into some of the conflict between them. Reading how Esther was so fixated on her own version of morality that she was blind to her hypocrisy and sanctimonious behaviour made me infuriated so I understood Sara’s resentment to some of the things she’d say. I enjoyed seeing how both they and  their relationship with each other changed throughout the story, especially as things escalated in the story towards the end.

I also like how the book highlighted the difficulty of being a woman in that time period. Rich or poor life was bleak for the fairer sex at that time and the veneer of perfection and opulence projected by women with money and esteem simply hid the truth of their sad and difficult situations. All women were at the mercy of men and if you were married or not you could find your situation precarious and be in the workhouse or the hangman’s noose for a perceived wrong. Yet because women like Sara lived with their flaws and the harsh reality of their lives out for all to see, women such as Esther looked down on them. But men were not immune to struggle either and we saw how the rich master weavers held their power over their employees as well as their wives. They didn’t pay them a fair or living wage and resented the idea that their employees should have any working rights or a say in how much they earn. They viewed the world as theirs and the women and workers were there to simply serve their needs as they deemed fit. In the story these situations led to characters doing things they might otherwise have thought better of and led to devastating and shocking consequences as things spiraled out of control.

The Blackberry and Wild Rose is a delightful and engrossing debut novel with a multi-layered storyline and interesting characters. I loved the author’s writing style and couldn’t stop reading as the plot twisted and unfurled before me.  I’ve found this genre to be a favourite of mine this year but until recently I’d mostly read books concentrating on the 19th and 20th Century. This book was based in the 18th Century and was clearly well researched in terms of both the time period and the silk trade on which the story is based. If you enjoy historical fiction then this is a book you should read.

Out Now.