am sorry but this was not good -for met at least!

This book felt so rushed and at the same time had incredible slow pacing, the characters where unbearable boring and some of them i really, really wanted to shake and tell them that they should get themselves together because what they heck where they constantly complaining about???!?!

The plot itself was completely predictable as well, sadly, and so this entire "Mystery" was just not working for me.

The writing itself and how the book was split up was okay. There are very short chapters and a constant switch between four women and that was okay.
But some of the chapters were completely unnecessary and just dragging the story along!

The writing clearly shows that Barton can write.
But this one just felt like she HAD to write instead of WANTED to write, and honestly? I am sorry but no? I don't like writing a book where i feel like the author had this huge pressure to write a book and you feel it in every page, in every sentence and especially in every character since they all feel so underdeveloped and unfinished.

I was so exciting getting approved for this book through NetGalley, because i heard such fantastic things about Barton's first book but i am sorry, this was so not worth reading.

Maybe i am more used to fast paced and more action packed mystery that actually have this mysterious aspect to it where you as the reader have no clue what is going on that this one just doesn't work of me for personal preference reasons.

Or maybe this book was just very mediocre and i am extremely disappointed because i was expecting this wonderful thing -which sadly this did not turn out to be.

I have no idea.

Clearly this didn't work for me.
I will give her first book a try in the future -not in the near future but i will read it!- but sadly, if you ask me?

Don't read this.

At least not if you enjoy fast paced mysteries and ones where you do not know what is going on.

If you like the mysteries where you basically know everything the moment the first chapter is read?
Go for it!

If that is not your thing?
Just please leave this.
There are so many better and well thought out and written mysteries out there that actually keep you at the edge of your seat while reading it, that i can't recommend this book.

This is a difficult review for me to write as I actually had all the big reveals worked out by half way through and was pretty confident that my guesses were good so when I did get to the end, the reveal, there was nothing new there for me and I did feel a bit flat.
It's basically the story of four women. Kate is a journalist and she spots a story in the paper that she thinks could make for a good investigation. The skeletal remains of a baby have been found on a demolition site. Angela's baby was stolen from the hospital shortly after being born many years ago. Although blessed with more, now adult, children, she has never got over this loss. Jude and Emma are mother and daughter with a fractious relationship to say the least, Jude having chosen boyfriend over daughter and kicked Emma out of her house when she was 16. Emma has a few issues and is keeping a bit of a secret, but why is the discovery of the baby causing her so much pain? Will Kate manage to cut through the noise and join the dots to find out whose baby this was and what really happened to it?
As already mentioned, I guessed this all very early on. I personally thought it was blatantly obvious rather than just me being clever. Maybe I spotted that one little clue that for others has stayed hidden; I don't know. Despite this, it was well plotted and, if I hadn't got it early and found out at the time the author would have preferred me to have, this would definitely have been a five star read as everything else was pretty much perfect.
The characters were all completely credible. I really felt for Angela and indeed the rest of her family as they have all been scarred by the loss her first baby. Especially in the manner in which it happened and that it has never been resolved. I loved the compassionate way that Kate connected to Angela, yes I know it was originally all in the name of a story and all that but she really did the right thing by her on more than one occasion. And then we have Jude and Emma. Oh my, dysfunctional or what. Exactly how dysfunctional is not for me to tell you here, you'll just have to read it yourself but... oh dear me...
This was definitely one very character driven novel. We hear from each of them in turn as their stories unfold. Each had a very clear distinct voice and, as such, I never got lost with who was "talking". We also had short punchy chapters which made this book another one that was hard to put down.
All in all, despite my flat ending, it was a good overall read. There were things still yet to discover after I had got the biggies so the second half of the book wasn't a complete waste, and it was a nice non-taxing read. Just a shame the author made this book too easy for me to guess, but this would not prevent me reading more from her in the future.

My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

When the truth is replaced by silence, the silence is a lie - Yevgeny Yevtushenko
Fiona Barton, author of The Widow has come out with an absolute cracker of a story with her lead journalist Kate Waters from The Widow
3 women Kate Waters, Angela Massingham, Emma Simmonds, 1 dead baby and a story around all of them. Fiona Barton weaves magic with her words connecting them, all together to make a great read.
Kate Waters is the investigative journalist, who is trying to find out the identity of newborn baby whose skeleton has been found buried by the workers on a building site. She has been searching for the right story after the widow, till this information catches her eye. And she follows it with a gusto....
Angela and Nick have lost their baby Alice years ago in March 1970. Each year passing, kills their hope, bit by bit. Everyone seems to have forgotten their baby including the police and they want her to forget too... But she is a mother how can she forget her child, how can she forget the nine months of looking after her in her womb and losing her within an attention's span. She is living in the present but with the darkness of the lost child hanging over her, every second of every day...
Emma has a secret too, residing in the dark corners of her brain. She believes she knows something about the baby found but.... sleeping dogs should lie forever, shouldn't they??. But all sleeps are broken and even a buried secret is unearthed by time. Emma has a strange relationship with her narcissistic self serving mother Jude and her husband, Paul, elder to her by twenty years. Emma herself quotes her relationships are bizarre, mum is like a cousin, husband is like a dad, and her baby... Is there a baby?? Where is it??
The investigation goes as most do with forensics. A shocking detail comes forth which caused goosebumps to appear and a chill ran down by back..... And that's where the story becomes the suspense that it is.
Fiona Barton has written well, the story flows nicely, chapters are short and they continue with each other. Story is told in the ladies' voices. None of the supporting men have much role. I enjoyed this book more than the widow, I could connect more with the characters here. I wouldn't call this a psychological thriller but it was a good suspense and I did guess the ending but was not disappointed by that.
While reading the book I found a few discrepancies, baby Alice was lost in March 1970 and the story is set in 2012... but they keep on saying twenty years ago... But that's just minor, it may just grate in the minds of readers who like perfect timelines. I didn't mind it so much, though I did go back a couple of times to verify the dates..
All in all, a good story, I read it in 4 hours, with twists which keep you absorbed throughout.

I enjoyed this book, I found it a little predictable in places but it was a book I struggled to put down, I kept wanting to go back to it each time I had to leave it.
It is very well written and flows between characters flawlessly making it easy to read and enjoy

I did enjoy The Widow, Fiona Barton’s debut novel, which was published last year with quite a lot of hype but lots of mixed reviews. When I was offered the chance to read her next book The Child which is being published at the end of the month, obviously I jumped at the chance.

If you enjoyed The Widow, then I personally think you will LOVE The Child. If you didn’t particularly enjoy The Widow, then I still think you will enjoy The Child. This book, in my opinion, is better, slicker, twistier and far more gripping. The characters are likeable and more plausible, which is perhaps why The Widow had such mixed reviews.

The shocking discovery of a newborn baby’s skeleton in a building site sets off a chain of events which have a devastating affect on our 4 main narrators. Once again, Kate Waters features as our female journalist who is determined to get to the bottom of the story. The Child has some uncomfortable themes running throughout including mental illness, abuse and child abduction, but Fiona Barton manages to write about these subjects with empathy and compassion. This is a gripping, heartbreaking and emotional read which has enough twists and turns and red herrings to keep the reader fully engaged and gripped. I didn’t work out the “twist” until the reveal and that, in my opinion, makes this a great book.

The Widow seemed to be very much a "marmite" book amongst readers and reviewers but it was one that I really enjoyed so I was very happy to get a copy of The Child to review. And although I really liked The Widow, I have to say that Fiona Barton has surpassed herself here with The Child which I think has brought a more sophisticated edge to her writing. 

This is the second book I have read in so many days that has a mystery based around devastating historical events and Fiona Barton heads straight to the top of the class for handling them with a quiet dignity whilst still managing to portray the horrors to chilling effect. Using the differing viewpoints of the four women affected by the discovery of a new born baby's body, this intriguing storyline gives a compelling insight into the secrets within family relationships and the bombshells that can explode once those secrets are out in the open.

The themes explored of mental health issues and abuse are handled delicately by the author but she doesn't shy away from using some vivid imagery when the need arises. Although there are plenty of twists and red herrings galore, I was able to work out pretty quickly where the plot was heading but that didn't spoil my enjoyment of this tension filled emotional drama and I loved squeezing every last drop from the cleverly crafted storyline. 

Fiona Bartons journalistic ethics and experience shine through in the character of Kate and she was probably the reason this book worked so well for me. I loved her integrity and her diligent approach to the story that could elevate her career to another level but, as a woman of a similar age, I could also feel her frustrations with a job that has changed beyond recognition from her early days of hard hitting journalism now that the rise in social media is leading to job losses.

I would definitely recommend The Child, even if you weren't a huge fan of The Widow. I think it's the better book of the two and I couldn't tear myself away from it, totally engrossed in its heartbreaking and compelling mystery enough to read in one sitting.

A brilliant second book for me by the fabulous Fiona Barton. The Widow was great but I think The Child is an even stronger and more thought provoking read. Brilliant writing, with loads of twists and turns. Fantastic ending.
One to recommend. My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the advance reader copy.

Fiona Barton's new book The Child. I was looking forward to reading this after reading The Widow, and I wasn't disappointed. When a baby's body is discovered during a demolition, news reporter Kate is keen to discover who the baby belonged to. There aren't many clues at to how long the baby has been buried, or by whom, but we hear Emma's story, a child growing up near where the body has been discovered, and Emma's Mum who she had a volatile relationship with. We also see the story from Angela's perspective, who lost her baby when she was just born. Will the baby turn out to be Angelas?
I really enjoyed reading The Child, there are plenty of twists and turns with subtle clues. I did guess the outcome half way through the book, but I love Fiona Barton's writing style and find her very easy to read.

Just like in her fabulous debut novel, The Widow, Fiona Barton uses the relentless reporter Kate Waters as a driver in the development of the story. Despite this, "The Child" can hardly be called a sequel, and I doubt that Barton will refer to it as such. The composition of the story is very much the same as in her first book, however, with alternating perspectives in almost every chapter, i.e. with a changing point of view from 4 or 5 different women - a literary style explored in several bestsellers in recent years, e.g. in Paula Hawkins' too-hyped The Girl on the Train.
Barton does not leave much room for males in her novels, which makes it seem to me that female readers are her primary audience. In future novels, it would suit Barton to work on her gender balance a little because the oestrogen seems a little too powerful in this novel.
That said, I was tremendously entertained most of the time, and especially Barton's trademark late twists and turns in the last part of the book made it impossible to put down, although it takes her a while to get there.

great book by the author of the widow which i loved as well.

Initially I found this quite hard to get into, a little disjointed. However I persevered, and am so glad I did! The story twists and turns, and I thought I had worked out the protagonist, then another twist jumps up, and I realised I had no idea 'whodunnit'.
A very well thought out, incredibly well plotted, and gripping thriller!

This novel is told from four women's perspectives Emma, Angela, Kate, and Jude and makes for a fast paced story with lots of twists.
When a house is demolished the tiny skeleton of a child is discovered and Kate who is a journalist decides to try and uncover the story behind the remains. Kate discovers a connection to a crime that occurred many years ago when a newborn baby was stolen from the maternity ward in a local hospital and was never found. The second woman Angela had her newborn daughter stolen from her hospital room 28 years ago and was never found. She's never recovered from the trauma and it has affected her entire life. The question is the baby hers. The third woman Emma has secrets that she has never shared and the discovery of this child is affecting her. The fourth woman Jude, her mother threw Emma out of their house when she was just 16 years old choosing her boyfriend as her priority rather than her daughter.
I found all the characters well written, extremely interesting and overall made the novel a very good read. I had previously read the authors other book 'The Widow' but found this one a far better read.
I would like to thank both Net Galley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishers for supplying me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Thoroughly enjoyed this. Didn't guess the ending at all. Many twists, at the start I was unsure if I would like this book but I carried on and I'm so glad I did!

Will review on Amazon once it's possible!

Wow!! I was hoping for a good read after having enjoyed The Widow so much last year but this story totally blew me away.
A skeleton of a baby was found in a garden of what is now a demolition site in Woolwich ready for the gentrification of this area of London. Kate Waters (the journalist in The Widow) spots a couple of lines about the body in the paper and decides to see if she can build a ‘human life’ story out of the sparse information.
The story is told in short punchy paragraphs following the storylines of four women at the time of the find in 2012. Kate Waters is a great investigative journalist and her narrative leads the way in mirroring one of the aspects I enjoyed so much in the author’s debut novel by feeding us peripheral information, in one instance the change in the way her job has evolved now more news is read on-line.
In 1970 Angela Irving’s baby was snatched from the maternity ward where she was born. The search for baby Alice led to a dead-end taking a detour of suspecting the story of her disappearance wasn’t exactly as presented by Angela.
Emma Simmonds works from home as a writer polishing the words of others to produce books about celebrities. Could she have a better profession to fix this book in contemporary times? Emma like Angela suffers with anxiety so working from home is ideal. Emma is married to an academic, a lovely man twenty years her senior.
And finally there is Jude, mother to Emma and the two had lived in a shared house in the area of the find. Jude and Emma have a complex and fractured relationship. Jude never revealed who Emma’s father was and although Emma picked up some hints over the years, she hasn’t ever met him.
The story is pretty much led by Kate’s narrative as she works with the new boy in the news room and this is where Fiona Barton’s experience as a journalist lends authenticity to the smallest of interactions from her kindly instructions to Joe on her craft when you can tell she wants him to get his nose out of his phone and study the wide variety of characters they come into contact with as they follow the story of a long-buried baby.
The pace is fast and while each of the three other women may cast their minds back in their narratives the overall timeline is strictly linear with each chapter indicating the day and the narrator so that the story is kept straight in the reader’s mind.
All those big questions of why, who and how are there for the asking, with many others crowding in around the edges of this tale full of buried secrets. Best of all the reader gets a different perspective from the variety of narrators and can ponder on the information provided. I did guess what had happened but that didn’t hinder my enjoyment of the book one bit, after all I wanted to find out not only if I was right, but what would happen following the revelations.
This is a psychological thriller that obviously has its roots in reality, a story with the elements of life we prefer not to think about, or if we do, to file under a cliché headline. The Child takes a look behind the headlines and the result is a compulsive read.
I’d like to say a huge thank you to Random House UK for giving me a copy of The Child ahead of publication on 29 June 2017. This unbiased  review is my thanks to them and the author for such an engaging read.

I loved The Widow and was hoping this book would be as good and I enjoyed it even more. Another excellent book by Fiona Barton, I stayed up very late to finish it . It was impossible to put down.
What fascinating characters Fiona has created, I loved the twists and turns of the story, thinking I'd almost figured it out until another character gets thrown into the mix. I was hooked from start to finish and look forward to her next release.

Thank you!

Told from multiple points of view, this book starts slowly but the mystery of who this baby is will keep you turning pages.

I did figure out some of the “twists” which usually puts a dampener on things but it really doesn’t make this book any less enjoyable.

This isn’t so much a “whodunit” but explores the effects of the discovery of the baby on each of the characters.

Another five star winner from this author! Kept me gripped from the very first page and didn't let go until the last. Brilliant!

"The Child" is a great book for those who enjoy reading about crimes and investigation, but without leaving the emotion aside. Can't say it's my new favorite book, but I liked it.

What an amazing storyteller this book tells a tale that affects two generations. The finding of a baby's bones is just the beginning. This book casts a spell on the reader and Kees you hooked till the end.

I enjoyed this book. It was fast moving, held my attention all the way to the end. It's a mystery about a baby found buried behind an old houses as they are being demolished. Written in very compassionate and clever way. Slowly through the eyes of Angela, Emma, Jude and the reporter Kate we get to explore this story. I did figure out the plot twist before the end, but only because the author left small clues scattered throughout the book for us readers to stumble upon.