A thrilling read where a privileged elite British politician is accused of rape and the twisting back story of how he found himself in that position.
Sarah Vaughan offers you the perceptions and views of all the women and men around the politician and how one persons behavior dramatically affects and changed people lives.
Amazingly in tune with current events and opinions regards women, sex, politicians and people in power.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I have to say I was pretty disappointed by this book, after the opening pages seemed so promising.
The story, progression of the characters, their motivations and actions, just felt half-baked and under-developed throughout.
One thing that particularly rankled was the over-use of hyperbole and metaphor, sometimes to the point of the ridiculous. ("I know my anger needs to be boxed up: hard; finite; precious, like an indulgent cocktail ring buried deep in a drawer and rarely worn' - one of many examples).
I also found her portrayal of certain stereotypes infuriating , the 'Libertines' caricature of the Bullingdon club, the young black man Sophie encountered, whose every second word was "yo", just seemed incredibly lazy.
An unsatisfactory resolution made this book an extremely frustrating experience for me.

James and Sophie’s marriage seems ideal. Two lovely children money no object and a husband who is loving and a politician in a junior ministerial job what more could Sophie ask for.But her ideal life comes tumbling down when James firstly admits to an affair with his young researcher Olivia who later accuses him of rape.
A brilliant read which is very cleverly written as all is not as it seems with flash backs to Oxford days and drip feeds of information which encourages the readers thoughts on James,s inoccence to change as quickly as you turn the pages.
Absolutely brilliant

Every now and again you come across a book that will not only blow you away but make all the hairs on the back of your neck stand out. This is one of them.

I won't go over the plot of Anatomy of a Scandal, I'll just say that the story is based around the prosecution and trial of a member of Parliament. This is a high-profile and much reported story; the whole country is transfixed by the idea of handsome, successful, family man James Whitehouse being accused of rape by a woman he works with. His accuser is also a woman that he admits he's had an affair with. Yes, he says, we had sex in the Houses of Parliament; I took her away for nights and bought her expensive gifts. He also claims that even though he'd ended their relationship, the rough sex they had in a lift was consensual. That's it, in a nutshell. A woman's word against a man's ..... as it so often is.

Sarah Vaughan writes with a beautiful clarity that is both stunning and at times, shocking. She exposes the darkest corners of the brightest minds in the country. She doesn't hold back with the shocking behaviours and the total sense of entitlement that accompanies wealth and good name. Her detailed look at the lives of those who make up the Libertines; a group of Oxford students who use their money as a powerful tool to barge their way through life is sordid and tawdry, yet eye-opening and excellently portrayed.

Anatomy of a Scandal is told in three voices; James; his wife Sophie and Kate, the prosecuting barrister. Each one of these characters is intimately and cleverly constructed; the reader will love them, and hate them. The reader will agree, will object and will cheer as the story unfolds. There's also an air of mystery running through this novel, and the author creates more tension, suspense and unease with her clever flashbacks that totally gel with the present-day story.

Anatomy of a Scandal is utterly compulsive, I hated having to set it down for even a few minutes. The plot, the characters and the brilliant reveals are so finely executed. This is a stand-out legal thriller. An absolute triumph and I urge everyone to read this.

A book which centres itself on secrets, lies, duplicitous behaviour, manipulation and cover-ups... what's not to like. Especially given the profession of some concerned and the privilege that comes with so called entitlement. This was a book that I was overjoyed to get my teeth into and it held me rapt throughout, leaving me more than satisfied at the end.
In the public eye, Sophie and James are a perfect couple. This illusion is shattered when details of a scandal are leaked to the press. Things swiftly escalate and he is soon charged with a terrible crime. Sophie is determined to stand by her man, even given the full circumstance of his misdemeanour.
Kate is a lawyer and, when we fist meet her, she has just lost a case. She is still reeling from this when she is handed James' case to prosecute. Certain of his guilt she is hellbent on making him pay, especially as more information of his past is revealed; especially his university days. As things start to be revealed, a clearer picture emerges. One that will determine the path that certain characters must now take.
In Kate we have a strong character. Well, on the surface anyway; deep down within she is affected and conflicted and has a bit of a score to settle. This is evident in the cases she chooses to take on. But why is not fully known until much later on. We are drip fed her past through flashback and also her conversations with her friend in the present. When she does cross the line, as she does a few times in this book, it is for the right reasons and her motivation, once clear, is justified. I really connected to her right from the off. A connection that remained throughout.
Sophie however is more convoluted and not really that easy to like; especially as her layers are unpeeled and her past exposed. She took a bit more thinking about throughout but I can't say more than that here.
As for James, well, you'll have to make your own mind up about him and his place in this story. I have my own thoughts and feelings and they are a tad on the strong side but again, I have to leave that here.
Needless to say, this is a very character driven book and as such relies on its characters to play their parts throughout which they do, with great aplomb.
The story itself is all the more shocking as it is completely credible. I have no doubt that the events depicted within these pages actually happened to more people than I care to think about. In fact, these days you only need open a newspaper to see evidence of the prevalence of certain incidents.
It is a story that is shocking but very well told. Unlike some of the popular press, the facts here are portrayed without the need for sensationalism, this being unnecessary given the nature of what is described anyway. It's not that fast paced but it doesn't need to be. The tension ramps up slowly and so steadily that often you really don't see it coming so it has more impact when it does.
This was a story that saddened me a bit with its credibility and realism. It also made me think, a lot, and left me with plenty more to mull over after I finished.
It wasn't a comfortable read but I think it was an important and compelling one. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

I found Anatomy of a Scandal slow to begin with and I couldn’t connect with the characters. As the book might bed along I enjoyed it more and but still could not connect with the characters of the book. Overall an ok book but not one I would reccomend

A fantastic story - slow to start but soon builds into a tension filled ride of a read! Sarah Vaughan's expertise in the legal field shines through and she manages to make the complicated minefield of a court case understandable. A very relevant tale and one which will stay on my mind for a long time.

This was a book that really got under my skin and left me thinking about it long after I'd finished the final page. I was completely gripped from the outset and found the characters exceptionally well drawn and convincing. A thoroughly enjoyable (if depressing at times!) psychological thriller I can't wait to read what the author does next.

A tense thriller with a few twists to keep you on your feet. I liked this book a lot, I couldn't get enough of it initially, excited to read the next chapter. I did feel however that although the ending was good there could of been fewer chapters towards the end. The final few chapters were important to the story but I felt they lost the excitement and intensity of the courtroom chapters.

My first read of 2018 and what a way to kick-start the year with, it is a gripping and immersive book that is a definite “Burn the midnight oil” kind of book! But completely worth the loss of sleep 🙂

Set between 1993 Oxford University and London 2017 the story is told from 5 view points, the main ones being Kate, James and Sophie. Kate a QC who specialising in rape trials, James a member of parliament and close friend of the prime minister and Sophie, wife of James and mother to his 2 children. The other people to lend their voices to the narrative of this story are Alison or Ali as she was known at uni and Holly, another class mate from the uni days.

There is a plot twist part way in but I saw that one coming, however that didn’t detract from the enjoyment and adds another layer to the story.

The characters may not be real but they so easily could be and the storyline its self could be real, I expect if you went riffing back through history you might well find something similar. This has been written in such a good way the lines between fiction and reality become blurred and you half expect to switch on the news and see the headlines about James scrolling across screen!

It will be a book that stays with me long after completing and gives a lot of food for thought.

Would I recommend this book? 100% Yes! Not to just people who enjoy a good court room trial but to anyone, no matter what their normal genre of books are.

Confession time. I have had this book on my TBR pile for quite a while and was aware that it was getting some serious plaudits from my colleague reviewers and others. But nothing prepared me for how much I was going to love this book.

It has everything I look for in a book. Sarah Vaughan is an author who knows her subjects and can write convincingly and authentically – in this case about Oxford University life, Westminster politics and criminal law. Characters you can put a face to and in some cases identify with, and in other cases can quite understand how they came to take the stances that they do. The author is careful to stress that this is a work of fiction throughout, but there are times when you just can’t help but put faces against some of the characters here, you feel that you know them so well.

This is a story of privilege and the elite and of what happens when they meet justice head on.

James Whitehouse is a junior Minister in the Home Office and as a close confidant of the Prime Minister, he is tipped for high office. His wife, Sophie, whom he met at University, is the backbone of his political career; supporting him, looking after their two children, attending political functions and generally ensuring that he can cruise through life unhampered by domestic concerns.

More than that, though, she loves him and always has. Theirs is a healthy relationship and she feels blessed to be in this marriage.

Kate Woodcroft Q.C. is a successful barrister. Ambitious and driven, she mainly prosecutes sexual crimes, wanting to be seen to be on the side of truth and the underdog. She’s hoping to be one of the youngest barristers to be offered a judgeship, and coming out of an unsuccessful case – one of the few she has lost recently, she feels certain that she has been handed the case that could make her career, and she is convinced that James is guilty.

For James Whitehouse, this may not be the hardest test he has faced, but it is certainly the most public. For James has to come home and tell Sophie that he has been having an affair with his Parliamentary researcher, Olivia and that the story is about to break in the UK’s most popular and most pernicious tabloid.

To make matters worse, in less than a fortnight, James finds himself charged with rape, following a brief resumption of sexual activity between him and Olivia on one occasion following his unceremonious dumping of her as his lover.

As you might expect, the legal case hinges on the issues of consent, but it is also about the lies we tell ourselves, the battle between the privileged and the not so privileged, and about how to win an argument, irrespective of the truth.

For Sarah, it is also about how well she knows her husband and by extension, how well she knows herself, as her life is slowly ripped apart under the heavy scrutiny of the press and the pressure from Government aides.

Anatomy of a Scandal is a brilliantly written, well plotted and incredibly good book. I was completely absorbed by it, never less than gripped and I want to shout from the rooftops how good I think it is.

Anatomy of a Scandal is being published at a time when both sides of rape trials are under enormous scrutiny in the press. While I was reading this book, two men were acquitted because full disclosure hadn’t taken place, some commentators believe this is partly caused by the drive to secure more convictions in rape trials. What no-one can deny that this crime is usually committed without witnesses and I don’t envy any jury having to sift fact from fiction or maybe hazy memories when so much is at stake for both alleged victim and perpetrator. Coupled with the rape are the many scandals that seem to provide a backdrop to our country from those who hold the highest offices in the land, at Westminster. So the combination of Ministers and rape, well this could come straight from the newspapers of today, except of course the book is very well written!
Over the years my love of courtroom drama has increased and so when I heard of this book back in the summer, I was desperate to get my hands on a copy; Dear Reader, this book did not disappoint in the slightest.
James Whitehouse is a loving father, an Oxford graduate and a Tory MP, in fact the Prime Minister is one of his oldest friends. James is married to Sophie and has been for many years when he is arrested for the rape of one of his assistants but Sophie is convinced it’s all a terrible mistake.

Kate is the prosecuting attorney, out to make a bigger name for herself she knows that if she can persuade a jury to find James guilty then she can ride high off the back of it. Sex crimes is her speciality although she is realistic about the low conviction rate, she’s determined to win this one.

The story unfolds through the three sets of eyes and ears: Sophie’s, Kate’s and James and as each one seeks to convince us of their truth, the shadows from the past are creeping back into their lives creating a complexity about the truth that is nebulous and yet not about to disappear anytime soon.
Sarah Vaughan is an accomplished writer, she had my feelings about the characters shifting almost imperceptibly as I struggled to work out what I should believe. The plot, just like a real trial, isn’t just about the truth, it also confronts our own moral stance from the obvious What were you wearing? Doing? Thinking? or in other words those questions aimed at the alleged victim by the defence team, to the more subtle question of privilege and the jury’s own prejudices.

The plotting was superb especially given that the story reaches back through time the author managed to keep a sense of place and time without causing confusion, which I’m sure is far harder than she made it look. I was also completely convinced by the characters they spoke and acted realistically given that this was a time of enormous stress for them all, albeit for different reasons.

Anatomy of a Scandal might be presented as a rape trial, and of course it is, but there is far more depth to this novel than I expected. The roller-coaster isn’t just about the verdict, it is also about marriage, friendship and moral dilemmas making for a highly satisfying read.

Anatomy for a Scandal is obviously perfect reading for a book group, I can see that this book will generate much discussion and debate around the subject matter and the way the trial progresses.

I’d like to say a huge thank you to the publishers, Simon & Schuster UK, for allowing me to read an advance copy of this book. You really did the right thing in purchasing this brilliant, intelligent and thought-provoking book. This unbiased review is my thank you to the publishers and of course, Sarah Vaughan, who I sincerely hope is busy writing something new for me to enjoy.

Anatomy of a Scandal reflects a topical subject, namely alleged sexual misconduct by a person with authority over a subordinate. It neatly moves between life at Oxford in the 1990's where Freshers from working class backgrounds encounter Etonians who have self confidence, arrogance and wealth to surround them and the present day when a junior Government Minister is charged with raping a Research Assistant.. We meet the barrister for the [prosecution and learn something of her background, whilst the Minister's wife, another privileged contemporary from Oxford, is expected to play the dutiful political wife. We learn something of how life experience can scar people, how all is not what always seems, how deceit and half truths can easily rise to the surface and challenge professional integrity and ethics. Add to this the Prime Minister of the day who may himself having something unsavoury about his Oxford past and you have the background to this book which leaves you uncertain about the veracity of the Jury's verdict and the evidence presented to it. But is this end of the matter? Certainly the lives of those involved will never be the same.

This is an outstanding book, for the quality of the writing, the forensic way the ground is covered and the reader drawn into the real world scenario. Congratulations to Sarah Vaughan and best wishes for the future. .

I'm an avid and patient reader and particularly enjoy psychological thrillers; I found this book a bit hard going and got a bit bored about a third in, I felt there was too much detail in parts with some subjects described in detail over several pages which I ended up skipping through. The book had potential to be explosive and exhilarating with a good plot and characters. I just felt it was too drawn out in places and moved too much and too erratically between several characters past and present to keep me motivated and keep my interest piqued. Such a shame as I was really looking forward to this one.

Thanks for the chance to read this Netgalley. I really enjoyed this book, have not tried this author before but will definitely be looking forward to looking for more!

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Anatomy of a Scandal has been one of my favourite reads this year - it’s fast paced, gripping, intriguing and shocking all at the same time. It follows the story of an MP who is accused of rape, and the court case that follows, seen through the eyes of the key players. It’s an incredible novel and I can’t wait to read the author’s follow ups.
I was particularly impressed with the depiction of the jury. Having recently been selected for jury service, I thought the book gave a really accurate description of how I felt during my time in court. It’s not a particularly important aspect of the story but I felt it really added to the authenticity of the book.
It also handles very sensitive subject matter in an assured yet understanding way.
I sincerely hope we see a TV or movie adaptation of this book, as I think it would be absolutely perfect for the screen.
All in all, a really thrilling read.

"Sophie has never thought of her husband as a liar."

Anatomy of a Scandal was a book that interested me but didn't grip me. I enjoyed it while reading but it wasn't unputdownable. A solid effort, B+.

The writing is effortless and easy to read, slipping from one point of view to the other. Stock characters make up the main cast, but that's kind of the point; the politician, supportive politician's wife, naive student and ambitious lawyer. They're characters that we come across a lot on literature, and in life, but I think that's deliberate on Vaughan's part as she goes behind the typical players in a scandal like this. They felt believable and Vaughan has added characteristics that flesh them out.

Anatomy of a Scandal is a very apt book for our times when sexual harassment amongst powerful, arrogant men is somewhat prevalent.
This is one of the themes of the book but there are others that are current, such as class. The class system to most seems like it's breaking down, but in somewhere like Oxford University, and conservative political circles, the Eton boys' club is clearly still the ruling elite. It was interesting to get a glimpse into this life and attitude.

Vaughan also explores the issue of consent with, I think, clarity and sense.

Though I did enjoy this book, I thought the big reveal which comes in the middle of the book is pretty obvious, and a little unbelievable. It let the story down a bit and I think it would have been better if this was something the reader knew from the start.

It's still a good read, a very contemporary one yet one that deals with subjects that are as old as time.

My Rating: 3 Stars

I received a copy of Anatomy of a Scandal, via NetGalley, in return for an honest review. My thanks to the author and publisher.

Read my full review: http://readingwritingbooking.blogspot.co.uk/2017/12/anatomy-of-scandal-by-sarah-vaughan.html

This is a great story and one that kept me gripped throughout.
It is told from two different perspectives - Sophie, James’ wife and Kate, the prosecuting barrister.
Whilst some of it is set in the court room, the real story comes out in the revealing chapters in between.
James is accused of something and Sophie has to decide whether to stand by him or not.
I really liked Sophie and was on her side throughout, and I really felt for Kate too.
This is a really fantastic read and I highly recommend it.
Thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster UK for sending me a copy to read and review.

A timely tale that kept me enthralled , the author really has a finger on the pulse of current events. At first glance this is a he said, she said courtroom thriller. Successful barrister Kate is prosecuting a controversial rape case, involving a serving minister for parliament and his former mistress. James, the minister in question is relying on his charisma and public image as a loving father and husband, to show that the allegation is nothing more than an attempt at revenge from a woman scorned. His wife Sophie is devastated as her world comes crashing down around her, but still clings to her belief that the man she knows and loves could never do such a thing.
Though the story is told largely from the perspectives of Kate and Sophie as the trial progresses, the author uses flashbacks to their pasts as a way of showing us how events have shaped these women very differently and shedding light on their respective stances as the trial goes on. Both characters are strongly and believably developed and fleshed out, making it easy to empathize with them and adding to the strength of the emotions portrayed in the book. The pacing throughout is excellent, and the gradual reveal of what really happened is skilfully handled in a way that definitely held my interest as the book twisted and turned. The courtroom setting adds immensely to the drama, and the tension in some of the scenes is palpable. I particularly commend the author for her realistic handling of the often unpleasant way victims in sexual harassment and abuse cases are treated, the hard hitting nature of the testimony scenes had a memorable impact.

Kate Woodcroft is a tough barrister, dealing mainly with prosecution of violence within a sexual nature. A new case lands on her desk, Tory junior minister James is accused of raping his assistant. James is one of life’s privileged, everything always goes his way, he has a good wife and children and a close friendship with the Prime Minister.
Chapters are from James, Sophie (his wife) and Kate from university days to present day. I thought this was very well put together and particularly liked the chapters by each of the 3 main characters including their university days. After finishing this I needed a feel-good read, as this kept me at the edge of my seat all the way through. Well worth a read, can see this as a drama series too.