Book Review: THE ORPHANS by Annemarie Neary

Title: The Orphans

Author: Annemarie Neary
Publisher: Random House UK, Cornerstone
Read: March 2017

Expected publication: 15 June 2017

Synopsis (Goodreads):

Goa, 1992.
Six year old Jess and her little brother Sparrow are on the beach, playing at the water’s edge. They look to the place where Mama and Pa had been sitting, but there’s no one there. Jess and Sparrow hold hands and sit on the sand so that they can catch the moment when their parents come back. But nobody comes back.

And one sleep goes by and then two, and then twenty-two, then forty, then ninety-five, right to the end of numbers. And nobody came back.

London, 2017.
Jess, now a lawyer, wife and mother has become a locker of doors. She has built walls around her life and her ordered home to keep further disaster at bay.

Ro has taken a different path. He has followed his missing mother all his life in the hope that one day he will find her and she will love him again.

When Ro steps through the garden gate back into Jess’s carefully guarded world, bad things start to happen.

The time has come for Jess to find out what happened on the beach that day.

My thoughts: 

If you had Mama for a day, what would you ask her? If you had Mama for a week, where would you want her to take you?

In 1992, Jess and Sparrow are two naked golden-skinned children on a golden beach in Goa, digging in the sand and looking for shells, living a carefree life with their unconventional hippie parents. But their childhood is about to change forever when both their parents disappear without a trace. One minute they are right there with them, the next they are gone. Whilst their father‘s body is later discovered in a nearby copse of trees, a suspected drug deal gone wrong, their mother has never been found. Now in their late twenties and early thirties, the siblings are still haunted by the mystery of their mother’s disappearance. Is it possible that Sophie could still be alive? Sparrow, who has spent his entire adult life chasing leads that may lead him to his mother, firmly believes so, and is off to Ireland to track down his latest lead, an old friend of Sophie’s from their wandering years. Jess, on the other hand, has moved on with her life by blocking out her childhood trauma, although deep down she knows it has affected her in many subtle ways. Knowing how to be a good mother to her toddler Ruby, for example, who at times seems more attached to their horrible nanny Hana than she is to Jess. Or the way she buries herself in work and turns a blind eye to her husband’s infidelities, for the simple fear of further abandonment and tragedy.

One disaster doesn’t stop the others from lining up to take its place.

When the police contact Jess to tell her that an old passport of her mother’s has been found in the caravan of a dead woman in Ireland, history comes back to haunt her once again. How did it get there, and why is it in her mother’s maiden name, with a photo Jess does not recognise? And worst of all, where is Sparrow, and what is his involvement? So many questions without answers. Jess, who has successfully suppressed the memories of that fateful day for decades, realises that she can no longer run away from the past.

It still seems impossible, the comprehensive loss of both parents. Not a scrap of evidence. Just the disbelief, the sudden void, the constant chatter of voices she didn’t understand, the fear that nothing would ever be safe again.

The Orphans is a poignant story of tragedy and grief, and the after effects of one of the most devastating of all losses – the death or disappearance of a parent. Having lost my own mother at a young age, I could fully relate to the gaping hole Sophie’s disappearance has left in the siblings’ lives. Jess, who is constantly searching for her own identity as a woman, wife and mother. And Sparrow, who has forever remained a small boy at heart, putting his life on hold to invest all his energies in trips around the world in the hopes of finding his mother alive and well. Seeing her image in every stranger who remotely bears a resemblance to the Sophie of his childhood, the older woman she may have become.  

Yes, I do, I miss her. I have always missed her. I am only a scrap of the person I should be.

With the discovery of Sophie’s old passport, the old wound is ripped open again, and Jess must face up to the prospect that their mother willingly abandoned them. Is the possibility that Sophie is alive and choosing not to make contact with her family worse than the thought of her being dead? Suddenly all the excuses Jess has made for her mother, all the scenarios she has pictured in her mind, come crashing down in the face of that huge possible betrayal.

 And there, into the space Jess has made for her, comes Sophie Considine, who was Mary really, and who, it seems, will never go away but linger uselessly at the margins – a reminder of the traps life lays for the unwary, and of the numerous ways a mother can fall short.

The Orphans is a sensitively drawn and sometimes heart-breaking story of growing up in the shadow of childhood trauma, with the gaping hole left behind by the death or disappearance of the people who are supposed to love us most of all – our parents. With small flashbacks to that fateful day on the beach, and mounting tension as the siblings must face up to the past once more, the reader is drawn into a story where tragedy is always just a step away. I very much enjoyed Nearys’ writing style, and look forward to reading more from this author in future.

  

 Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free electronic copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

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Book Review: LAST BREATH (Detective Erika Foster #4) by Robert Bryndza

Title: Last Breath

Author: Robert Bryndza
Publisher: Bookouture
Read: April 2016

Expected publication: 12 April 2016

Synopsis (Goodreads):

He’s your perfect date. You’re his next victim.

When the tortured body of a young woman is found in a dumpster, her eyes swollen shut and her clothes soaked with blood, Detective Erika Foster is one of the first at the crime scene. The trouble is, this time, it’s not her case.

While she fights to secure her place on the investigation team, Erika can’t help but get involved and quickly finds a link to the unsolved murder of a woman four months earlier. Dumped in a similar location, both women have identical wounds – a fatal incision to their femoral artery.

Stalking his victims online, the killer is preying on young pretty women using a fake identity. How will Erika catch a murderer who doesn’t seem to exist?

Then another girl is abducted while waiting for a date. Erika and her team must get to her before she becomes another dead victim, and, come face to face with a terrifyingly sadistic individual.

Gripping, tense and impossible to put down, Last Breath will have you on the edge of your seat, racing to the final dramatic page. 

My thoughts:

I am glad that Robert Bryndza is a fast writer, so the wait for the fourth instalment in his totally addictive Erika Foster series was not too agonisingly long – and now hoping the fifth one will be out soon (hint, hint!). Needless to say, I jumped at the opportunity to apply for an early review copy and did my little happy dance when I received the approval from Netgalley, even if it meant getting in trouble with my family for barricading myself in my room in anticipation of an all-night read-a-thon, leaving the dishes unwashed and the dog unfed (she hasn’t forgiven me yet).

In Last Breath, Detective Chief Inspector Erika Foster is still serving her time in exile in Bromley shuffling paperwork and feeling perpetually bored, her latest application to get back on the murder squad once more declined by her archenemy Superintendent Andy Sparks. When the mutilated corpse of a young woman is found in a dumpster, it is exactly the kind of case Erika feels passionate about, even more so when she discovers a link to the cold case of a missing runaway.

She cared deeply about the victims, and like so many of the cases she had worked on over the years, it was not only the terrible circumstances of the victims’ deaths which haunted her, it was the lives that had been snuffed out prematurely. Young women with so much life left to live: careers, babies, holidays, and all those joys now denied them.

Determined to be involved in the investigation at all cost and convinced that she can bring the murderer to justice, Erika is prepared to eat humble pie to change Spark’s mind, even if it means begging on her knees to get her old job back. The meeting takes an unexpected turn – you will need to read it yourself to find out how! This is my clue to stop here and let the book do the talking, because it wouldn’t do at all to give away any spoilers.

Be assured that Last Breath is a cracker of a thriller, and just as fast-paced and addictive as the previous books in the series. I love Bryndza’s direct writing style, offering short action-packed chapters that move the story along at a pace that sets your pulse racing. Since the killer features very early on as one of the central characters, Last Breath develops into a cat-and-mouse game where the murder team always seem just one little step behind the murderer, racing against the clock to prevent more young women from dying. I found the details regarding CCTV technology and other types of modern surveillance fascinating – living in a small country town I feel very naive and sheltered from these types of urban realities. Bryndza’s central theme of the dark side of social media offered some clever plot twists and served as a reminder to be more mindful of how this modern tool can be exploited by a twisted mind.

Erika is a wonderful protagonist, and I was happy to see   all the other much-loved members of the squad back in this one, with its usual dynamics and vivid dialogue. Erika is perhaps a little bit mellower in this book as her friendship with Peterson develops into something a little bit more, although her passion for her job has not diminished. If I were ever in trouble, I would definitely want her on my case!

“It would be really good if you could catch this one’” said Doug, his face set in grim sadness. Erika nodded. “I will. I always do.”

Last Breath is the type of book where you need to set aside plenty of reading time, knowing that nothing will get done until the last page has been turned. So order a take-away, lock all the doors, put the phone on silent and settle in for a cracking good read. Very highly recommended!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free electronic copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. 

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If you haven't discovered the Erika Foster series yet, I recommend starting with Book 1 and reading your way through all the books in order - you can thank me later ;) Whilst every one of them offers a cracking good murder-mystery in its own right, it's great to see the inter-personal relationships develop and watching the characters grow in depth in every book. Click on each cover for a link to the Goodreads page.

   

Book Review: THE SONG OF THE STORK by Stephan Collishaw

Title: The Song of the Stork

Author: Stephan Collishaw
Publisher: Legend Press
Read: March 2017

Synopsis (Goodreads):

Fifteen year old Yael is on the run. The Jewish girl seeks shelter from the Germans on the farm of the village outcast. Aleksei is mute and solitary, but as the brutal winter advances, he reluctantly takes her in and a delicate relationship develops. As her feelings towards Aleksei change, the war intrudes and Yael is forced to join a Jewish partisan group fighting in the woods. Torn apart and fighting for her life, The Song of the Stork is Yael's story of love, hope, and survival. It is the story of one woman finding a voice as the voices around her are extinguished.

My thoughts:

It is 1941, and the German army is occupying Lithuania, trying to force its way across the Eastern Front into Russia. 15-year old Yael, a Jewish girl driven from her home by German soldiers, is fighting a daily battle to survive in the forest with a group of partisans, knowing that discovery will mean certain death. Malnourished, dirty and all alone after her last friend has succumbed to a sudden and swift illness, Yael stumbles across a lonely farmhouse owned by a young mute man, Aleksei, shunned by the rest of the community as being crazy. Sheltering in the henhouse for warmth, Yael drinks water from the well and ekes out a meagre supply of food from the scraps on the compost heap, until the first days of winter cold force her to knock on Aleksei’s door for shelter. Afraid for his life, Aleksei sends the young girl away, refusing to help her. But the same evening, Yael finds a small plate of food left for her near the henhouse. Over time, a tentative friendship between the two young people forms, and in this coldest winter of 1941, Yael comes to find refuge in Aleksei’s home.

The Song of the Stork is a beautiful story of courage and survival, and of love found in the most unlikely places. Character driven and with vivid imagery, the author evokes the harsh realities of living in fear, of trying to survive in a cold hostile place against all odds. And yet, in this darkest chapter of history, humanity still shines through in small acts of kindness, in a shy friendship forming between a young orphaned girl and a solitary young man. I loved the scenes describing Yael’s life in Aleksei’s house, the simplicity of the small pleasures, of feeling safe and sheltered, of having food and water to wash, of being able to sit in front of a warm fire. How we take all those things for granted! The complete isolation of Yael and Aleksei’s life in the remote farmhouse away from civilisation and at the mercy of nature reminded me of scenes from Our Endless Numbered Days, as Peggy and her father try to survive the cold winter with just each other as company.

Is it possible, she thought, that here, in the middle of war, as on all sides carnage and murder stalk the world, is it possible that there can exist this pocket of peace? Of joy? Of sanity? Are there more?

I would have been very happy to stay there with them and read more about their daily struggles to find food, cut wood, stay warm and safe keep their hopes up that this terrible war would soon be over. But once the cold winter ends and the snow retreats, so does their safety, and the second half of the book took an unexpected turn which saw Yael’s life in turmoil again.

Yael was torn with the irony that with the spring, with this resurrection of the earth, war once more became possible; death could continue its rampage across the continent.

I was impressed by Collishaw’s writing, and it totally swept me away into a different time and place. There are many books out there about the events during WWII described, but The Song of the Stork touched me deeply, without some of the overly graphic scenes used by other authors to describe the horrors of war – Collinshaw manages to convey this message in the simple everyday battle of survival and the tentative emotional bond that forms between the two main protagonists. I admit I liked the second part of the story a lot less and was a bit disappointed with the ending, since it left many questions unanswered. However, I must concede that in Yael’s reality as a displaced person the longed for happy conclusion was merely wishful thinking on my part. In summary, The Song of the Stork is a contemplative coming-of-age story of a young girl displaced by war and trying to survive in a hostile world. Atmospheric and focusing on inter-human relationships, it drew me in deeply and transported me to another time and place like only few novels can. Recommended to anyone who enjoys historical fiction set in WWII.

Quotes:

It was not in the thunder nor the lightning, nor in the strong wind, but in the still small voice that God was.

If nobody knows I am here, she thought, if there is nobody to say my name, then do I really exist? 

Was this then love? she wondered. Not a fairy tale, not the romance and passion she had dreamt of. Not dramatic. Not inexplicable. But rather a deep, penetrating thankfulness for the kindness of another.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free electronic copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. 

Book Review: THE MISSING ONES by Patricia Gibney

Title: The Missing Ones (D.I. Lottie Parker Book One)

Author: Patricia Gibney
Publisher: Bookouture
Read: March 2017

Synopsis (Goodreads):

The hole they dug was not deep. A white flour bag encased the little body. Three small faces watched from the window, eyes black with terror.

The child in the middle spoke without turning his head. ‘I wonder which one of us will be next?’

When a woman’s body is discovered in a cathedral and hours later a young man is found hanging from a tree outside his home, Detective Lottie Parker is called in to lead the investigation. Both bodies have the same distinctive tattoo clumsily inscribed on their legs. It’s clear the pair are connected, but how?

The trail leads Lottie to St Angela’s, a former children’s home, with a dark connection to her own family history. Suddenly the case just got personal.

As Lottie begins to link the current victims to unsolved murders decades old, two teenage boys go missing. She must close in on the killer before they strike again, but in doing so is she putting her own children in terrifying danger?

Lottie is about to come face to face with a twisted soul who has a very warped idea of justice. 

  

My thoughts:

Three years after losing her husband Adam to cancer, Detective Lottie Parker is still trying to come to terms with her grief and juggle her all-consuming job in the police force with the demands of bringing up three teenagers singlehandedly. Murders are not a common occurrence in the small Irish town of Ragmullin, so when two people are killed in short succession it rocks the community to the core. With her team of detectives, Lottie is at a loss to connect the two deaths, until her enquiries lead her to the gates of St Angela’s, a deserted old mansion that used to serve as a home for wayward teenagers and the unwanted children of unmarried mothers until the 1970’s. The mere look at the old building sends shivers through Lottie, as she is reminded of her own personal connection to the place. As her enquiries lead her further and further into the dark history of the home and the secrets buried deep in Ragmullin’s past, she realises that she is dealing with some powerful people who will not stop at murder to keep the truth hidden. And soon the body count mounts ...

Giving Lottie Parker’s richly drawn history, I was surprised to read that The Missing Ones was Patricia Gibney’s debut novel! With her opening sentences, she instantly mastered that most difficult of all arts – to draw me into the story immediately, and keep me deeply rooted there. The Missing Ones is a very dark book, with sinister themes that haunted me in my sleep, even more so since we know that the abuse described has its origins in true historical facts. I was somewhat shocked and surprised at the timeline of the story, which had its origins in the 1970’s, a time when I had assumed that there would have been more awareness and compassion preventing the hideous acts depicted. Terrifying! Linking the past with greed, corruption and depravity in the present time, the novel skips back and forth through history, exposing the true – and horrific – extent of the crimes Lottie is investigating.

Whilst I haven’t quite yet welcomed Lottie into the fold of my personal favourite fictional female detectives, such as Maeve Kerrigan (Jane Casey), Lacey Flint (Sharon Bolton), Fiona Griffiths (Harry Bingham) and ErikaFoster (Robert Bryndza), she certainly has the potential to be included on that list. Most women trying to juggle a demanding career with family will be able to relate to her struggles, and the guilt she feels on a daily basis as she is constantly torn between the two areas of her life. And as much as she is trying to keep work separate from family, the more impossible it becomes, until she finds that the nature of her work has put one of her own in danger. There are also the tentative hints at office politics involving Lottie and her colleagues, which I am hoping will further play out in future books and make this a very addictive series with many characters we will want to revisit.

Although this was a dark and disturbing read, I enjoyed the slow methodical unravelling of the clues leading to the story’s chilling finale. At times, the sheer amount of different characters was a bit overwhelming, and the book was perhaps just a tad too long, but these are minor quibbles. I loved the cold, damp and grey Irish winter setting, which was beautifully evoked on every page, and added its own chilling atmosphere to the story.

Gibney definitely is a writer to watch and an exciting new voice in crime fiction. I look forward to seeing Lottie Parker featuring in many more novels to come.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free electronic copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. 

Quotes:

The life in Ragmullin appeared to have died with the economy.

To get to high places, some people have to bark their way through a dog eat dog world. It erodes their humanity.

How did everyone else get the conscientious brainy children while hers lounged around listening to music or twiddling their thumbs on a PlayStation?

Book Review: FOLLOW ME DOWN by Sherri Smith

Title: Follow Me Down

Author: Sherri Smith
Publisher: Forge Books
Read: March 2017

Expected publication: 21 March 2017

Synopsis (Goodreads):

Mia Haas has built a life for herself far from the North Dakota town where she grew up, but when she receives word that her twin brother is missing, she’s forced to return home. Once hailed as the golden boy of their small town, Lucas Haas disappeared the same day the body of one of his high school students is pulled from the river. Trying to wrap her head around the rumors of Lucas’s affair with the teen, and unable to reconcile the media’s portrayal of Lucas as a murderer with her own memories of him, Mia is desperate to find another suspect.

All the while, she wonders, if he’s innocent, why did he run?

As Mia reevaluates their difficult, shared history and launches her own investigation into the grisly murder, she uncovers secrets that could exonerate Lucas—or seal his fate. In a small town where everyone’s history is intertwined, Mia will be forced to confront her own demons, placing her right in the killer’s crosshairs.

My thoughts:

I love it when I accidentally stumble across a book that is exactly the type of taut and atmospheric thriller I enjoy reading – and from an author I had  previously not discovered, which hints at many more reading pleasures yet to come (please keep writing, Sherri Smith!).

Mia and Lucas Haas had a tough childhood growing up with an alcoholic mother, Mimi, who despite the siblings’ pleas has never revealed the identity of their father. After an accident that left Mimi brain damaged and living in an assisted care facility, the siblings were propelled into an early adulthood with responsibilities far beyond their years. Whilst Mia has made her life far from home, working as a pharmacist in the city, Lucas has returned to their hometown in North Dakota, teaching English at the local high school and shouldering the responsibility of visiting Mimi regularly. Whilst the twins are still close, the geographical distance means that they don’t get to see each other very often. When Mia receives a phone call from the police informing her that Lucas is missing, suspected of having murdered one of his teenage students, Mia is horrified. It is impossible that her brother, one of the town’s battlers made good against all odds, who manages to charm everyone with his good looks and gentle nature, is capable of such an act of violence. And yet there are many witnesses who claim to have seen Lucas and the dead girl together, and Lucas is nowhere to be found to defend himself. As Mia investigates some of the rumours going around town, she becomes increasingly afraid not only for her brother’s reputation, but also for his safety.

“His need to be known as a good guy was almost pathological. We were the approval seeking byproduct of our histrionic alcoholic mother; we just went about it differently. I cared less about being likeable than being considered impressive, whereas Lucas really wanted to be liked, the guy everyone wanted around, and that was who he’s always been. Unless. Unless he’s dead too.”

But since the police are convinced that he is guilty, they refuse to take her seriously. To clear her brother’s name, Mia has no choice than to start her own investigation. Even when it may put her own life in danger ....

Follow Me Down offers everything a good thriller should: featuring a gutsy, if flawed, main protagonist who takes on the role as sleuth, slowly and methodically unveiling layer after layer of secrets and scandal to finally reveal all in an explosive, action-packed and totally unexpected finale. I hungrily devoured page after page until late into the night, only reluctantly putting the book aside from sheer exhaustion and the knowledge that I had to look semi-alive at work the next day.

Mia is a wonderful protagonist. Whilst flawed (or maybe because of it), she is the type of gutsy female that drives a storyline and makes you fear for her as she faces one obstacle after another, not cowed by the town folk’s hostility or the danger she is putting herself in. And of course there is the guilt and doubt she lives with on a daily basis, which gives her the kind of dry humour and no-nonsense outlook on life I find refreshing. It made a welcome change from what seems to be a current trend in crime fiction, of presenting feeble confused females as unreliable narrators (which works well sometimes, but can be very irritating if not done correctly). Mia was relatable, from her loyalty and love for her twin against all odds, and her brave perseverance in the face of adversity and hostility from the people she has grown up with. By endowing her with a dysfunctional parent and a traumatic childhood, Mia’s background provides an interesting and three-dimensional base on which her whole character is built – warts and all.

Well done to Sherri Smith for tackling a completely new genre with such finesse! Follow Me Down is a taut, compelling and well-constructed thriller that kept me totally enthralled until the very last page. I recommend it highly and will be looking out for more books from this talented author in future.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free electronic copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. 

Quotes:

The past was crammed down your throat everywhere you turned here; you could never escape it.

I really, really wanted her to be fat – like, had-to-rent-a-crane-to-be-removed-from-her-house fat – and was truly disappointed that she wasn’t.

That’s the thing with siblings – you never stop seeing the children you once were floating beneath your grown-up faces.