June 13, 2020

Twisted doesn’t even being to describe this book. It’s part cat and mouse, part psychological thriller, part domestic drama, and all fantastic. For once, the tag line absolutely, 100% fits!

The author does a great job of laying out the background to set everything up. The intent of the two main characters (Beth and Danielle) are made clear and the character lines are clearly drawn.

Or are they?

Told in alternating points of view between the two, the plot moves along crisply. Instead of going back over a singular event from each point of view, the author uses the two different perspectives to propel the story. It’s effective and made for more interesting reading.

It also allowed the author to drop a bombshell and then switch characters, often leaving me speechless and wanting to get back to that perspective. Fortunately, the chapters are quite short, which also swiftly moves the story.

Amazon: https://bit.ly/2Bjk50w Apple: https://apple.co/3c0CmwV Kobo: https://bit.ly/2JJCR2g Google: https://bit.ly/2UP4a1z

The constant and quick switches back and forth also kept me off balance. Every time I thought I had a handle on what was really going on, something else would happen that would make me question what I thought I knew. I enjoyed not being able to predict what would happen next (as sometimes happens).

I don’t do spoilers. I can’t stand them. With a plot this intricate, it would be difficult to say anything specific without potentially giving something away. Suffice to say that little things that are innocuous probably aren’t and what appears to be important may not be.

Nothing is as it seems.

The set up takes a while, but once you reach roughly halfway, the action and revelations pick up enormous speed and it’s a breathless race to the finish with all of the secrets being revealed in rapid-fire succession. If ever there was a book that was aptly described as a roller coaster ride this is the one.

Seriously, don’t miss it.

Author Bio:
Ruth Heald is a psychological thriller writer from a suburban Buckinghamshire town. She studied Economics at Oxford and then worked in an eclectic mix of sectors from nuclear decommissioning to management consulting.

Seeking a more creative environment, she found a role at the BBC and worked there for nine years before leaving to write full time. Ruth is fascinated by psychology and finding out what drives people to violence, destruction and revenge. She’s married with one daughter and her novels explore our greatest fears in otherwise ordinary, domestic lives.

Website: http://rjheald.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ruth.heald
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RJ_Heald

The timeliness of this book is uncanny, as it was published at the end of February. You can see from the blurb what the plot is, but reading it is like reliving the last three months, although in noir form.

I’m a big fan of film noir, so as I was reading, I could hear Humphrey Bogart doing the voice over in my head. The author did a fantastic job of creating that type of atmosphere. It made for an interesting juxtaposition, because the plot itself is all modern.

I actually think this happened to work in favor of the book. It softened the reality of the topic. If the book had been written straightforward, I don’t think it would have been nearly as enjoyable, because it would have felt too real, too much like reading a post on Facebook or a news article turned into a story. For me, the sense of noir made it more palatable.

I did also like the setting, because I’m a born and raised San Francisco Bay Area gal. I grew up just south of Oakland, so the locations were all familiar. Plus, where better to set a foggy noir story than in Fog City, right? I only wish that the author had been a little more detailed, though, as there are a lot of buildings and businesses that could have added to the mood.

**Amazon UK:** https://www.amazon.co.uk/When-Love-Lies-Bleeding-Nostalgia/dp/1910040347/ref=sr_1_1?crid=G9YQOKD5IIT7&dchild=1&keywords=when+love+lies+bleeding&qid=1590231983&sprefix=when+love+lies+bl%2Caps%2C154&sr=8-1
**Amazon US:** https://www.amazon.com/When-Love-Lies-Bleeding-Nostalgia-ebook/dp/B084Z691L5/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=when+love+lies+bleeding&qid=1590232057&sr=8-1

And back to that noir style; I’m glad that it was a novella. Because even though I loved it, I think that a full-length novel in that tone might have been a tad much. I would have needed to give Humphrey a break somewhere along the way.

As it was, it was a timely topic written into a story that was told in a unique way and it was the perfect length. I would definitely recommend this quick read. Maybe I’ll start listening to the news and imagining it in Humphrey’s voice as well. It’s a thought.

About Candy Denman:

Candy Denman spent most of her life as an NHS nurse but now concentrates on writing full time. She has written extensively for television programmes such as The Bill, Doctors and Heartbeat but now writes novels. She lives in Hertfordshire with her large extended family and a football crazy Cockapoo called Dennis.