The Child is written in the first person point of view of four characters who are all affected when a child’s skeleton is found on a demolition site.

There is Kate, a journalist whose interest was sparked by the story when it was originally reported, prompting her to dig a little further into the investigation. I really liked Kate and her scenes. I enjoyed reading the way she went about [basically solving the mystery] garnering enough information to write her piece. The demise of the real journalist in the world of ‘social media reporters’ which accompanied Kate’s storyline was fantastic, as depressing as it was.

Emma was also an interesting character. Obviously suffering from depression and anxiety, I was always unsure whether or not she was a reliable narrator.

Emma’s mother, Jude, and Angela, a woman who might or might not be the mother of the child, were the other two narrators. I didn’t find I connected with either of these characters as much, and I thought the book could have easily been told using only Kate and Emma’s point of views. Quite often I felt the characters were repeating the same information I’d already read.

The book uses extremely short chapters. Although this makes for an easy read, this frustrated me at times. For example, Emma might have been narrating before a chapter ended abruptly. I would then read on to find Emma was narrating the next chapter and she would recap information I’d already read previously. In these cases, I couldn’t understand why the chapters could simply not have carried on until there was a clear cliffhanger or a change of perspective.

I wouldn’t say the mystery/thriller is very creepy. There are moments when you might feel unsettled, but overall it’s rather tame compared to some other thrillers on the market.

The obligatory twist towards the end was satisfying, although I did see it coming for quite some time. Barton also spiralled into the ‘recap and info dump’ writing trap after she revealed the twist. I’m not sure why authors feel the need to finish their books this way…

I’d recommend reading the book just to get to know the Kate character, however. Although standalone, at times I wished I had read the first book in Barton’s series, The Widow, beforehand.
There are a few references made by Kate which I was intrigued by, especially during her interaction with the police. And I would definitely consider another book starring Kate should Barton release one.

3 and ½ stars out of 5

4☆ Gripping, Full of Suspense, kept me guessing!

When the bones of a baby are dug up on a construction site.
Journalist Kate Waters comes to hear of the story and wants to investigate further as this could be her next big story.

So she sets out to uncover the truth.

 As she starts to investigate she meets Angela and Emma.
 What are their connections?
What secrets are they hiding?
Why are they so effected by the baby that they found?
How many years has the baby been buried and how did it get there?
All questions which could well be answered by Angela, Emma or Jude!

This story is told by the four main characters Kate, Angela, Emma and Jude.
The chapters are nice and short which I love because it keeps you hooked.
I love that the story is told by the four  women. The reader uncovers and learns the truth as the story is told. Meaning the reader can really delve into the characters story and relive their past, leading up to their present!

This book is fast paced, gripping, Full of suspense, enough twists and turns to keep you guessing till the very end, Full of secrets and lies, Emotional.

I wasn't fortunate enough to have read Fiona's first book.
But The Child is a fantastic thriller which I highly recommend.

Is it possible that there are two dead babies in the same building? This is the question journalist Kate Waters and the police trying to answer. While it is possible it's not likely. And how are these babies related to the narrating voices telling this story? I enjoyed the twist in the end and had a hard time putting the book down. A real page turner for all fans of psychological thrillers. I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK!

I am a huge fan of Fiona Barton after reading her debut novel The Widow and I was not disappointed with her second novel. The Child is utterly superb, from the beginning you are are completely absorbed with the story that you feel like you're right there amongst the characters. The twists and turns kept it thrilling and the suspense was brilliant. I will definitely recommend this to everyone and will probably re-read it soon I enjoyed it that much.

Sorry, this has been archived before I have downloaded and reviewed

This is a compelling psychological suspense novel about the mystery of a dead baby found buried on a building site. Told from the point of view of 4 women, Emma, Angela, Jude and Kate, the reporter investigating the story. All are somehow connected to the infant's bones but how is not made clear until the final chapters.
Emma is mentally fragile and affected by the story although her connection is not revealed until well into the novel. Her mental fragility makes it difficylt for the reader to trust what she says at first.
Angela had her baby stolen over 40 years earlier and she fears the dead baby may be hers, allowing her to grieve properly and give her child a proper burial.
Jude is Emma's estranged mother and she obviously has a story to tell too although she seems to care little for Emma and behaves in a selfish way throughout the book. I found myself despising her more and more as the novel progressed.
Kate is the determined reporter who gradually reveals the story and works out how the women are connected. I admired the way she undertook her research and how she was able to keep her scruples throughout despite being a journalist hunting down a story. She truly cared about those she interviewed and this came over clearly.
This was a great read and I could not put it down, keen to work out how the characters were connected. The theme of motherhood featured in the book- all women are struggling with it in one way or another and it is not just about the child that has been found. Even Kate is having trouble with her son who wants to drop out of University to find himself and she becomes a mother figure to her trainee reporter Joe.
An excellent read for those who like taught psychological novels.
A great follow up book to The Widow which I read last year. Perfect for fans of B .A Paris and Liane Moriarty and a great Summer read. Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for my arc in exchange for an honest review.

The Child is Fiona Barton’s second novel, another psychological thriller that sees the return of journalist Kate Waters who was also featured in 'The Widow.' In this novel, Kate comes across a small piece in the newspaper about a baby found buried underneath a building site. Using her journalistic instincts, Kate believes that there might be something more to this story and sets out to pursue the truth of who this baby really is.

The Child is definitely better crafted than 'The Widow.' It's more intricate, deeper darker and more twisted than her previous book which poses a lot of questions, particularly with the multiple POV's. The book keeps you guessing, keeps you reading and is definitely a book you don't want to put down.

In The Child we focus primarily on three main characters: Kate Waters, Emma Massingham, and Angelia Irving. All three characters are linked to the buried baby at the building site. As the novel progresses we begin to understand more about Kate who appeared in 'The Widow' and the backstory of Kate's life is really well done- we really get to understand the character and take a 'deeper dive' into her psyche which gives the novel depth and meaning.

The Child is a brilliantly written psychological thriller. It was an absorbing and gripping storyline with dark moments. It shines a light on how we are all guilty of hiding things from our past and how easily these are missed, although obvious after the event! The novel has a good pace, well developed characters and all the necessary components of a page turning read. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my advanced copy.

In the spirit of transparency, I will admit that I did not love this book. I found it didn't really grip me, I got confused as to who each character was and I didn't feel invested in their outcomes. However, I felt it was important to finish the book in order to give it an honest rating. I liked the character of Kate, which was a feat as I normally can't stand any characters that are journalists! I felt a surge of anger for Emma when people assumed that her history of mental illness meant that her would could not be relied upon when relaying her own past. So it would not be fair of me to say that I didn't feel any emotion for any of the characters because I definitely did. The ending I had initially suspected but then dismissed, so that was still a surprise. The book was well written, but I think that for me personally there were just too many characters with overlapping tales.

I was kindly sent a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This was a wonderful story, tragic but sympathetically written from all viewpoints. I shall definitely be reading this author's previous work.

When the skeleton of a newborn is discovered on a building site, newspaper reporter Kate Waters is determined to uncover the story. The Child is told from the point of view of 4 women as the past is slowly revealed. The story took a while for me to get into but the characters were relatable so it was worth persevering with.

When the skeleton of a new born baby is found by builders the story doesn't get much attention. But journalist Kate Waters can't get it out of her head. She sets out to solve the mystery and in doing so uncovers years of secrets and suffering.....but the story of the child must be told.

So I was the one you heard about....you know the one who didn't read The Widow last year. It was definitely on my radar, in fact I know I have it on my kindle. But I just didn't get round to it. This novel is a follow up of sorts in that it follows Kate Waters as she investigates. But you really don't have to have read that book to enjoy this one. And enjoy this I did. It's a dark and gritty mystery but one with heart. It was really easy to connect to and empathise with the characters, and often I found myself with a lump in my throat (oh ok I sobbed like a baby). The only bad thing I can say is it kept me reading til midnight last night when I had to be up at half four. If you like a good mystery buy this book....if you like sleep avoid at all costs! It will keep you up!

Thanks to Netgalley and publishers for this ARC for an honest review.

I didn’t realise until I started reading this that there is a link between this and The Widow, Fiona’s first book. I was a bit disappointed as I wasn’t too keen on that book as it seemed to drift rather than drive anywhere.

However this started off and continued much better. The unearthing of baby bones was as unsettling as it was fascinating and I was keen to know more. Kate is back as the journalist and seems just as hungry for a story as ever. Well, this one just seems to grab her attention like nothing before and she’s like a dog with a bone.

With the short chapters, the three stories wove in and out quite nicely, and the story rattled along as the mystery started to unfold. It wasn’t a total surprise as to the mystery but the writing and tension with the three voices fitted the themes well.

Not a BookTrail book regarding locations but it does show how a fast paced story in London can unfurl and shock.

This is a mystery thriller novel about a baby's skeleton that is found buried in a garden. We follow Kate a journalist investigating the story, Angela a woman who's baby daughter was stolen from the hospital, Jude and her daughter Emma.
This novel is fast paced, and the 4 perspectives definitely helps to keep this pace up. The chapters are short and snappy, and this adds to the pacing, and keeps the mystery flowing. This novel is a quick read, but the overall narrative stayed with me, I found myself thinking about it after I put the book down.
My favourite part of the story, and the part that really makes the novel for me is the relationship between Emma and Jude. Seeing the ways their relationship has been strained and stretched, and how well the author manages to do this with so little showing of particular instances. I wanted to keep reading to see whether they could patch up their relationship throughout the novel, or whether past events made any reconciliation impossible.
I also really enjoyed reading a novel from 4 women's point of views, and although men were slightly involved in the story, they didn't feature heavily in the novel at all. All the women were strong in their own ways, and Kate was facing quite a lot of gender prejudices in her role in journalism, but she fought them, and proved her worth as a journalist many times. This was reassuring and great to read all these strong women, all different, but all strong, well developed and well rounded characters.
This is a well crafted mystery/thriller novel, there were plenty of twists, and although some were a little predictable, these didn't dampen my overall enjoyment, and this definitely rates highly in thrillers that I have read.
Overall I really enjoyed this novel, I gave it 4/5 stars and it would be a great beach read which is perfect for this time of year!!

This is my favourite read of the year so far. I really enjoyed The Widow and found this book even more enthralling. I read it over who two says and could not put it down. I loved the character of Kate, a reporter who picked up the story regarding the finding of a baby's skeleton and decides to investigate the case. The book then introduced Emma, Angela and Jude who all have secrets. The short paragraphs then follow their stories. There are so many twists, turns, secrets and lies and I found myself gasping at the end as I hadn't foreseen the final twist. A must read!!
Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

During construction works in London, a builder comes across the dead body of a baby. Angela and Nick hope that they will be finally relieved. For almost 40 years now, they have waited for a sign of their daughter Alice back then abducted from the maternity ward. The police investigate all options while journalist Kate Waters is looking for a story to get her career back on track. She quickly uncovers people who lived around the building site area decades before and who might have witnessed something; yet quickly she has to realize that there is much more behind the story than she initially thought. When another woman claims to baby to be hers, Kate and the police do not know whom to believe and that they are about to uncover much more than they suspected.

Fiona Barton tells her story from different perspectives: first of all, we have Kate the journalist who is looking for some kind of heart-breaking story to report and thus to escape being fired like many others from her team. We only get bits and bobs from her private life, a son who refuses to pursue his studies any further, but that’s it. Thus, this character is mainly illustrated through her actions as a journalist. I quite liked her, she not the hard-boiled reporter who doesn’t care about the people she writes about, but tries find a way between securing a good story and not exposing the people involved. On the other hand, we have Angela the mother who has been suffering for 40 years and who is not willing to give up hope to find her daughter. I am not sure if this character is really authentic, that a family and a marriage can survive such a stroke of fate is rather seldom. Emma, the last of the three protagonists remains incomprehensible for a long time and thus keeps suspense of the novel high. Much of what she says does not make sense and her role in the whole story is rather mysterious.

Even though the end is quite foreseeable, it liked the story. It is fast paced and the different perspectives keep you alert on who says what and who knows what. The mystery around the buried baby is solved convincingly even though I wonder of the subplot about the rapists was really required. I wouldn’t necessarily call it a crime novel or even thriller. It is rather a psychological drama with a lot of suspense to me. And compared to Fiona Barton’s first novel “The Widow”, this is much stronger both in the plot and the characters’ design.

I was eagerly awaiting the next debut from Fiona Barton, and wasn't disappointed. The story is told from the perspective of four women, who's stories are linked from years gone by. Telling the story in short, punchy chapters worked really well for me. I could see there was going to be a twist, but couldn't work out who, where and why! Clever book, very readable.

Fiona Barton returns with her new book after her bestseller „The Widow“. “The Child” is a very complex and elaborated. I was not a huge fan of her first book, I thought it was OK. But she has a talent for creating unique stories with interesting characters. So when I read the blurb of this book, I thought I give it another try.

“The Child” tells a complex story. The skeleton of a baby is found on a construction site. Three women are affected by that. One of them is journalist Kate Waters, who we know already from “The Widow”. She takes an interest in this story and is determined to find out who this baby was. Slowly she untangles a dark and sad story.

I must admit I am still not a huge fan although I enjoyed reading this book. I can’t put my finger on it what it is but something is missing for me. Barton’s writing style is beautiful but maybe a bit aloof. The story is also a slow-burner and goes into every detail. It is a character driven story and the main point is how Kate finds her way through this mystery. Unfortunately I had an idea how everything could be quite early in the book but I discarded it while going on further. But I was right; I figured the end-twist. Usually I am not so clever and I hardly think much about figuring out the end or the killer etc. while reading. So at the end the surprise for me was that my idea was right.

Despite my little nagging about the book I enjoyed reading it. It is an unusual story, the writing is good. It is unique. I like that. I enjoyed “The Child” more than “The Widow” and I am looking forward to her next book.

The Child was another great book by Fiona Barton which is focused around four women and their viewpoints, Kate who is a journalist, Angela whose baby was stolen several years ago and Jude and Emma who are mother and daughter. A few twists and turns throughout and in general an enjoyable read.

The Child is Fiona Barton's follow up to her successful debut novel The Widow but it's not a sequel in the conventional sense where you would really have to have read the first book to enjoy the second. I haven't read The Widow (but intend to rectify that soon) and that certainly didn't spoil my enjoyment of The Child. There are hints of a previous (working) relationship between one of the main characters and a police officer she worked with in the previous book, but other than that the characters and storyline are fresh and new.

The Child features three main female protagonists; Kate a journalist on a national newspaper, Angela a woman whose baby daughter was abducted from a maternity hospital 40 years earlier, and Emma, a rather strange but intriguing woman whose story evolves quite alarmingly as the book progresses. The plot revolves around the discovery of a newborn baby's bones on a building site and is told in chapters alternating between the main characters and a few minor ones. Kate finds herself drawn to the investigation and desperate to find out what happened to the baby. As a journalist she appears to have more scruples than most but is still not above using clandestine methods (eg secretly recording interviews) to get what she wants. Fiona Barton was a national newspaper journalist for many years and it did seem to me at times that Kate's involvement in the investigation was unrealistically portrayed in too favourable a light, when in reality the police wouldn't have let her anywhere near the case.

However, that little niggle aside this is a well written, thoughtful and intelligent thriller. I guessed the 'twist' from about halfway through but that didn't spoil my enjoyment and at least we were spared the sort of melodramatic and preposterous ending that has spoiled many such books for me lately.

This story followed the lives of four women. It is told from their four points of views. There was Kate, the fifty something journalist who took an immediate interest in the story when she reads that a baby’s skeleton is found. She investigates the whole thing and usually warns the police after she’s the one discovering evidence.
We also have Angela, Jude and Emma, who all have a role to play.

The story was interesting and the mystery, captivating but it took me a while to connect to even one of these characters and I mostly didn’t care for a long while. Once I got into the story, though, I couldn’t put this book down. However, I had figured out most of the main twists beforehand and none of it really surprised me… In the one hand, it made me feel smart but on the other, it’s not what I thought I would get from this book...