FOUR STARS * * * *
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Three women, one is dead, who killed her?
Over the last few weeks I have been taking part in a 'readalong'. This is sort of like a book club but on a larger scale and online. I've been reading the book with about 50 other people at the same time. We receive the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. We receive it in three parts, one week apart each time. After each part, we discuss it online; our thoughts about the characters, theories, conspiracies etc.
Synopsis
When Nancy Hennessy is murdered, she leaves behind two best friends, an adoring husband and daughter, and a secret lover whose identity she took to the grave. Nancy was gorgeous, wealthy, and cherished by those who knew her―from the outside, her life was perfect. But as the investigation into her death flounders and her friends Eleanor and Mary wrestle with their grief, dark details surface that reveal how little they knew their friend, each other, and maybe even themselves.
My thoughts
I really liked the way this book was divided into three parts, one from each of the perspectives of the women (all in their 40s), including Nancy herself. It made it really intriguing as all the viewpoints came together bit by bit. Made all the more frustrating by having to wait to receive the three parts over the course of the weeks! After the first part, I was extremely compelled to find out who had killed Nancy and why!
To discuss the book with others, as we were reading was really eye-opening. I enjoyed taking in new perspectives and considering suspects I hadn't thought of before. It actually made me appreciate all the ruses, characters and details of the book more. I did feel the story jumped a round a bit and sometimes I had to take a moment to work out who was speaking or in what time zone we now were. However, the women's characters were intricate to engage with and imperfect in all different ways such that we can all likely find ways to relate to them; friendships, relationships, jobs, children. In lots of ways I felt it was a story of coming to terms with the way that life rolls out and that this is never as you quite imagine it but...sprinkled with a darker tinge, edging this into the psychological thriller category. Overall, an enjoyable, intriguing, character-driven read with a great ending!
About the author
Araminta Hall has worked as a writer, journalist and teacher. Her first novel, 'Everything & Nothing', was published in 2011 and became a Richard & Judy read that year. Her second, 'Dot', was published in 2013. She teaches creative writing at New Writing South in Brighton, where she lives with her husband and three children.
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