Adult Fiction – Page 20

‘Innocent’ – Erin Kinsley

A book with so many shades of grey it really was hard to know where this was going to end.

Our story begins at a lavish summer wedding celebration. Our focus is on the guests, one of whom is a well-known celebrity. Tris Hart is the presenter of some familiar shows, and something of a local hero in Sterndale, the quiet town he lives in with his second wife, Izzy, and their young daughter. We see Tris playing his role well during the evening celebrations, and there is a little concern when he is accosted by someone he knows who wants to discuss their past. Next thing we know Tris is found injured near the hotel pool and is rushed to hospital where he’s taken to intensive care.

From the outset we know we’re dealing with a story that is about finding out who tried to kill Tris. During the course of the investigation we learn some of the secrets that the people of Sterndale have been hiding. It seems there are many with something they would rather people didn’t find out, and as the police dig deeper we start to build our own picture.

We do get our answers, but there’s a lot of misdirection and extra detail to burrow through in order to learn our truth. The sheer size of the cast, and the number of strands involved, did lessen the impact slightly for me but I enjoyed the fact that we built up a fuller picture of our flawed main character and came to understand them better as details were revealed.

Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this prior to publication in exchange for my honest opinion.

‘The Octopus’ – Tess Little

The Octopus is one of those novels that I have to say felt elusive as I was reading. I’m grateful to the publishers and NetGalley for letting me read it before publication, but having just finished it my thoughts are muddled to say the least.

My overwhelming thoughts after finishing this focus on the character of Richard. This is the character who is found dead the morning after his fiftieth birthday, seemingly of a drug overdose, where only eight people were in attendance. One of them must have been responsible, but who? As we learn more about Richard and his character, I think I can safely say every single one of them had reason to want the guy dead. He was a bully, lauded by Hollywood but vile to everyone around him unless they danced to his tune. Parallels with some real-life characters are clear, and while we are told his childhood was not particularly happy it doesn’t garner enough sympathy to excuse his general unpleasantness.

The construction of this book kept us somewhat in the dark regarding the true nature of the character of Richard. We begin with the party and the slow introduction to the people invited. We see things primarily through the eyes of Elspeth, Richard’s ex-wife, but it isn’t long before we start to realise that she has her own complicated story – and this is certainly intriguing, but we’re made to wait for it.

The party scene is elaborate, allowing us the chance to see how Richard interacts with each of the characters. Also introduced at the party is the character of Persephone, Richard’s pet octopus, who seems to represent his desire for control over others. The way he admires her and flaunts her to others exemplifies his attitude to those in his life. At one point Elspeth considers the octopus could have been the killer – what happens to this creature later in the novel certainly made me consider the cost to all involved of their relationships with this odious man.

This is a crime that does get solved, but in the process we uncover other more unsettling crimes that have been overlooked, ignored and even enabled by the reluctance of others to voice their concerns.

The Octopus is a book that did not leave me with many positive feelings at the end. I found it absorbing, but it was certainly not one I could say I enjoyed as it made me so angry at times.

Describing this as a thrilling read is something of a misnomer, but it is most certainly the kind of clever story that reveals itself slowly and which had me hooked from the outset.

We’re told that a mathematician, Grant McAllister, published an article that explored a clear set of rules to which detective stories must adhere. Based on this idea he published a book called The White Murders, a series of seven short stories examining these theories, but has not written anything since. A recluse, living on a remote Mediterranean island, so it is naturally exciting to learn that an editor is visiting Mr McAllister with the view to publishing a new copy of his work.

Our editor, Julia Hart, is the character who frames this story. We’re told she is sent to help Mr McAllister to edit his work so she reads each story aloud to him before they discuss it. The repetitive structure to this shouldn’t work, but it does…and is central to the success of The Eighth Detective.

What we learn after the first story reading is that each of these seven stories includes some unusual detail. It doesn’t necessarily affect the story, but there is something in each that seems incongruous- and we know it’s important, though we’re not sure to what.

As we listen to the individual stories and Julia’s discussion of them with the author, it is clear that each inconsistency is a clue. I was desperate to work this out and found myself eagerly taking apart each of the stories within the story to try and establish which element had been altered.

I was expecting something odd – and we can tell from quite early on that the title of the book is important (both the fictional book and the book we’re reading) – but I felt like the author had performed an amazing sleight of hand when we finally had the reveal.

This was a clever book, and one which would certainly stand up to rereading and closer examination. I enjoyed it immensely and even though some of the coincidences/tricks used were not wholly plausible and I would have liked to see the characters within our present story fleshed out a little more fully, I enjoyed this so much it has to be a five star rating.

I’m very grateful to the publishers, Michael Joseph, and NetGalley for letting me offer my thoughts on this prior to publication and I will certainly be getting my own copy of it to reread in the not too distant future.

‘The Pull of the Stars’ – Emma Donoghue

The Pull of the Stars would be a great read at any time, but as we find ourselves still fighting Coronavirus every page felt important.

Set in Ireland, 1918, we focus on a small part of a much wider problem. Still fighting the ravages of war, the effects of this flu sweeping the nation are evident everywhere. We see them through the eyes of nurse Julia, a woman dedicated to her patients on the maternity ward as she goes about her work.

I was struck by the hopelessness of the situation these people were in. The cheery slogans urging people how to fight this seemed so at odds with what they were experiencing due to poverty or a lack of social care that I felt real anger about how such situations are handled (more a response to what’s happening now than through any knowledge of the time).

From the opening pages I found myself fascinated by the little details Donoghue records about life on the maternity ward in the grip of a pandemic. There was so much to find bleak and dispiriting about this – with the characters we encounter having a high death rate – but there were also some beautiful moments that will stay with me awhile. The joy of the singing between Bridie and the orderly, the elation at a healthy birth after a problematic experience and the sense of hope found from the eating of the blood orange her brother brought all the way from Italy and saved for her birthday.

While there was a lot to find frustrating about this, the time overwhelmingly was one of resolve and determination to wring the life out of your time on this world. A good lesson.

Thanks to the author, publishers and NetGalley for sending me an ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts.

‘One Step Behind’ – Lauren North

One Step Behind is one of those books that promises a lot, but doesn’t quite live up to its promises. It was fine, but it didn’t strike me as particularly memorable.

Our main character is Jenna, a doctor, who is clearly unsettled as she believes someone has been stalking her. She’s been receiving strange emails and calls, and odd gifts have been left on her doorstep. She has contacted the police, who’ve advised her to record any incidents. She catches odd glimpses of the person she believes is responsible, but nothing sufficient to enable the police to arrest him.

One day she is on duty when the man she’s seen following her is admitted into hospital after seemingly being pushed in front of a bus. He’s gravely ill, yet Jenna treats him professionally. She could have let him die, but she didn’t. However, while he’s in hospital Jenna is determined to do whatever is needed to stop this harassment. Finally, I remember thinking, something will move this on.

Unfortunately, what follows was drawn out far longer than really was necessary. It was clear that Jenna was struggling. There were obvious issues with her family and support network, and once we’d established the link between her stalker and someone she knows it was definitely far too transparent to keep us waiting for so long before things finally started to unravel.

Eventually things come to a head. We learn that there’s a lot of messed up people, and most of them don’t really seem to learn anything from this experience.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this in exchange for my honest review.

‘No Offense’ – Meg Cabot

A rather obvious romance with some cute moments, though it all felt too clearly signposted.

Molly Montgomery is the new librarian in the charming town of Little Bridge. When she finds a baby abandoned in the new library we know there’s something strange going on. She is intrigued by the case, and just a little curious about the sheriff investigating it.

From the outset we can tell there will be romance between our sheriff and the librarian, and we’re just waiting to see what else goes on alongside it.
There’s some cute scenes, and you can’t help but like them, but it doesn’t really offer anything out of the ordinary. Perfect summer read, and I’m grateful to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this prior to publication.

‘The Only Good Indians’ – Stephen Graham Jones

My first experience of this author, and listening to a book rather than physically reading it. That, I’m sure, impacted on my ability to settle into the story as it is such an unfamiliar way of reading for me.

When I started this I really didn’t know what to expect. I, like many, have heard the rest of the phrase this title is taken from, and the pre-release info makes it clear this is not a book for the faint-hearted. I have little experience of the background of the characters this book focused on, so I was definitely nervous about missing something or doing the author a disservice through my own ignorance.

The book opens with a frankly unsettling scene, resulting in the death of an Indian man outside a bar. There’s mention of elk, and I really did have to go back and listen to the start again as I thought I had misheard something! We then switch our focus to another character, Lewis, who we learn was part of a close-knit group of four young men who did something so awful that even after leaving his reservation he lives with the guilt. We learn this event took place ten years previously, and it’s something to do with the strange and unsettling experiences of him imagining he now sees an elk-headed woman in his front room.

Initially I have to say I found the narrative of this quite hard to follow. We jump from event to event and there’s a muddling of time-frames that left me quite confused and even wondering if I could get through this. I don’t honestly know if this would have been any different reading…and looking at other’s responses to this, perhaps not.

If you’ve decided to pick this up and read it then you’re likely to have done a little research. We know the story focuses on the awful events that took place ten years before our book opens – where Lewis and his three friends venture onto a section of the reservation that is only meant to be accessed by elders and butcher a number of elk. They are punished, and alongside their feelings of guilt they have to contend with the expectations of others because of who they are. Now, ten years on, something has returned to get revenge.

The book was dark. We had graphic descriptions of dogs being mutilated, elk being shot and people being killed. As the book progressed and there was talk of the elk-head woman I wasn’t sure if this was going into supernatural territory or whether some kind of breakdown was being described. During the narrative we switched viewpoints from Lewis to the elk as well as the daughter of one of the men involved in the original event.

Once we were back on the reservation and following Cassidy and Gabe, I was surprised at how funny parts of this book were. Thought I’m no basketball fan, I was completely gripped by the character of Gabe’s daughter who really made this into something more than I was expecting. The final scene, though definitely not one I want to dwell on, was also more uplifting than I was expecting.

Thanks to the publishers, Saga Press, and NetGalley for granting me access to this prior to publication.

‘Devolution’ – Max Brooks

As the ash and chaos from Mount Rainier’s eruption swirled and finally settled, the story of the Greenloop massacre has passed unnoticed, unexamined… until now. But the journals of resident Kate Holland, recovered from the town’s bloody wreckage, capture a tale too harrowing – and too earth-shattering in its implications – to be forgotten.

Whatever we might think of the legends, it’s impossible not to be fascinated by the stories. I really didn’t quite know where this book would go, but it was a story I was curious to read once I’d heard about it.

The premise is quite straightforward…the author has found journals belonging to Kate Holland, a young woman who moved into Greenloop (a remote hi-tech village) that tells us about the aftermath of a volcanic eruption and the residents’ attempts to survive. She is missing, so nobody knows exactly what happened, but her journals tell us that the group were found by Bigfoot.

Whatever your view of this legend, the idea of an undiscovered animal race is fascinating. Much of our fascination with such a creature comes with our need to work out our place in society and to consider how we could interact with such a group.

What I learnt from this is to be careful what you wish for, and to think carefully about the skills you have before you go and live somewhere so remote. You never know what you’re capable of until you are forced into the position of need.

As we watch Kate, her partner Dan and the other residents come to the realisation that they’re no longer top of the food chain there’s a distinctly menacing feel to this. Gruesome at times, it explores just how far we are prepared to go to survive.

Of course it would have been nice to have a rounded-off story but I liked the way this was done. Scary – absolutely – but very very interesting.

‘The Night Swim’ – Megan Goldin

Thank you to the author, publisher St Martin’s Press and NetGalley for granting me access to this prior to publication in exchange for my review. Having just finished, I feel emotionally wrecked – and though the subject for this book will be a trigger for some readers, it’s a must-read in my view.

The first thing I have to make clear is that fans of The Escape Room, or anyone who’s picked this up because it’s marketed as a tense thriller could well be disappointed. It’s tense on occasion, but this struck me as a more complicated mystery and it would be such a shame for readers to feel put-off as they expected something different.

Something I have to state early on is that I loved the narrative of this. Our main character, Rachel, is producing her third series of a popular crime podcast. She has attracted many fans, so for this series opts to head to a small town to cover a live case…that of a potential Olympic swimmer accused of raping a sixteen year old girl known only as K. It poses risks – and as the book begins we sense there’ll be more to it, but I was quite taken aback by the links between this case and one from twenty-five years earlier.

I really don’t want to say too much about either case, as I think the success of this novel depends on us establishing the facts of each case as they’re revealed and – like Rachel – slowly piecing together the links.

I hurt reading this, and that’s no bad thing. Reading the details of the events described, and the behaviour of those in court was tough. Necessary, but draining. I cannot emphasise enough how much I think this book – awful though the subject is – should be read by everyone.

‘The Heatwave’ – Katerina Diamond

I’ve loved the Imogen Grey series so far, so was keen to read this standalone by Diamond. It’s a tricky one to review, as there is a lot going on.

Our main character is someone with something to hide. She catches a news report of a girl going missing in Sidmouth, and though she lives in the Lake District she says she has to travel down to sort out things from her past that she thinks are connected to this disappearance. We know no more than that, but we definitely want answers.

Once she arrives in this picturesque town we get a real sense of something hidden, though not enough to help us piece things together with any certainty. I found it odd that people were so keen to spill details of this missing girl to someone they either didn’t know or only vaguely recollected.

While it offered us insight into the narrator, it felt weird to have the split narrative talking about her time in the town as a teenager. We learnt about her friendship with Felicity, the strange events surrounding her teacher and the mysterious Tim who was befriended by her parents though the reasons for this aren’t clear.

As the story progresses it’s apparent that the events of the past are the ones we should be concerned with. If we learn what happened, then the links to the present day will be clearer. When we eventually reach this point it did feel rather abrupt, which jarred a little. It offered some resolution but not quite as I’d hoped for.

The book itself is a read I’d recommend, and I’m grateful to the publishers for letting me read it in advance of publication, but I was hoping for something a little different.