Month: November 2020

This was a very slow burn psych thriller. The ominous feeling was set from the beginning. The prologue actually brought to mind “The Shining,” that kind of cat and mouse search that you just know will end badly.

Now extrapolate that through the whole book.

It’s a testament to the writing that I sometimes felt afraid to turn the pages because I didn’t want to see what was going to happen next – while at the same time not being able to stop because…well, I wanted to see what happened next.

The mood and setting were definitely gothic. A mysterious mansion, secrets, bouts of madness…all quite atmospheric. It allowed me to be sucked into the world of the characters. The author did a great job creating that.

I thought Martha was an interesting character. She obviously knew something, but her dementia made her unreliable. The other characters (and the reader) never knew exactly what she was talking about. That was by design, and it was effective.

I obviously felt for Tess. She let herself get swept up in a romance that was totally a sham. As things took a darker turn, I kept rooting for her to get the nerve to do what had to be done.

While the domestic situation was awful, there were more pressures for her too. I shared Tess’ feeling of being suffocated from everything closing in on her.

Why is Martha watching the house? Who is sending Tess mysterious notes? Do Daniel’s “friends” have ulterior motives? How are all of the characters connected…or are they?

I loved the fact that everything didn’t really reveal until the very end of the book. By the time Tess begins to unravel the truth, it literally felt like a pressure cooker ready to explode. And boy does it ever. The surprises in the last quarter of the book keep coming, right up until the very last pages.

This was like a roller coaster that takes a long time to get to the top before setting off on a wild ride of unexpected twists and loops. It will keep you turning pages with dread and anticipation right to the end.

Author Bio:

Liz Lawler grew up sharing pants, socks, occasionally a toothbrush, sleeping four to a bed. Born in Chatham and partly raised in Dublin, she is one of fourteen children. She spent over twenty years as a nurse and has since fitted in working as a flight attendant, a general manager of a five star hotel, and is now working with trains. She became an author in 2017 when her debut novel Don’t Wake Up was published by Twenty7.  

Here’s another book that I am left with mixed feelings over.

On the one hand, I liked the plot. I thought the writing was good. There were twists and some unexpected revelations. It definitely kept me guessing right up until the very end.

On the other hand, I didn’t find any of the characters particularly likeable. Therefore, I wasn’t sympathetic to anything that any of them were going through.

Except Mabel. She was an innocent in all of this. God help her that she had a bunch of nuts around her.

In a strange way, I think that not liking Amber (particularly) actually made the story interesting for me. Usually a reader will root for something good to happen to the main character. In my case, I was hoping that she would get what she deserved.

Misplaced frustration and anger on my part, and Amber was an easy target? Maybe. It’s easier to dislike a fictional character. But she was dishonest and seemed to think she was better than other people, even as she thought the same thing about her “friend” group.

It was obvious that she was hiding secrets, but still acted as if she was the victim. I suppose in a way she was, but she also wasn’t forthcoming. I’m repeating myself, but she just annoyed me.

I was a little sympathetic to Ruby. It seemed like she had a little bit of self-fulfilling prophecy about her; she was flighty, so people underestimated her. But then she second-guessed herself because of their beliefs that she started to believe. She was a mess as well, but I understood her better.

The male characters were practically non-entities. It’s hard to say exactly why without giving away plot points. Which makes it difficult, because they honestly didn’t seem like they were there for much other than plot points.

And I wasn’t a fan of how a few characters showed up late in the book in pivotal points where there was barely a mention of them earlier in the story.

I think that is my biggest pet peeve. I would have liked to have seen more character development of a particular couple (not giving anything away, but people who have read the book will know who I mean)

In re-reading this, it seems as if I didn’t like the book, which isn’t true. I did like it. As I mentioned, it did keep me guessing and there were at least two “oh, no way!” moments that I commend the author on – well-plotted. But my dislike of the characters, and rooting against them left me confused.

I’d still recommend the book, if only for the overall arc. The author writes on a tightrope; there were chapters where great pains were taken to give information without spilling secrets. Those are worth the reading alone.

Author Bio:
Jess Ryder is the author of five psychological thrillers – ‘The Ex Wife’, ‘Lie to Me’, ‘The Good Sister’, ‘The Dream House’, The Girl You Gave Away’ and her latest, published November 2 2020 – ‘The Night Away’. All titles are published by Bookouture. She also writes as Jan Page. With many years’ experience as a scriptwriter, she loves watching television crime drama. Jess is a passionate reader and particularly enjoys thrillers.

Jess lives with her partner in London, UK and has four grown-up children.