The Innocent Wife by Amy Lloyd: Review

Dennis Danson is a convicted killer on Death Row - the "Red River murderer" - but widely and increasingly believed to be innocent. Documentaries are made about him, books written, celebrities espouse his cause. For Sam, a needy young woman in England, the case details and Dennis himself exert a deep fascination, and when she contacts him and subsequently travels to the US to visit him in prison, a relationship develops between them.

But is Dennis as innocent as Sam and many others believe him to be? What really happened to the girls of Red River?

This is a tense and compelling psychological thriller - Amy Lloyd builds up the tension extremely well. While few of the characters are particularly likeable - out of everyone, I was most concerned about the cats - I was still desperate to find out what was going to happen. The deeply dysfunctional relationship between Dennis and Sam is very well drawn, wince-inducingly so at times, as things do not progress between them quite as Sam had expected or hoped.

For me the name Dennis Danson immediately evoked the serial killer Dennis Nilsen - I don’t know whether this similarity was deliberate on the part of the author (there are certain other similarities too... so maybe) but it meant I was instinctively slightly predisposed against him! Whether guilty or not, Dennis is a difficult and complex character; the real man often at odds with the image of him created by others. The character of Sam, a somewhat obsessive and vulnerable young woman whose actions are often painfully misguided and whose insecurities can at times overwhelm her - is very believable.

There are some insightful observations here on the social media landscape, particularly as experienced for the first time by Dennis - the strange world of Twitter is especially well depicted as Dennis - and Sam’s - story is served up for public consumption and, of course, everyone has an opinion...

An often disturbing but always readable journey into some dark places.... recommended.

Review also published on NetGalley and on Amazon. Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review.

The Cactus by Sarah Haywood: Review

“Because I’m not reliant on anyone emotionally or financially, I can’t be hurt. That’s how a feminist is: iron-willed, Teflon-coated, in total control of every aspect of her life.”

At forty-five, Susan Green shares certain characteristics with the cactus plants she keeps on her desk - prickly and self-sufficient. She has her life arranged precisely how she wants it - her flat, her job, her personal life - and certainly has no intention of changing it. But when her mother dies - and leaves a will favouring her feckless brother Ed, causing Susan to immediately launch herself into battle - and at the same time Susan is confronted with the hitherto unimagined prospect of becoming a mother herself, her life starts changing in some very unexpected ways. What does it take for a cactus to finally bloom?

I loved the sound of this book, but it was a bit of a slow burner for me initially. Susan is not obviously very likeable, at least to start with. She comes over as judgemental, intolerant of others’ failings and apparently lacking in any warmth or humour, though I did like her independence and determination. As the story continued, though, I was drawn in and found it ultimately to be a very compelling and enjoyable read, and Susan a very engaging character.

The basic premise is not, in itself, that original - a woman who shuns any kind of vulnerability as a defence mechanism against being hurt, who gradually becomes more open to new experiences and connections with other people. However the story is very well executed and I grew to really care about Susan - my heart broke for her at times.

One advance reviewer described Susan as a cross between Don Tillman (The Rosie Project) and Bridget Jones. I can certainly see where the former comparison comes from - both highly rational, uncomprehending of others’ less rational choices, and lacking in social graces - but I’m afraid any similarities with the latter are completely lost on me. (And Susan would undoubtedly be appalled at the comparison.) To this reader, Susan is more reminiscent of Eleanor Oliphant.

Not all the characters are believable: Susan’s jolly-hockey-sticks friend Brigid is a caricature, though an amusing one - I don’t believe any modern forty-five year old woman routinely addresses another as “old girl”! I did like neighbour Kate, and Ed’s friend Rob. Aunt Sylvia and her fairly awful daughters are very convincingly drawn. I’ve definitely known Sylvias...

Although it was, as I’ve said, initially a bit of a slow burner, ultimately I loved this just as much as I’d hoped, and didn’t want it to end! (It’s perhaps unlikely, but a sequel would be lovely... I really do want to know what happens next.)

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review.

Behind Closed Doors by B A Paris: Review

This book kept popping up in my recommendations for an awfully long time before I finally got around to reading it. I think the unoriginal title put me off a bit... there must be hundreds of books called Behind Closed Doors. I’m sure I’ve read a few of them. I must admit, though, it’s an appropriate title here, because this book is all about the horrors (not an exaggeration) that occur in apparent domestic bliss.

It’s obvious from the start that all is not well in the marriage of Grace and Jack Angel, and that Mr Angel hardly lives up to his name. That’s putting it mildly - he’s an actual monster, one of those arch-villains with literally no redeeming features. He’s also, of course, handsome, charming and rich, because they always are, in fiction if not in life. And all-powerful, with almost everyone in his pocket, even the police. There’s a bit of suspension of disbelief required, but Jack’s clever....his heinous actions are always carefully planned and there’s little to be held against him, apart from Grace’s word, which he ensures counts for little.

It’s a real page turner, there’s no doubt about that. I had to keep reading, desperate to find out what happened and for the monster to (hopefully) get his comeuppance, even while in a constant state of slight anxiety about what horrendous thing was going to happen next. The full extent of Jack’s depravity is only gradually revealed and this generates a lot of tension.

Grace is quite an engaging character - she goes from a successful professional woman (with a rather unlikely sounding job) to someone with no power at all but she never gives up fighting. Her sister Millie - a young woman with Down’s syndrome - isn’t entirely convincingly drawn but is a likeable character. There are very few if any laughs in this book - the tone is unremittingly dark and grim - but “George Clooney” did raise a smile.

Ultimately this is a compelling read but I’m not sure I actually liked it. It’s basically a simple story of good vs evil with little nuance, and just a bit too unpleasant for me. I did like the very end, though, where a thread which has run through the novel has a satisfying payoff.

White Bodies by Jane Robins: Review

‘

Felix is so handsome and clever and romantic. I just wished he hadn’t forced Tilda under the water and held her there so long.’

Callie and Tilda are twins, but it seems they couldn’t be more different - Tilda is the doer, the attention getter, forging a successful acting career; Callie the observer, the quieter one, drifting into a job at a bookshop, existing around the edges of her sister’s life.

When Tilda enters a relationship with the wealthy and controlling Felix (he’s something to do with hedge funds... I don’t think I’ll ever understand what a hedge fund actually is), Callie’s anxieties for her sister’s safety cause her to be lured down some dark and dangerous paths.

From early on there are doubts as to Callie’s reliability as a narrator - she appears to have an unhealthy and certainly abnormal obsession with her golden girl sister. The relationship between the twins is complex and really rather twisted. Though intelligent, Callie has a naïveté and inexperience about her which render it doubtful as to how accurately she might interpret things at times; the author keeps us skilfully on the back foot, uncertain as to how well founded Callie’s fears about Felix are.

This is an incredibly addictive, often unsettling and very cleverly constructed read which constantly keeps the reader guessing as to where it is going; I really had no idea until very near the end, although with hindsight clues were there. The narrative voice of Callie is a triumph - she is an unusual but at the same time very believable character and you’re never quite sure what she’s going to do next. What this book kept reminding me of, and I’m not even sure why as they are very different, was the equally excellent Behind Her Eyes by Sarah  Pinborough - something about the tone, perhaps. 

Elegantly written and tightly plotted... highly recommended. Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review.

Jane Robins began her career as a journalist with The Economist, The Independent, and the BBC. She has made a specialty of writing historical true crime and has a particular interest in the history of forensics. She has published three books of nonfiction in the UK, Rebel Queen, The Magnificent Spilsbury, and The Curious Habits of Doctor Adams. White Bodies is her first novel.

The Secret Child by Kerry Fisher: Review

I loved Kerry Fisher’s first novel, The School Gate Survival Guide - it was fresh and funny, even if the title was a bit meh (apparently it’s now been retitled The Not So Perfect Mum, which is even worse). Anyway the book was great and made me an instant fan of the author. I’ve read and enjoyed her subsequent books too but none proved quite as memorable as the first; however I think The Secret Child just might.

It opens in heartbreaking fashion with Suzanne Duarte giving her six-week-old baby boy away for adoption in 1968. (The year I was born!) Susie’s not an unwed teenager though - she’s a young married woman with a child already and a husband away at sea. Knowing she can never explain the existence of baby Edward and at risk of losing everything, Susie has to make the devastating choice to give him up and pretend nothing has happened. But the corrosive effects of grief and deceit will tarnish everything for her.

This has the feel of a sprawling family saga, following Susie’s life and family from 1968 to the present day, examining how all her relationships - with her loving husband Danny, daughters Louise and Grace - are changed and damaged by the huge secret she can never reveal. Can Susie ever reconnect with the baby she lost, without destroying everything?

This was a very emotional read which had me gripped from the first page, desperate to find out how things would turn out, particularly towards the end. It’s narrated first by Susie and then in the second half by her rebellious younger daughter Grace, which works very well in showing us first why Susie is the way she is, then how that is perceived by others. It’s  quite a long book and I can imagine that some people might find it too drawn out at times but it worked perfectly for me. 

A powerful and frankly heartbreaking story with believable, nuanced characters.... highly recommended.

Odd Child Out by Gilly Macmillan: Review

Late at night two teenage boys scuffle at the water’s edge. One ends up in the canal. It looks straightforward, but there’s more to this story than meets the eye.

The boy in the water, Noah, is terminally ill. The other boy, Abdi - his best friend - isn’t talking.

As Noah lies in hospital in an induced coma, DI Jim Clemo is called upon to investigate the incident. In the wake of a recent anti-immigration neo-Nazi march in Bristol, there are racial sensitivities surrounding the case, because Noah is white and from a privileged background, and Abdi is from a Somali refugee family. 

And Abdi still isn’t talking.

I loved Gilly Macmillan’s previous novel featuring Jim Clemo, What She Knew (previously published as Burnt Paper Sky - a title I prefer, to be honest). So I was excited to read this, and it didn’t disappoint.

The story is told partly by DI Clemo, partly by Noah himself and partly in the third person following other characters such as Abdi’s sister Sofia, his parents Maryam and Nur, and Noah’s parents Fiona and Ed Sadler - the latter an acclaimed photographer who has made his name through his often painful depictions of the experience of refugees. (An interesting element of the story considers some of the ethical issues around such photographs via Sofia’s response to them.)

As Clemo tries to unravel what has occurred the story takes in both modern day Bristol and the frightening world of the huge Hartisheik refugee camp in the late 1990s.

As in her previous novel, Gilly Macmillan also examines the media response to the case, and this takes on a personal dimension for DI Clemo as his ex-girlfriend Emma Zhang, now a journalist seeking to make her name, is in the thick of it. Clearly there are those keen to use the incident in order to attack the city’s Somali community, the police, or both.

This could be issue-heavy subject matter but Gilly Macmillan tells the story with a delicate touch which puts the complex, often flawed characters at the centre and never relies on easy stereotype.

There’s also a twist in the tale which I certainly wasn’t expecting, though in hindsight it almost seems obvious (those twists are always the best kind).

I loved this story - it’s compelling, insightful, humane and ultimately very moving, and deserves a very wide readership. Highly recommended.

Review also posted on NetGalley and Amazon.

Gilly Macmillan is the New York Times bestselling author of What She Knew and The Perfect Girl. She trained as an art historian and worked at The Burlington Magazine and the Hayward Gallery before starting a family. Since then she’s worked as a lecturer in photography, and now writes full-time. She resides in Bristol, England.

BLOG TOUR! Ours is the Winter by Laurie Ellingham: Review

The blurb....

Journeying across the Arctic, their pasts are about to catch up with them.

Erica, Molly and Noah are embarking on the challenge of a lifetime, driving Siberian huskies across the frozen wilderness of the Arctic. Cut off from the world and their loved ones and thrown together under gruelling conditions, it isn't long before the cracks start to show.

Erica has it all. A loving husband, a successful career and the most adorable baby daughter. But Erica has been living a double life, and as she nears her fortieth birthday her lies threaten to come crashing down.

Molly was on her way to stardom. But when her brother died, so did her dreams of becoming an Olympic champion. Consumed by rage and grief, she has shut out everyone around her, but now she's about to learn that comfort can come from the most unexpected places.

Noah has a darkness inside him and is hounded by nightmares from his past. Tortured, trapped and struggling to save his fractured relationship, he knows this journey is not going to help, but try telling his girlfriend that.

As their lives and lies become ever more entwined, it becomes clear that in the frozen wilds there is nowhere to hide.

Trailer for Ours is the Winter

Purchase from Amazon UK

The review...

Are you ready for the challenge of a lifetime? Drive your own team of elite Siberian huskies 260km across the frozen wilderness of the Arctic in an experience you'll never forget!

Three people come together as part of a larger group to undertake this Arctic challenge. Molly, fizzing with barely suppressed anger and grief after the untimely death of her beloved brother, her Olympic aspirations having died along with him. Erica, hoping to use the trip as an opportunity to rebuild her relationship with her young half-sister - while also concealing some awkward truths about her own life. And Noah, deeply traumatised after a terrible event, resorting to desperate measures just to function from day to day.

As the challenge progresses, along with testing their own limits these three people find unimagined connections between them and face up to difficult realities as relationships form and fracture, and secrets emerge.

I loved the fascinating, unusual setting, and Laurie Ellingham does a great job of building up the atmosphere. It was easy to picture the frozen landscape, and the exhausting, exhilarating, challenging experience of sledding was vividly drawn. I could almost feel the biting cold and see and hear (and smell!) the dogs. I loved the dogs!

The human (and canine) characters all emerge clearly... I liked all the characters, apart from the ones you're not meant to (looking at you, Rachel). I could relate to Erica's conflicts between home and work, having experienced similar, though not when my child was so young. And as a runner myself, albeit very far from Olympic standard, I enjoyed that strand of the story too. (Minor niggle: the "last few laps" of an 800m race? Usually there's only two!)

A special mention for the cover, which is just gorgeous and represents the story nicely.

This is the first book I have read by Laurie Ellingham. It was initially something of a slow burner for me (ironic given the setting!) but once I got into the story I enjoyed it very much and will definitely keep an eye out for this author. A recommended read which almost made me want to sign up for a similar Arctic challenge! Maybe one day...

The author...

Laurie Ellingham lives on the Suffolk/Essex border with her two children, husband, and cockerpoo Rodney. She has a First Class honours degree in Psychology and a background in Public Relations, but her main love is writing and disappearing into the fictional world of her characters, preferably with a large coffee and a Twix (or two) to hand.

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Silent Lies by Kathryn Croft: Review

Five years rebuilding your life.... Five words will destroy it again.

Silent Lies opens with Mia and her baby daughter, Freya, attending the funeral of Zach - Mia’s husband and Freya’s father. It’s clear from the outset that Zach has done something terrible - something bad enough that strangers apparently feel justified in verbally abusing his wife in the street - the nature of which is as yet unspecified.

Five years later, Mia has gone a long way towards rebuilding her life - she has qualified as a counsellor and is running her own business, and has a new partner, Will. But when a new client, Alison, blurts out something shocking regarding Mia’s own past - and then immediately retracts it - Mia’s life is flung once more into turmoil.

The story is narrated in turn by Mia in the present - struggling to uncover the truth about her husband - and five years earlier by Josie, a young university student with a horrific, traumatic past and indeed present. The two are connected by Zach and by Alison, a strange, clearly very troubled young woman whose motives are mysterious. Who can Mia trust?

This is the first book I have read by Kathryn Croft, and I found it a real page-turner - or whatever the Kindle equivalent is. As the cleverly constructed plot unfolded, I found myself developing all sorts of outlandish theories about what was going on - always a sign of a really engaging read! And a couple of them even paid off... kind of. (That’s all I’m saying.)

Josie’s narrative was particularly compelling in a just-can’t-look-away kind of way and I found her a likeable and sympathetic character.

There are plenty of twists and turns here and the denouement is genuinely unpredictable - I doubt anyone could guess it all in advance, even if you have a vague inkling about some aspects. The last chapter is quite satisfying.

A very enjoyable read and I will definitely look out for Kathryn’s other books.

Kathryn Croft is the author of six successful psychological thrillers, of which Silent Lies is the most recent. She lives in Guildford, Surrey with her husband, their little boy and two crazy cats.

The Perfect Victim by Corrie Jackson: Review

Husband, friend, colleague.... killer?

This is the second book featuring London Herald journalist Sophie Kent - I haven’t read the first, Breaking Dead, but you don’t need to in order to enjoy the second, though I probably missed out on a bit of continuity as far as the protagonist, Sophie, is concerned.

In the impressively accomplished The Perfect Victim, Sophie is grieving the untimely death of her beloved younger brother Tommy - a troubled young man, homeless, drug addicted - and struggling to uncover what really happened to him. Meanwhile, the drowned body of a lawyer is discovered and Sophie’s good friend and colleague, Charlie Swift, is implicated in her murder. Sophie can’t believe he could be capable of such a thing, but as  Charlie disappears and evidence begins to stack up that he is not the man she had thought him to be, danger comes frighteningly close to home. 

Then there’s Charlie’s social-media-savvy second wife Emily, who seems at times more intent on promoting her blog than finding her husband. But is Emily, too, all she seems?

Her investigations lead Sophie into the murky depths of Charlie’s past and the inner workings of a sinister religious cult. (Love a sinister religious cult.)

Deftly plotted and unpredictable, and at times very dark, this was one of those books which I really didn’t want to stop reading and could easily have finished in a day, were it not for pesky real-life responsibilities like going to work. Sophie is an engaging and satisfyingly complex heroine who definitely has some issues and doesn’t always make sensible choices, but also has tenacity and a toughness that belies her fragile exterior. Her brother Tommy’s addiction and mental health issues were, I thought, sensitively handled and realistically depicted by the author, and this was refreshing to see.

Corrie Jackson has created complex characters with a dark heart to their stories. Some way in, I did get a vague inkling of where things might be going with Charlie’s storyline - but it was very vague and the resolution was genuinely surprising.

All in all a brilliant read which certainly encourages me to seek out the previous Sophie Kent novel, and I will look out eagerly for more in this series in the future.

Corrie Jackson has been a journalist for fifteen years. During that time she has worked at Harper’s Bazaar, the Daily Mail, Grazia and Glamour. Corrie now lives in Greenwich, Connecticut with her husband and two children.

Her Last Secret by Barbara Copperthwaite: Review

A lifetime can flash by in a moment. A moment can last a lifetime.

Her Last Secret opens on Christmas morning in an affluent residential area of London. Shockingly, gunshots have been heard from number fifteen Burgh Road, the home of Benjamin and Dominique Thomas and their two daughters, Ruby and Amber. Clearly, something terrible has happened, but what - and who could be capable of it? As police officers cautiously approach the house, the narrative moves back eight days to follow the Thomas family in the period leading up to the events.

The father of the family, Benjamin, is arrogant and status-oriented, focused on impressing others with the success and material trappings (the Rolex, the Mercedes...) of an alpha male. He's not yet living the lifestyle to which he feels entitled, though  - after all, he only has one Mercedes. But Benjamin's bombastic exterior hides some deep insecurities - and a ticking time bomb of a secret which could bring it all crashing down.

Meanwhile his under pressure wife Dominique, feeling increasingly isolated from her husband and despised by her elder daughter, fears the resurgence of a frightening problem from her past. Dominique is often referred to as a doormat, letting her husband get away with far too much. But what would it take for her to finally snap?

Troubled fifteen-year-old Ruby has more going on in her life than her parents have any idea of. They predictably disapprove of her council-estate-dwelling boyfriend Harry, but have no notion of the true scale of Ruby's problems and in quite how dark a direction her thoughts are heading.

Then there's eight-year-old Amber, known as Mouse due to her quiet nature and tendency to hide in corners reading. (Like a mouse - only without the reading.) The most obviously innocent, lovable and vulnerable member of the family, it's Mouse we fear for most, even as she escapes into her own fantasy world where everyone is finally happy.

On the fringes of this not-so-happy family are Ruby's boyfriend Harry, Dominique's oldest friend Fiona, Benjamin's business partner Jazmine, and a frankly idiotic young woman named Kendra.

Interspersed with this narrative are snippets of the police cautiously approaching and entering the house. It's an effective technique which builds a sense of mounting tension for the reader about what they are going to find. As the officers move further through the house, the nature and scale of the disaster is gradually revealed... Or is it?

Her Last Secret (as a Sherlock fan, the title recalls His Last Vow - whether intentionally or not, I'm not sure) is a very gripping and enjoyable read. There are a few awkward turns of phrase ("her fellow peers") but generally the writing flows naturally. The characterisation is very well done and I particularly enjoyed, if that's the right word, the strand of the plot following Ruby and Harry. The tension becomes almost unbearable at times, and as the story reaches its culmination there are some genuinely emotional, even heartbreaking moments.

This is the first book I have read by Barbara Copperthwaite and on the strength of this I will certainly seek out her others. Recommended.

Review also published on NetGalley. Many thanks to the publishers for the opportunity to read and review.

Barbara  Copperthwaite is the author of four psychological crime novels, of which Her Last Secret is the most recent. She has worked as a journalist on national newspapers and magazines.

The Foster Child by Jenny Blackhurst: Review

Is Ellie a monster... or a victim?

Imogen and her husband Dan have just moved back to her childhood home, a place of which she does not have fond memories, her family life having been not exactly idyllic. Imogen has secured a new job facilitating mental health support for children in schools, after her previous job in the private sector came to a disastrous end (the details of which are only gradually revealed).

Eleven-year-old Ellie, who attends the local school, is in foster care after her whole family died in a house fire. Ellie is an understandably deeply troubled young girl, but is she also something rather more sinister? Alarming things do rather seem to happen when she’s around…

This was a very intriguing and addictive read which effectively creates a growing sense of unease. I’m not really a fan of the “creepy child” trope beloved of certain Hollywood films, but while some of the people around her certainly see Ellie that way (the references to Stephen King’s Carrie are no coincidence), there’s enough doubt to keep things interesting. Should we be afraid of Ellie… or afraid for her? Who, if anyone, is really on her side?

It’s also an effective portrayal of a certain kind of mob mentality and the willingness of some people to point the finger at anyone who appears strange and different – even when that person is a vulnerable, very young girl. For this reason some parts of the book make painful reading, though there is enough nuance here that we can also, mostly, see things from all sides.

The plot is very cleverly constructed and effectively keeps the reader on the back foot, unsure of what is really going on.

The story was not necessarily what I expected – the “supernatural” element does add an unusual dimension, and this might not be for everyone. However I enjoyed it very much, right up to the end which unfortunately did not really work for me and while I can understand why the author chose to do it in this way, I’d prefer it if she hadn’t as it's a type of ending I dislike. Can’t say more without spoilers! While the “twist” was cleverly done, I did also feel there were a couple of unanswered questions. For these reasons I give the book four stars rather than five.

Overall though an excellent read with characters who really do get under your skin.

Jenny Blackhurst has written three novels: How I Lost You, Before I Let You In, and The Foster Child. She lives in Shropshire.

Anything You Do Say by Gillian McAllister: Review

Two roads diverge....

Thirty-year-old Joanna is somewhat disorganised, even shambolic, inclined to avoid rather than confront difficulties; not really sure what she wants to do with her life; never quite feeling like a Proper Person. Still, her life seems good - happily married to the socially-conscious Reuben, with good friends and a steady job, even if she's never quite measured up to the promise of her schooldays (or the expectations of her parents).

Then something happens while she's walking home from a night out. A split second, a terrible misjudgement which spells disaster - but it's what Joanna does in the immediate aftermath which will determine the path of her life from that moment on. To reveal - or to conceal? Own up and face the consequences - or flee and hide? Both possible paths, with their repercussions for both Joanna and those around her, are dissected in alternate chapters.

It's an original and challenging method of telling a story - two stories, even - and it is so well written and cleverly done that it works really well. I never felt confused about which version of "reality" I was reading. The differences and also similarities between the two timelines are fascinating to observe, not only for Joanna and her husband, friends, colleagues, brother - but also for the victim, who is simultaneously at the centre of everything yet still somehow outside, and his family.

Through the parallel timelines, we witness on the one hand a frightening and confusing journey through the legal system; and on the other, a depiction of the corrosive effects of persistent guilt, silence and concealment. Most of all this is a sensitive and nuanced character portrait and analysis of personal consequences.

There's also a very real sense of "this could happen to any of us", and I imagine most readers will at some point ask themselves the question: what might I do in a moment of sheer panic? And what might be the consequences of that?

Anything You Do Say is an enthralling and thought-provoking read which is destined to be very successful.

This review was previously posted on NetGalley. Thanks to the publishers for the opportunity to read and review

The Doll House by Phoebe Morgan: Review

Sisters Corinne and Ashley enjoyed an idyllic childhood, symbolised by the dolls' house lovingly built for them by their father - a beautifully furnished, perfect replica of their family home.

In the present day Corinne, now an adult, is under a lot of stress - she's still grieving the recent loss of her beloved father, eminent architect Richard Hawes, and she and partner Dominic are struggling to conceive, undergoing gruelling fertility treatment. Things get worse, though, when Corinne begins finding fragments from her childhood dolls' house - a little door, a piece of fabric - in inexplicable places. It seems like someone is taunting her, but who and why? And what is her mother not telling her?

Meanwhile, elder sister Ashley's life is also taking a strange turn. Husband James is never there (he's always at work - or is he?). Her daughter and son are acting out of character, and something isn't right with baby Holly either.

There's clearly an unseen hand at play, but who does it belong to? In true psychological thriller tradition, there are various candidates both likely and unlikely.

Interspersed with Corinne and Ashley's stories are flashbacks from the point of view of an unnamed child narrator with an apparent connection to their family, albeit very much on the outside....

Although I'd heard good things about this book, I was slightly sceptical, as the cover looked a bit sensationalist. And let's face it, not everything that calls itself "A gripping psychological thriller with a killer twist!" (i.e. just about everything nowadays) really is. However, I was pleasantly surprised as The Doll House is genuinely well written, well plotted, tense and unpredictable. Phoebe Morgan does a great job of building a sense of menace and foreboding, culminating in scenes of almost unbearable tension.

It's an impressive debut, and I look forward to reading more from Phoebe Morgan.

The Other Woman by Laura Wilson: Review

Sophie Hamilton and her husband Leo have a fairly marvellous life - house in the country, flat in town for City worker Leo, fancy cars, a yacht (!), three lovely-ish kids, Labrador (of course), "kitchen sups" with friends. (Once I started seeing Sophie as Samantha Cameron, I couldn't quite shake it. I think it was the kitchen sups.)

Every Christmas Sophie sends one of those round-robin letters to all her friends and acquaintances, notifying them about all her family's marvellous achievements over the past year. It's a bit of a shock when someone starts returning these to sender, scrawled over first with "Smug Bitch", then with allegations that Leo is having an affair and about to leave her. Sophie's pretty sure she isn't smug (though actually, she is) but she's not so sure about the affair, and when she thinks she's found concrete evidence, something happens which causes her life to quickly and dramatically unravel...

The tone of this felt different to me from Laura Wilson's other books. There's not a great deal of mystery here as the plot mainly concerns Sophie's attempts to cover up what has happened - which rapidly becomes a black comedy of errors as she makes a series of fairly terrible decisions and misjudgements and pretty much everything that can go wrong, does. She remarks herself at one point that things are becoming farcical, and they are. You have to keep reading, just to see how much worse things can possibly get (quite a lot) and find out where on earth it's all going to end up.

It's hard to relate all that much to Sophie - she *is* smug and self-absorbed, at least to begin with, and she *does* take her extremely privileged life for granted (at one point thinking to herself in bewilderment, "I'm Sophie. I'm supposed to have a nice life.") Having experienced an insecure childhood, she often seems more concerned with the potential loss of her lifestyle and social standing than anything else and is prepared to go to quite some lengths to protect it. 

There are a few twists in the tale, but not a huge amount of mystery (I guessed the identity of the "other woman" seconds before it was revealed - and I'm still pondering this aspect of the novel).

Laura Wilson is an excellent writer who always delivers a great read and this is no exception, darkly comic, cleverly constructed and a very engaging read - even if I didn't really like any of the characters! Ultimately, I was left unsure quite what to make of it all.... But that's OK.

Nine Lessons by Nicola Upson: Review

I've long loved Josephine Tey's novels and in more recent years I've also loved Nicola Upson's "Josephine Tey" series in which a fictionalised version of the writer is the main character.

It's an interesting and I feel somewhat audacious premise, given that the stories concern not just the investigation of crimes but also Josephine's personal and romantic life. Of course the real life Josephine wasn't Josephine at all; Josephine Tey was a pen name for Inverness-born Elizabeth Mackintosh. Nicola Upson's character however is clearly Josephine, not Elizabeth, and hence already a step removed from the real person, although she shares many biographical details, including her former career as a physical training instructor and her success as a playwright.

The latest instalment, set in 1937, finds Josephine staying in her lover Marta's new house in Cambridge while Marta is away in America. Josephine's dear friend, Detective Chief Inspector Archie Penrose, is investigating an apparently linked series of unpleasant murders with a Cambridge connection; meanwhile, a serial rapist is terrorising the women of Cambridge.

This was a really excellent read, tightly plotted and with a genuinely surprising resolution which I certainly did not predict. There's an intriguing literary connection, too, via the acclaimed ghost story writer, scholar and former provost of King's College, Cambridge, M. R. James. He doesn't appear directly, having died in 1936, but nevertheless has a role to play.

As ever this is beautifully and intelligently written and evokes a genuine sense of place and time, both socially and politically. The shadow of the First World War still lingers, the second is not yet a reality, although there is a subtle sense of tensions growing in Europe; but the Duke and Duchess of Windsor can still be photographed taking tea with Hitler. (I looked up the picture in question; it's quite something.)

The rape storyline is sensitively handled and there is no glossing over either the lasting damage done or the attitude of many - the police included - who regard it as not, in itself, really that significant a crime.

There were a couple of phrases which jarred slightly: I'm not sure if people in the 1930s (even Marta) would have used the term "for fuck's sake". But maybe they would; I'm no expert on the matter. 

The title had me puzzled for a while. But ultimately it makes perfect sense. And I do love the covers of these books.

Highly recommended.

Polite request: I'd love to read a future novel set in Josephine's native Inverness!

Doctor Who: Myths and Legends by Richard Dinnick - Review

There've been several Doctor Who books in this mould lately - Time Lord Fairy Tales, The Twelve Doctors of Christmas - all beautifully presented and illustrated hardback books which look just gorgeous on the shelf and are equally enjoyable to read. I imagine the physical copy of Myths and Legends will be the same - hence it does lose something in the ebook format, but the stories themselves are equally fun to read.

There are fourteen stories here, subtitled "Epic Tales from Alien Worlds" and written by Richard Dinnick. While they clearly take place within the Doctor Who universe (there's an introduction by Chancellor Drakirid, Historian to the Bureau of Ancient Records on Gallifrey), the Doctor himself pops up only occasionally in different incarnations and is never named as such. There are plenty of familiar friends and enemies, though - including the Doctor's best frenemy in various guises! - and well known figures from Gallifreyan history.

The stories vary in length and tone, and the book is easy to dip in and out of.

Rather like the previous Time Lord Fairy Tales, a number of stories are clearly based on familiar tales - often this is obvious from the titles (e.g. Jorus and the Voganauts, The Vardon Horse). Quite a few also fit neatly into Time Lord history and fill in some gaps in interesting ways - the last one, Pandoric's Box, being particularly notable in this regard, with one particular much-missed face making an appearance.

All in all, despite the main man (soon to be woman!) being mainly absent, this was a fun read, and yes, I will probably buy the hardback....