Wow this a pretty powerful read , wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy it considering the storyline but I was pretty caught up in it as the story line that wove around it was brilliant, definitely a 5star read with a wicked twist at the the end ....awesome

Wow! That was an intense read. At one point, I wasn't sure I would be able to hold my nerve. A great read that pulls you in and in no time is running at full speed. Highly recommend.

A very interesting book, telling how easy it is for girls to be groomed by older men in there innocence to be loved.
Grooming probably happens all the time but in our every day life do not come across it. Thank you for letting me read this very thought provoking book. The book should be read by teenagers and parents alike.

Well she's only gone and blown it out of the water AGAIN!!! I get nervous when I come to rely on an author for a good read. But maybe I should stop with the nerves now, as this is the fifth book of C L Taylor's I've read, and yet again she didn't disappoint.

This is a story of Lou who was groomed by her teacher at the age of 14, and then they ran away to France together. We've all heard stories like this before, but what sets this story apart, is what happens after...

This is a fantastic book, set at C L Taylor's usual high standard. 100% recommended!

Wonderful! Love this book. Really had me hooked! Definite one to read.

What can I even say about this book? Wow! I read this over two days because I just had to know what happened and now I'm in dire need of adding any previous C.L. Taylor books to my library.

Based around the subject of child grooming this book may not be the easiest read for some but it really is, in my opinion, a must read. It was so realistic it did actually remind me of a similar story that was in the news several years ago.

Lou Wandsworth was only fourteen years old when she was groomed by her Judo teacher Mike. Subsequently this lead to them running away to France for a weekend but Lou does not realise that Mike has something more permanent in mind. It is only when he locks her away in a motel room does she realise that Mike is not the man he lead her to believe he was. In fact he is violent, possessive and ultimately refusing to let Lou return home.

Fast forward twenty years and Lou's life is a mess and she finds that she must return home to face her demons. Deciding it's time to confront Mike she stumbles across another illicit affair that Mike is yet again conducting with an underage child. Can she convince the authorities to take her claims seriously or will Lou have to take matters into her own hands?

The Fear is not only told from Lou's point of view but also from Mike's ex wife Wendy and the child, Chloe, he is currently grooming which makes the book fast paced but also multi-layered.

As we read on the book does feel more sinister and Lou finds herself in a very precarious situation that she does not now how to overcome but one thing is for sure; she must stop Mike from making any further contact with Chloe.

I could not get enough of this book and the ending really did have me gasping as it was so shocking.

All in all a fast-paced read that will have you squirming and living on the edge throughout.

Highly recommended.

OH MY GOD. I don’t know where to begin to describe this book. I read it in a day. I was THAT good, I was hooked, it was brilliant.

I also feel as though I have to say that this book has to be my FAVOURITE C.L.Taylor book to date. I was gripped from the first page.

I have to admit that I tend not to read a lot about books when I pick them on NetGalley, mainly because I enjoy the surprise. I picked this one because I trusted the author and because I had heard good things about it on social media. So I had no background knowledge about the book, this made it all the more intriguing.

The story I found was original, you heard from different points of view throughout the book and though you could work out who they were very quickly (one slightly longer than the others) it was fascinating to see the point of view from different angles. How many people were affected in this one story kept going on. All of the characters were written brilliantly, yes even Mike. They all seemed real, very real. Even as the actions got what some could say ‘drastic’ you managed to reason with all of them.

It had great twists and turns throughout the book and I honestly couldn’t see what was going to happen next. Often I was literally on the edge of my seat not believing what I was reading. It was strangely real. To be so close to a story where a 14 year old is groomed and what she goes through is heartbreaking to read. But it is written in such a way in which you just have to read on find out what happens.

Yes I can safely say it was a great psychological thriller and one I urge you to pick up you won’t want to put it down.
Oh and that end. BRILLIANT!

Thanks so much to Netgalley for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Until next time,
George x

The Fear is the fifth psychological thriller written by C L Taylor to date and having read all of them I think this new one is just as addictive and compelling as the previous ones. I quickly read this book as I found the story both convincing and addictive with every parent’s nightmare of child grooming and abduction horrifying.

Lou Wandsworth who groomed at the age of just 14 years by her trusted karate teacher and family friend Mike Hughes, ends up in France believing that their love will make up for the disappointing life she leads with her alcoholic father. However Mike is not the protector Lou thought but is a disgusting predator who ends up controlling and dangerous.

Years later Lou still damaged from the event cannot shake Mike’s actions from her life and when she discovers that another girl Chloe has fallen under his manipulative spell she knows she must do everything in her power to stop history from repeating itself.

The plot is terrifying with scenes that are quite disturbing at times. Yet as the storyline is current this novel will stay with me as reports of child grooming are featured by the media. It is not a read just centred on revenge it has so much more depth. A 5 star rating and a must read if you are hooked on this genre.



My thanks to NetGalley for the advanced digital copy. This is my own honest opinion.

Yes, there’s been plenty of books about older men grooming young children.
Yes, you may have read them all, or, fed up now of the same old pattern of writing.

WRONG in this instance! This one written by C. L. Taylor takes this from a different angle with a huge twist making this more of a thriller read.

A teacher (Mike) progressively has his interested eye on Louise.
Mike is a family friend of her Fathers which made me shudder.
Louise finds the attention given to her from Mike at the tender age of 13 a very attractive feature in him.....he “gets” her like no other person does. Least of all her parents. He spends time listening to her, making her feel good about herself. She’s not the most prettiest sought after friend in her school.

When Mike decides to take her on a trip, it’s a permanent trip.
She’s now on her own with Mike.
Mike isn’t the guy she knew and trusted and we, as the reader get insight to how he’s treating her.

What I’ve never considered in true stories we hear about such as this, is, the effect it has on the child once she is older and has more knowledge and experience of life.

The effect on Louise is tantermount to this thrilling captivating story.

Mike is still not forgotten, he’s there, he’s doing it again.

Louise is many many years older now.

I was hunkered over my seat breathing in every word, every action, every chilling move and hanging on every sentence that the author wrote when I was pushed, yes pushed within this situation that Louise made.

I feared for Louise that she would do something stupid.

A situation that is known to readers because there have been factual events sadly like this.

The concept taken on by the author and turning this into a nail biting gasping reading book just proves to me why I stalk (oops I mean “follow”) this authors work eagerly awaiting her next book.

This is an author that never fails to give me a great read.

My thanks to Avon books and to the author.

I've read all CL Taylor's books and this one doesn't disappoint.

A fast paced book but personally I wasn’t keen on the subject matter. I found a lot of it quite disturbing.
My personal feelings on it haven’t affected the review.

The Fear By C. L. Taylor
C. L. Taylor is one of my favourite authors and I was delighted to receive an ARC of her new book The Fear. I was hooked by this story from the first page. An excellent thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat. I did not want to put it down. Louise was groomed and abducted by an older man when she was a teenager. This has affected her life and relationships. Eighteen years later she goes home to settle her fathers affairs after his death and finds that her abductor has started grooming another teenage girl. Louise has to stop this quickly at all costs. I would like to thank NetGalley and Avon Books UK for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review

I loved this book! Devoured it in one day, as I simply couldn't put it down. I have read all books by this author, and this was my favourite so far.

It's completely gripping and so tense, but it keeps you hooked from the very start. Highly recommend to anyone who enjoys thrillers.

Thoroughly enjoyed this book. A real page gripper that I read in just 2 sittings.
Fast becoming one of my favourite authors.

The Fear
Wow what a read. This is the first book I’ve read by C.L.Taylor but I will definitely be downloading her previous books. The Fear had me gripped from the first page and didn’t let go until the end. I absolutely love this authors style of writing. Never a dull moment in this and plenty of twists throughout as Lou goes back to her childhood home to sort it out after her father dies. She decides to confront the man who groomed her when she was a 14 year old girl only to find to her horror that he is at it again with 13 year old Chloe. Desperate to stop him from damaging Chloe’s life as he did hers she sets about bringing this monster the justice he didn’t get 18 years ago. Highly recommended.

Oh my god this is a an amazing book that will grip you at the start and it wont let you down.
This is a book with so many emotional points to the story you really feel for all the girls and ladies that are involved in this book.
When Louise was just fourteen years old she is groomed by Mike who is a paedophile and she thought he was in love with her and made her all these false promises. Being a fourteen year old she does not realise what kind of person Mike really is.
Mike takes Louise to France where he is really rough with her and she ends up so scared of him. Thankfully she manages to get away from him and returns to her family.
Years later Louise still has relationship problems and decides to confront Mike about what he did to her.
Louise finds Mike and finds out that he is grooming another little girl a thirteen year old called Chloe. Nobody believes Louise but that does not stop her trying to protect Chloe and put her own demons to bed.
Then there is Wendy, Mike’s Ex-wfe, who blames Louise for putting Mike in prison because she was going to have IVF treatment she blames Louise for everything and wants revenge.
As the book goes on Wendy gets to see what kind of person Mike really is and that it wasn't Louise's fault.
I don't want to give the ending away but all three ladies eventually get their revenge on Mike.
This is a book that's full of emotions and covers the story brilliantly.
If I could give it more than 5 stars I would.

She's gone and done it again. I took my time with this cracker as I didnt want it to end. Absolutely brilliant, gripping, breath holding with a little bit of frustration. Although this covers a very difficult subject of child grooming it's been written in a way that really makes you sit and think. How do people get away with this and how prevalent is it?
A must read especially if you are a fan of Cally Taylor.

Well this was disturbing! REminded me of that case on the television fairly recently of when a teacher and his pupil ran off to France and were caught at the ferry terminal. I realise these things happen but you don't often think of how it affects the girl when she's grown up and can see the situation for what it was. Infatuation and childish love can be all encompassing so it 's painful to read of a woman who hates to think back to this powerful love as she can now see what it really was. Then for that man to come back into her life. It's disturbing but made me realise just what the news stories never tell you and what it would feel like to have that knowledge but to not be able to persuade the next victim of what might happen. A Cally Taylor classic

Really enjoyed this , even though the subject matter was a little disturbing . The story is told from three women Lou who had an inappropriate relationship with her karate teacher when she was 14 , Wendy his ex wife and Chloe who Louise finds to her dismay is being groomed the same way she was 18 years ago . She realises that he hasn't changed his ways and is still as dangerous as ever . She tries to help Chloe with not much success and as the novel progresses the three womens stories collide with a bang and a great climax to the book . Thank you for the opportunity to read this I would certainly recommend it .

All I can say is wow. The fabulous Ms Taylor has done it again.

You will have to suspend some belief that anyone could get themselves quite into the mess and madness that the main character Lou finds herself in, however when your childhood has been stolen by a pedophile who grooms you and then abducts you your head might be in a mess, and you may not be thinking too clearly.

Knowing that Lou has been groomed and abducted by the odious Mike, you can imagine how she feels when she sees that he has started to do the same to another vulnerable little girl, Chloe, in their home town.

This book is very much 'edge of your seat' writing, as we have come to expect of Cally Taylor. Beautifully written but with a hard edge.. Highly recommended, but give yourself time to binge read it - you wont want to put it down.