The Guest House by Robin Morgan-Bentley #BookReview

Jamie and Victoria are expecting their first baby.

With a few weeks to go, they head off for a final weekend break in a remote part of the North Pennines. The small and peaceful guesthouse is the ideal location to unwind together before becoming parents. Upon arrival, they are greeted by Barry and Fiona, the older couple who run the guesthouse. They cook them dinner and show them to their room before retreating to bed themselves.

The next morning, Jamie and Victoria wake to find the house deserted. Barry and Fiona are nowhere to be seen. All the doors are locked. Both their mobile phones and car keys have disappeared. Even though it’s a few weeks early, Victoria knows the contractions are starting.

The baby is coming, and there’s no way out.

I read and enjoyed the author’s debut novel The Wreckage so much that I couldn’t resist buying his second novel, especially since one of the cover’s catchphrases is ‘a tense spin on a locked-room mystery‘. If you say locked-room then consider me in for reading it!

I really enjoyed the writing in this novel. Jamie and Victoria are indeed locked-in and the baby was on its way so it was a pretty despairing situation and I have to say that the birthing scene was so intense that I wasn’t aware of anything else. I’m normally not so affected by any of this but the fact that she wasn’t in the hospital but had no choice to deliver there and then certainly increased my anxiety. Something was really off from the moment they woke up and found their car keys and phones missing and the house locked-up. Why would someone do that?

I knew it wouldn’t be over because there were also scenes set a month later where there is no baby in the picture. Did he not make it? Surely there was nothing in the whole world that could have made them give up their baby to this Barry and Fiona? Whatever happened it certainly put a massive strain on their marriage and both were barely coping at all.

I made some crazy assumptions at the start and it’s the only thing I was right about but everything else was entirely unpredictable. I was eager to get to the truth and unpack the how and why of it all. I was wondering about the credibility of one of the major twists in the story while I was reading but I am starting to like it more and more now that I finished reading the novel. There are some questionable actions but there are always other people in the world who would do exactly that, even if you would never do something like that yourself.

The Guesthouse was a suspenseful read that caused me to have severe anxiety for Jamie and Victoria. There was only a little lull in the middle where I simply couldn’t figure out why they wouldn’t take action instead of grieving over the loss of their child. Kill ’em all in revenge is what I’d say 😉 but of course it doesn’t work like that and at the right time the story is driven forward with some excellent twists.

Would I recommend this book and author? Definitely! If you like to be surprised you’re in for a treat. As for me, I hope his next novel releases soon!

I bought a paperback copy of this novel. This is my honest opinion.

Black-Eyed Susans by Julia Heaberlin #BookReview

Seventeen-year-old Tessa, dubbed a ‘Black-Eyed Susan’ by the media, became famous for being the only victim to survive the vicious attack of a serial killer. Her testimony helped to put a dangerous criminal behind bars – or so she thought.
Now, decades later the black-eyed susans planted outside Tessa’s bedroom window seem to be a message from a killer who should be safely in prison.
Haunted by fragmented memories of the night she was attacked and terrified for her own teenage daughter’s safety, can Tessa uncover the truth about the killer before it’s too late?

It’s difficult to put in words but reading Black-Eyed Susans left me somewhat unsatisfied and I’m trying to find a reason for that myself. Maybe it didn’t help that I read a Dutch version of the novel either but what put me off most of all was how much beating around the bush there was in this book. What I mean is there’s a lot of words in there but in the end I just didn’t know much.

The novel is all about Tessa who survived a serial killer. In the present day the man who’s convicted is waiting for the death penalty to be carried out and it is only now that Tessa is starting to think they might have the wrong man convicted. The trouble is that she can’t remember who took her of the streets and wanted her dead.

It’s not that there’s nothing happening in the story. For example Tessa is visiting all the places she used to live, looking for clues, it’s just that I didn’t feel much progress or interesting developments. What didn’t help either was that Tessa does not remember, not even at the end, where I did expect some kind of memory suddenly coming to her. Instead I found out who took her through another person. It also means I never got any answers about what really happened to Tessa on that night or however long she went missing so that was a letdown for me.

The killer took some risks that were a little unbelievable to me but I did enjoy how it ended for him. Without giving anything away, it’s not how you might expect that to go so that was in fact the best surprise of this novel.

All in all a readable story that I felt I had to wade through to get to the truth and got me a second or two thinking about a DNF but happy I persisted after all because the surprise ending was satisfying even though it didn’t make up for all of what came before. I’m not sure this is the right author for me but please do tell if you believe I have the wrong end of the stick here.

I bought a paperback copy of this novel. This is my honest opinion.

Zero Days by Ruth Ware #BookReview

Hired by companies to break into buildings and hack security systems, Jack and her husband Gabe are the best penetration specialists in the business. But after a routine assignment goes horribly wrong, Jack arrives home to find her husband dead. To add to her horror, the police are closing in on their only suspect – her.

On the run and out of options, Jack must decide who she can trust as she circles closer to the truth in this unputdownable and heart-pounding mystery from ‘one of the best thriller writers around today’ Ruth Ware.

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I’m a big fan of this author’s books and I loved reading this latest one too. Zero Days is one of those hold your breath in and feel your heart in your throat kind of books.

Once Jack goes on the run the action is non-stop and relentless and it’s what makes this novel the most fun to read. The whodunnit is pretty easy to figure out but can Jack stay out of the hands of the police and prove that she’s innocent?

I was immediately invested in the story and the first time I held my breath was already at the start of the novel but that was only a warmer upper it appeared because the best was then yet to come. Jack and her husband Gabe are pen testers. They test companies’ security, with Jack testing the physical side and Gabe the digital security. They’re a great team but one night when Jack gets home after one of these penetration tests she finds her husband dead and soon enough she’s the prime suspect.

Jack, of course, sets off to prove her innocence, and though we (well I in any case) pretty much know the whodunit and can easily guess the whydunit early on, the story is most addictive in following Jack’s attempts to stay free. Jack is an awesome heroine and I’m happy the story involved such a strong and smart woman.

The novel was gripping and addictive and I didn’t want to stop reading. Jack’s injury made it even more tense and on edge. Even though action-type novels are not my typical genre I enjoyed this one from start to finish.

I received a free ecopy from the publisher via Netgalley. This is still my honest opinion.

The Killing Kind by Jane Casey #BookReview

He tells you you’re special…
As a barrister, Ingrid Lewis is used to dealing with tricky clients, but no one has ever come close to John Webster. After Ingrid defended Webster against a stalking charge, he then turned on her – following her, ruining her relationship, even destroying her home.

He tells you he wants to protect you…
Now, Ingrid believes she has finally escaped his clutches. But when one of her colleagues is run down on a busy London road, Ingrid is sure she was the intended victim. And then Webster shows up at her door…

But can you believe him?
Webster claims Ingrid is in danger – and that only he can protect her. Stalker or saviour? Murderer or protector? The clock is ticking for Ingrid to decide. Because the killer is ready to strike again.

Jane Casey is famous for writing the Maeve Kerrigan series (book 10 to date) but I’m hopeless at following a series that involves more than three books so I picked up this standalone novel and now I really want to read her detective series!

Ingrid Lewis is not to be envied. She’s a barrister for one but secondly, she has also drawn the unwanted attention of one of her clients. She won his case so it’s not a matter of revenge which was my initial thought but his reasons clearly motived if a bit hard to understand for normal people. No John Webster is a psychopath who can break any lock, find anyone, charm his way with everyone; he’s a man up for a challenge and Ingrid is fascinating to him, she’s the one person he wants to be able to manipulate and control. It looks like he won because she has moved multiple times and there’s no sign of her husband in the present but then someone dies and it makes her wonder if this was really an accident, and if not, if she was the intended target.

There’s a whole lot of second guessing happening in this novel so I was happily joining in on the fun laid out by the author. Was it an accident, is Webster behind all of this or not, who broke into her home (now), who burned down her house before, who is dead (present and past for this one, you can’t say nothing happens in this novel!), why did some people have to die? And who are the two characters who are chatting about Ingrid with not the best intentions at heart. It became clear I wasn’t looking for one but two devils in disguise and I read these conversations with focused attention but I couldn’t deduce the truth. In the end I was right about one of them but I hadn’t a clue about the other.

I was wary of Webster but I also kind of liked him in a way most of the time (he was the true star character of this novel) and I found myself even rooting for him when he was drawn into a corner. Is that awful? Well it looked like he saved her a few times and really helped her but I wasn’t sure either it wasn’t all an act. I was surprised that Ingrid did see him for what he was at one point because for someone with trust-issues and on high alert all the time she does miss a lot of what is happening under her own nose (as did I mind). Nothing prepared me for the true nature and motives in this novel though for everything that is happening. It all makes total sense and made a great plot.

I enjoyed the unnerving and restless nature of the story. I only wished I had had more to grasp onto myself so I could have found out in advance as it’s difficult to do so on your own in this novel but I did end up enjoying the surprise of finding out why.

Overall I’m quite impressed with the his author and maybe I should start with the first Maeve Kerrigan novel after all, I’m feeling quite up to adding a new series with a big backlist 🙂

I bought a paperback copy of this novel. This is my honest opinion.

The Trap by Catherine Ryan Howard #BookReview

Stranded on a dark road in the middle of the night, a young woman accepts a lift from a passing stranger. It’s the nightmare scenario that every girl is warned about, and she knows the dangers all too well – but what other choice does she have?

As they drive, she alternates between fear and relief – one moment thinking he is just a good man doing a good thing, the next convinced he’s a monster. But when he delivers her safely to her destination, she realizes her fears were unfounded.

And her heart sinks. Because a monster is what she’s looking for.

She’ll try again tomorrow night. But will the man who took her sister take the bait?

Yes, yes, all the yesses! Thank you for such a great read! If you read and loved The Nothing Man it’s safe to say you’ll love this one too!

The story is about the desperate attempt of one sister in finding her missing sibling. The novel didn’t miss an amazing start because I was sitting on the edge of my seat right away, as Lucy’s trying to lure the person who abducted her sister into taking her on a dark miserable night. The start is totally gripping, but the rest of the novel as well.

The tension did somewhat subside after those first tense moments which was a good thing for my own health, but it never completely left so I raced through this, almost as desperate as Lucy was to find her sister Nicki. Nicki is one of three women who was presumably taken by the same man, but it was only when the third girl was taken that they made a connection between the cases where the only thing retrieved every time was their cell phone. A task force was set up under the name of Operation Tide but they are not getting anywhere until Angela who’s not a garda (yet) but someone working at the Missing Persons Unit, stumbles upon something interesting left at a thrift store that could potentially help break the case open.

Apart from hearing from Lucy and Angela, the abductor has a chance to share his thoughts as well. He is married and his wife is totally and horribly oblivious of course, and the more I heard his voice the stronger and more desperate I wanted him caught and the women found. I wouldn’t have wanted to skip those chapters for anything, he’s a fascinating character and the way he talks in such a matter of fact way only made me realize even more that he could very well be your next door neighbour and you wouldn’t have a clue at all.

It felt like the danger in this novel was lurking around every corner and it really ramps up when Lucy uses the media to demand attention for the missing women, especially her sister. The twists in this novel were really great, I expressed a few expletives while reading this story and I was knocked for six in the last part of the novel. That twist! And what an ending! All I have to say is that it was all quite… unpredictable. I still don’t really know how I feel about the final pages, a part of me feels there’s still unfinished business, as if the whole story isn’t told or over yet, but on the other hand I do respect the author’s wish to deliver maybe a little bit of an unconventional ending. It’s the main reason for giving 4.5 stars, it is not exactly the ending that I had in mind and I do feel a little guilty that I have to admit a miniscule part of me still felt somewhat let down.

This is my third novel by this author, the first one was a miss for me but I’m so happy I picked up The Nothing Man afterwards and now I’m totally won over. Bring on the next one!

I received a free ecopy from the publisher via Netgalley to read and review. This is as always still my honest opinion.

Conviction by Jack Jordan #BookReview

TO STEAL A MANS FREEDOM ALL IT TAKES IS . . . CONVICTION

Wade Darling stands accused of killing his wife and teenage children as they slept before burning the family home to the ground.

When the case lands on barrister Neve Harper’s desk, she knows it could be the career making case she’s been waiting for. But only if she can prove Wade’s innocence.

A matter of days before the case, as Neve is travelling home for the night, she is approached by a man. He tells her she must lose this case or the secret about her own husband’s disappearance will be revealed.

Failing that, he will kill everyone she cares about until she follows orders.

Neve must make a choice – betray every principle she has ever had by putting a potentially innocent man in prison, or risk putting those she loves in mortal danger.

Jack Jordan successfully delivered another amazing moral dilemma in Conviction, a cat and mouse type of novel that extends to the courtroom.

Neve Harper is Wade Darling’s barrister. The man stands trial in a case of familicide, where he is believed to have killed his wife and two children. Neve is determined to defend her client tooth and nail but that’s before she is being blackmailed to have him convicted. Someone not only knows one of her secrets, they also threaten the family she has left, namely her missing husband’s daughter Olivia.

What is she to do? Is Wade guilty or not guilty and would that make a difference? As the trial continues I saw Neve navigating a very fine line where she gives and takes a few punches figuratively speaking and I was continuously wondering which way it would go. I wanted Neve to do the right thing but what was that exactly? 

There are courtroom novels that are rather slow and boring but this was certainly not one of them! I loved not knowing Neve’s next move and it was difficult to make up my mind about her as well so the jury (that would be me) was not only out on Wade but also on Neve. I wanted her to put up more of a fight early on, to find a way out and still save everyone involved and I saw her doubling under the pressure which was NOT what I wanted, I’m averse to weak protagonists, but I had my hopes up that she’d have some kind of ace up her sleeve after all. Some books have an anti-climatic ending but that certainly wasn’t the case here either. It still didn’t go as I expected but I wasn’t disappointed at all and that’s all I have to say about the ending.

I did foresee how Neve’s husband went missing and the reason for his disappearance especially from quite early on. I can’t say exactly what made me make this leap but there must have been a clue that I picked up on to come to that conclusion. I wasn’t a big fan of the reason why he disappeared, hence the four stars, although I did enjoy everything that followed afterwards in that plotline.

Conviction is a great legal thriller, a gripping read filled with well placed twists and turns. I can never get enough of these kind of plots and I love it when I can be really participate in such a way by making up my own mind. Guilty or not guilty, convicted or not convicted, I’m sure this page turner will hook many readers.

I received a free copy from the publisher Simon & Schuster via Netgalley. This is my honest opinion.

Psychopaths Anonymous by Will Carver #AudioBookReview

Maeve has everything. A high-powered job, a beautiful home and a string of uncomplicated one-night encounters. She’s also an addict – a functioning alcoholic with a dependence on sex and an insatiable appetite for killing men.

When she can’t find a support group to share her obsession, she creates her own. And Psychopaths Anonymous is born. Friends of Maeve.

Now in a serious relationship, Maeve wants to keep the group a secret. But not everyone in the group adheres to the rules, and when a reckless member raises suspicions with the police, Maeve’s drinking spirals out of control. She needs to stop killing. She needs to close the group. But Maeve can’t seem to quit the things that are bad for her, including her new man….

Psychopaths Anonymous is a scathing, violent and darkly funny audiobook about love, connection, obsessions and sex – and the aspects of human nature we’d prefer to hide.

This is my second novel by this author and I bought the audiobook with my last Audible credit. I thought I started off on the wrong foot with the first one but now I’m having to admit that this author is probably not a match for me.

First of all, I have come to realize that I prefer books with a clear and predictable structure, a question at the start of a novel waiting for an answer, a heads up on what mystery needs to be solved. I however got into this novel without anything to hold on to except the 12 steps of AA. But where will it lead after reaching step 12, what is the purpose of the story? After a good part of the story, when it dawned on me what ticked Maeve’s boxes, I was questioning if she would get caught as a serial killer, who the next victim would be, and if she would kill her sexual partner in the end, but her overall thoughts didn’t really interest me as much as wanted them to.

Lots of people are fascinated by psychopaths and how their brain works, as am I, and I probably read and watched a few too many romanticized versions where you can find some redeeming qualities in the characters because there was nothing sympathetic about Maeve. I’m definitely not ‘A Friend of Maeve’ in any way. She’s this know-it-all alcoholic psychopath who joins several group meetings (including AA with the intent to steal some ideas for her own group meeting of Psychopaths Anonymous) because she loves other people’s misery and it obviously feeds her feelings of superiority. I didn’t like Maeve at all, but it might be more worrisome if I did.

Psychopaths Anonymous is not for the faint of heart. Even I found it quite crude when Maeve describes one of her murders in gruesome detail, I must be turning soft now I’m a year older. There is a big dose of violence, alcohol and sex within these pages but I’m somewhat surprised myself that what probably bothered me most were her opinions on God and faith. It was a recurring theme and it didn’t sit well with me how she ridiculed people who find support and solace in their belief. Each to their own of course, and I’m an atheist as well but it felt quite harsh and repetitive.

I looked up the traits of a psychopath and she’s a 100% perfect fit so the author did a great job. I won’t spoil where this story is going to go and if she’s able to keep on hiding body parts in her freezer from Seth, the one person she doesn’t grow tired of. I don’t know what the chances are in real life of this ending happening as it was in this novel, but as far as fictional worlds go, I have to say I’m feeling ok with the way the author ended things for Maeve. I don’t regret sticking to it till the end because I simply had to know how it was going to be wrapped up but in all honesty I probably won’t give it a third shot.

I bought an copy of this audiobook. This is my honest opinion.

For Your Own Good by Samantha Downing #BookReview

Teddy Crutcher has won Teacher of the Year at the elite Belmont Academy, home to the best and brightest.

He says his wife couldn’t be more proud—though no one has seen her in a while.

Teddy really can’t be bothered with a few mysterious deaths on campus that are looking more and more like murder, or with the student digging a little too deep into Teddy’s personal life. His main focus is pushing these kids to their full academic potential.

All he wants is for his colleagues—and the endlessly meddlesome parents—to stay out of his way. If not, well, they’ll get what they deserve.

It’s really too bad that sometimes excellence comes at such a high cost.

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This novel is about Teddy Crutcher. He’s Teacher of the Year at Belmont and his award hangs proudly on the otherwise pristine white walls of his classroom. Teddy is… quite the character. He loves teaching, even teaching some to be better people. If they don’t want to listen they just need to feel it, it’s all for their own good. Unfortunately Teddy makes a mistake and then things only go from bad to worse.

For Your Own Good was fun to read, even with all the murders that happened. A serial killer as a teacher, I didn’t need to hear more. You don’t have to take it too seriously but just go along with the wild ride. It was mostly fun because there was a lot of diversion and pingpong in this novel where the blame is put on people you don’t want to see blamed and you didn’t expect them to get sucked into this. As a reader you know better of course and I kept wanting Teddy to be found out.

I was also very afraid for Zach, one of his students who he targets because he always ‘has a smirk on his face’ and looks arrogant. I was expecting him to either get blamed for murder thanks to Teddy or to be murdered by him so I rooted so much for him. There were several times during my reading that I wanted to shout at Zach to be careful, as well as to Teddy’s co-workers that Teddy Crutcher was dangerous. I hoped someone would stop him.

All I wanted was for Teddy to get his comeuppance for what he did, I looked forward to that moment. I’m feeling a bit ambiguous at the end of the novel by the way it was wrapped up. It’s a good ending, surprising as well, but not exactly how I wanted it to end. It fell a bit flat for me because I wanted the big guns to come out so the whole school would be shook with the revelation. Obviously, it was a different ending than what I had in mind.

Overall, this novel was not at all what I had expected on any front but I found it quite entertaining. Maybe one to give to your children to read, you never know it’ll help keep hem in check at school 🙂

I bought an ecopy of this novel. This is my honest opinion.

Q&A with Tom Bale, author of the ultimate summer thriller ‘Survive’ @t0mbale

On the blog today I’m very happy to welcome Tom Bale, a British author who has written eleven novels so far, including the great titles See How They Run and All Fall Down. Today, however, the spotlight is on his shiny new novel Survive which is claimed to be the ultimate summer thriller.

My review will be up this weekend but until then I hope you’ll enjoy the interview I had with the very kind author. You’ll see that I wasn’t shy asking him about his favorite holiday destination and preferred drink, so if you want to know all, by all means keep on reading!

1. Can you tell me briefly what your latest novel Survive is about?

Survive is the story of Sam and Jody, a young couple with two children, taking their first ever foreign holiday. They’re expecting a week of all-inclusive luxury, but instead they end up fighting for their lives.

2. What inspired you to write this novel, it’s a bit different from your other novels, isn’t it?

It is quite different, yes. I saw it from the beginning as an allegory of sorts, driven by anger and frustration at various news stories illustrating how the one percent treat the rest of us. I was also influenced by a Graham Greene novel, Dr Fischer of Geneva, which has essentially the same theme. As the idea formed, I drew on real-life experiences of holidays with my family – including the rather frightening incident at the start of the novel – and I also sought to create the otherworldly feel that I remembered from John Fowles’ The Magus, a novel that had a big impact on me when I read it as a teenager.

3. The location in the novel is an idyllic island named Sekliw. Did you base it on a real place? I was thinking of Malta when I read it, but I could be completely wrong and it could well be purely fiction as well of course.

The nature of the story meant it had to be a completely fictional island, but when I described it I was thinking of various locations in southern Europe – Greek islands, Cyprus and so on. I’ve never been to Malta, but it sounds like that would make a suitable candidate as well.

(There’s also a clue in the island’s name as to another of the books that inspired me: reverse the word and think Stephen King!)

4. I felt that Jody was the stronger person in the novel, often taking the lead instead of the usual ‘alpha man’. What were your thoughts for this unusual plotline?

To me it was a natural reflection of many relationships that I’ve known and witnessed, especially those involving the parents of young children. Very often the woman is the stronger of the two, the key decision maker, even if that’s not always immediately obvious to others. I also thought it would make for a more interesting dynamic if Sam is less at home in the holiday environment, given that as a society we often still expect the man to take the lead and be the more dominant partner. But once they’re in danger, I think it becomes more balanced. Jody and Sam are both strong at different times and weak at others, and most importantly they have to work together to protect their children.

🌴 🌴 🌴 🌴 🌴 🌴

OK time for some slightly different questions now, inspired by the novel 🙂

5. What is your favorite holiday destination? Do you like an active vacation and do you sign up with a rep (like Gabby (Gabrielle) in Survive) right away or do you like exploring on your own, or perhaps you prefer to relax at the pool all day?

When my children were little we had some wonderful holidays where we signed up for the excursions and the kids took part in daytime activities and loved watching the evening entertainment. Nowadays I’m more likely to favour a quiet beach where I can read and swim in peace. My favourite destination has to be Greece – I’ve been to half a dozen islands and several different places on the mainland, and every single time it was a wonderful, idyllic experience.

6. Which books would you take with you if you were going on holiday next week and why did you pick these?

I love choosing books to take on holiday – and no matter how many I take, I always go mad and buy several more at the airport! Right now I’d go with Masked Prey, the latest book from my favourite thriller writer, John Sandford. For non-fiction I’d take Putin’s People by Catherine Belton, partly because the issues I explored in Survive are more relevant than ever. Finally, a book I’m about to re-read after many years: Sandmouth People by Ronald Frame, which is an evocative, multi-layered story set in the quintessential seaside town.

7. If you were dropped on a deserted island, which 3 items would you take with you?

I know it ought to be food and drink, but my first thought is a large library of books. My second is a large collection of music – perhaps a solar powered MP3 player? And my third would be a speedboat – but failing that, a solar powered fridge full of beer and chocolate!

8. Do you have ANY survival skills? Basically, are you a Jody (with some skills) or a Sam (not so skilled) and would you be able to survive if put to the test?

I don’t really have any survival skills – I was never in the boy scouts, for one thing. But I’m a fairly practical person, and years of plotting out stories has made me a pretty good problem solver. I suspect I’d be okay at building a shelter and finding a way to collect water, but useless when it came to identifying edible plants or berries, let alone catching and cooking fish.

9. OK let’s round up with a more positive note than thoughts of death. What is your favorite cocktail to drink on holiday? 

I don’t really drink spirits, so I’m more likely to take a sip of someone else’s just to try it out, and then return to my ice cold beer!

Huge thanks to Tom for taking the time to answer my questions!

Anyone already having second thoughts too about that all-in holiday? If not, I’ll ask again after you read the novel 😉

I Know Who You Are by Alice Feeney #BookReview @alicewriterland

Meet Aimee Sinclair: the actress everyone thinks they know but can’t remember where from.

Except one person.

Someone who knows Aimee very well―and what she’s done. . .

When Aimee comes home and discovers her husband is missing, she doesn’t seem to know what to do or how to act. The police think she’s hiding something and they’re right, she is―but perhaps not what they thought. Aimee has a secret she’s never shared, and yet, she suspects that someone knows. As she struggles to keep her career and sanity intact, her past comes back to haunt her in ways more dangerous than she could have ever imagined.

Oh the year couldn’t have started in a better way, this one’s as twisty as twisty can be! I loved reading it, it was the next best thing to a sugar rush! I already enjoyed Alice Feeney’s first novel, Sometimes I Lie, so my expectations were already quite high of I Know Who You Are and still she managed to give me more.

Aimee is an actress and she feels that she’s actually been acting her whole life, not only on set. Everyone wants her to play a certain role in life and she tries to please them all, while she tries not to forget who she really is. There’s something about that though, the fact that she likes to put on a mask more than being herself that made her quite illusive and secretive and even though I didn’t have anything concrete it did start to make me think she was hiding something.

OK yes, she is hiding something alright! The second storyline that started when she was only 5 years old brought SO MUCH understanding about who she is and how she became an actress. She’s so insecure and she doesn’t even like being in the spotlight, yet acting is her calling. I know I keep on going on about the acting but I found it such a natural thing for her, I completely got her character.

Someone is calling her out though, claiming to know who she is by leaving mysterious notes. And then her husband Ben goes missing. Are the two related? Who is stalking her?

Honestly, this book was unputdownable. I was massively intrigued by the present storyline and finding out whether Ben was alive or dead, but the past storyline was quite heart-breaking and pulled me in completely. There really are a lot of despicable people in this novel that I loved to hate and I still haven’t decided which one of them was the worst.

I know lots of readers find the ending to be a little outlandish, I totally get it, but for once I was riding the wave and I’m completely with it. OK yes, it’s a totally bonkers twist, but it still makes sense and it just gives you such a delicious yet horrible shock. It’s just what a really amazing author would go for, no holding back here and I love that she ran with the idea!

I can’t wait to read the third novel, His & Hers this summer! I have no doubt I’m going to love that one too!

I received this book in my Book Fairy book box. This is my honest opinion.