He Said, She Said is one of the best books that I have read this year.
Told by two different people over a period of fifteen years it focuses on Laura and Kit who are witnesses to an attack at a festival to celebrate the eclipse. When Laura makes an error of judgement at the trial she is afraid of the consequences. But she doesn’t expect to be still living in fear years later. Beth, the young woman who was attacked is very much a part of their lives but they are not comfortable with her being so close to them. Laura’s story covers the way she has suffered since the trial and how she has kept it secret but Kit’s shows a more selfish side and how he has done things that places them in more danger.
I love a book with more than one narrator that also covers more than one period in time and I should imagine that it is difficult to do. Erin Kelly though has done it very well. There is a lot of drama and tension all the way through the book and both Laura and Kit have really suffered since the eclipse. At times, I felt very tense while reading and when it switched narrator I couldn’t wait to return to see what happened next.
The court scenes were the most convincing that I have read. A very convincing villain who maintained his innocence, a ruthless lawyer who had no sympathy at all for a victim. It was also, just as terrifying as I imagine it to be on a witness stand.
This is only the second book I have read by this author and I’m looking forward to reading more by her.
Erin Kelly will be appearing at First Monday Crime on the 6th March. This looks like a very interesting evening and details can be found here

With thanks to the publisher for the copy via NetGalley.

This was a very well-constructed, well thought out thriller.

The plot was based around a subject I had never even thought was as big as it apparently is (eclipse chasing that is, not the other central theme), which was interesting in it itself. The story is unravelled through two timelines, one in the past and one in the present, both of which serve to provide a true representation of one crucial event that triggered all subsequent events, through the peeling back of layer upon layer of deceit, lies, and half-truths.

Some great twists and turns throughout the book keep the reader engaged from the start. I personally love the way the ending was wrapped up, and who wouldn't enjoy one last character reveal to leave you imploring yourself 'whose actions can be justified, if any'.

Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

A slow start but once you get through 25% , it picks up pace. The story follows Laura and Kit around the world, chasing eclipses. Laura witnesses a rape during a festival and that changes everything between her and Kit. The end is a bit drastic but quite chilling! A good read.

A good move on in the unreliable narrator genre.

More than a psych thriller. Quite enjoyed the eclipse chasing backdrop.

My only complaint would be Kits narration which still very much backsup Laura's version of Beth, which in retrospect doesn't add up. Not sure why he'd claim to be so terrified of seeing her....

But doesn't take away from page turner build as a reader.

A very engaging and thought-provoking tale with some super twists. It's told in two viewpoints by Laura and Kit so we see how they each react to the incident, the trial and the reappearance in their lives of the accuser and the accused. Information is introduced gradually, casting things in a different light and then a different one again and building up to a dramatic finale. The motif of the different stages of the eclipse echoing the shadowy uncertainty and gradual revelation of the truth worked for me and I'd definitely recommend this book.

This book was a bit of a slow start for me, mainly because I'm not at all interested in eclipses! But that didn't last for long, I was totally hooked after a few pages more! . The plot line was so clever, and had me guessing or thinking I knew, when I didn't! The original story line draws you in, you make judgements around what happened, or didn't happen, who was guilty, or not. But then it takes a more complex turn. Its so well written and the characters are so well described, I felt I knew them all really well. Having said that, I didn't see the twists that started coming fast and furious towards the end of the story. Brilliant book, I loved it!

Over on Goodreads, there appears a trend for defining books of this genre as "twist-lit". Think of novels like Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train in which a defining twist turns everything you had believed on it's head.

This is exactly what He Said She Said did for me. It is the thriller I have waited to read for a long, long time.

I came to read this quite by accident while browsing through ARCs on Netgalley. Featured among the "most requested titles" it was described as domestic noir: a novel featuring a central storyline of a brutal attack and it's aftermath for the two key witnesses. But it is so very much more than that. It is a tour-de-force of impending dread, a psychological joyride through the nuances of truth, trust and control.

The story is told through the eyes of the two central protagonists, Laura and her boyfriend Kit, They are students at first, helping to run a tea stall at a festival in Lizard Point in Devon at the time of the solar eclipse. In the aftermath of totality, Laura stumbles upon a brutal attack on a young woman, followed shortly by Kit. As witnesses, they are drawn into the court case - a case of "he said, she said" in terms of conviction, which lays claim to the novel's title.

Chapters alternate between the past (the eclipse, court case and aftermath) to the present day, and between the viewpoints of both Laura and Kit. This effect is seamless for the most part, though there were a few sections towards the end when I needed to turn back to remind myself "where" in the story I was reading.

A sense of dread pervades throughout this fantastically layered novel. Little by little, the characters' true personality and motivations are revealed. My sense of "the truth" was turned on it's head several times throughout this first reading, particularly around three-quarters of the way through when the major plot twist occurs. I had to read a particular sentence several times before the truth of it sank in. It was masterfully delivered!

One of the most enjoyable - and haunting - elements of He Said She Said is the exploration of dependency and abuse. The lines between these two traits of personality are deliberately blurred: none just for one or two characters, but for all of them. I also really liked the theme of "eclipse chasing", which was fantastically well-researched and added a huge depth to the story to inspire character motivations.

This is such a well-written novel, perfectly delivered and retrospectively haunting. I sincerely hope this received the attention and sales it deserves. In fact, I'm unsure I even want to read another thriller this year: He Said She Said was so good that I'm not sure any other twist-lit title could compare!

Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an advanced reading copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

He Said/She Said' by Erin Kelly is a very entertaining read in a disturbing and twisted way. It is extremely well written, and the plot is very clever. I was unsure about it at first and it took a little time to get into it, but I am so glad that I stuck with it. Highly recommended.

I enjoyed this book although I have to be honest, I nearly gave up at times. Personally, I think it is far too long, too much space is given over to Kit on the ship and also pages full of background information without any dialogue. I started to get impatient to learn what secret connected them to the dreaded Beth, but felt as though I was wading through chapters that went on and on without getting any nearer to the truth. The storyline was excellent and also the surprise ending, but it definitely needs trimming down. Sad to say I skimmed some pages but am glad I stuck with it as the writing is really excellent.

This was difficult for me, I wanted o give four stars but I did find the beginning of the novel really slow, however, once, the action moved to Cornwall so did the story. It picked up, then galloped along at a cracking pace drawing me in to the story. However I did find the ending drawn out and a bit unlikely. Hence really more of a 3.5 star read.

Brilliant book. Excellent main characters and plot. I would recommend this book.

Interesting,intricate,complicated,complex and plenty surprises.

A compelling dark psychological drama which begins with a young couple witnessing a violent act in Cornwall while viewing the eclipse and then deals with the aftermath. The author writes very well and the background of various eclipses adds to the atmosphere.

We know from the beginning of the book that Laura and Kit who witnessed the attack on Beth live in fear of their lives and Laura in particular is obsessional about keeping their identities a secret. She is pregnant and Kit heads off eclipse hunting without her. We also know that they are afraid of Beth, the victim of the alleged attack. Through a dual timeline between the 2000 eclipse and 2015 eclipse and a dual narrative from the perspective of Laura and Kit, we can begin to piece together what happened. The chapters from Laura were full of anxiety and worry, the author conveyed her feelings so well, but the chapters from Kit were a little drawn out and dull.

This isn't a story about the violent act and the court case. This was just a trigger for what happened next. It's more about the consequences of actions and even lies. I wasn't sure I liked either of the main characters. Victim Beth seemed to have more dimension and there was always a question for me over how she was being painted.

For me, the final unravelling was a bit weak but the chilling final sentence made up for it. I would definitely recommend this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy.

This is the first book by Erin Kelly that I have read although I have of course, watched Broadchurch. If you have read, or indeed watched and enjoyed Broadchurch, Gone Girl or Girl on a Train then you will love this book. Just as you think you are coming to terms with the situation and the characters there's a totally unexpected and often chilling twist to take you unawares.

The story flits between various times and the story is related in turn by the two main players but this is done so seamlessly it doesn't cause the reader any problem. Erin Kelly's main talent does seem to be the unexpected that with hindsight is perfectly plausible. The author has obviously done her research on eclipses however her characters are maybe not as well rounded or indeed as likeable as I would have wished and the story did seem longer than it really needed to be but overall this is a great book that I would recommend to anyone that enjoys a chilling thriller.

Firstly, thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me a pre release copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I'm sad to say that this is a first for me. More often than not I get a Thriller that is generally just that - it keeps you guessing and keeps you holding on wanting more and struggling to put the book down, even when reality demands your attention. This, I have to say, was quite the opposite. I really was struggling to want to pick it up and start again. It wasn't holding my attention in the slightest.

The plot centres around Kit and Laura, who are Total Eclipse chasers, and who a few years ago were involved with witnessing Jamie raping Beth while at an Eclipse festival in Cornwall.

It's taken me over a fortnight to get a third of the way into the book and, to be honest, I really have lost interest. It's spent that long bouncing around between 2000 and 2016 but not actually getting anywhere that I no longer care whether it really was rape or not - which from what I can tell is what the whole novel is based around. I've never abandoned a book part way through before, but this one, I'm afraid to say, is going to be the first. I can't think of anything good to say about it so I'm going to leave it there.

3.5 stars - a really engaging and "different feeling" read, but sometimes the pacing suffered. I enjoy a dual-timeline structure but Kit's 2015 parts dragged. What started off as an interesting look at how the criminal justice system fails rape victims turned a bit OTT and overblown by the end. Having said that, it was very readable and at times the writing was incredibly strong, with striking, beautiful passages, particularly those dealing with Laura's anxiety, pregnancy, and guilt. I'd definitely recommend this dark thriller to fans of the genre.

Review on Goodreads and will post to Amazon UK when book is live.

The title cleverly describes both one of the main story strands throughout the book, and the writing style of telling the story in a first person perspective by the two main characters, The story is additionally told across a few different periods and although it is usually easy enough to pick up which period the current narrative relates to on a few occasions I had to check back to the chapter title to confirm..

The story was different to the one I was expecting. I thought it would be more about the primary assault and the ensuing case but this is simply a back story to what is to come. Overall the story was compelling enough and teased of hidden secrets to be revealed which kept my interest until the final chapters.

Unfortunately everything becomes a little too manic with the final showdown between the primary players in the story.

The final reveal of secrets juxtaposed against the continued secrecy which haunted Laura's story took a little of the shine off the story for me.

I really enjoyed this read due to its original plot revolving around eclipse chasers. The twists kept coming, even in the last paragraph. Being fed snipets from each timeline and perspective created suspense to the point where I couldn't stop reading as I needed answers to all of my questions. I will be recomending this book to everyone I know.

This is a well written book, very descriptive. Took a while for it to get going but once it did I was hooked.

Very clever and with unexpected moments. I enjoyed this book.

A little white lie can destroy everything

'He Says/She Says' has a story line unlike anything I've read before. When you first pick up this book you'll be dying to discover exactly what happened in the past that has caused Laura and Kit so much pain and trouble in their later life. As the story progresses you're itching to find out just what will happen next in the present. A turbulent ride with characters you can get really invested in is what makes this book the gripping page turner it is. One thing is for sure, you will never really know which side you're on.

Everyone has their own little white lies, but be careful - it might just destroy you...