A seconds inattention at the beach could have been fatal had Dave Jepsom not been there to save the child. But then he is always there afterwards. A thriller with a twist that was very unexpected

Really gripping book - I'm a big Sabine Durrant fan. Wrote a print review in a magazine at the time it came out and at the time didn't understand I had to also post it on here. I don't think writing a review now will be helpful to the publisher or author. Apologies!

Sabine never disappoints. Take Me In is a jaw dropper of a read that has you wondering the whole time how it is going to end! Brilliant book.

This was another brilliant offering by a very talented author. Recommended for anyone who loves a good read.

You are pretty much guaranteed a good story by Sabine durrant and this book is no exception. Well written and extremely creepy!

I was already a fan of Durrant's Under Your Skin and Lie With Me, and this book was another great thriller. It captured a middle-class paranoia very well and raised interesting questions about class and the pre-existing notions people have about communities they are unfamiliar with. Fantastic twists and an unexpected ending, I will be recommending it.

Durrant is one of the best writers of psychological thrillers. The characters find themselves in situations that you feel could happen to anyone. But then things take a dramatic turn and you’re faced with a read that makes you feel both uncomfortable and hooked! Liked the ‘him’ and ‘her’ perspective. A great read.

I'd read the author's last novel and this latest offering sounded promising. The story was captivating, but I was put off by the 'him/her narrative. I suspected, and was proved right, that this was necessary for the climax of the novel.
I found both the husband and wife characters challenging. They were self seeking,self absorbed and weak. Parts of the resolution to their troubles weren't dealt with satisfactory, I did guess who the perpetrator of the menacing happenings was, so the twist wasn't a surprise. The end was abrupt and left questions.

A mildly disturbing, somewhat fluffy thriller…

Take Me In is one of those thrillers I would put in the fluffy category, purely because most of the suspense stems from the protagonist’s own shady and questionable actions, and the tension intensifies around scenarios they play and active role in the creation of drama. So basically, if you go out of your way to make your life more difficult and stressful than it should be, then don’t be surprised if you feel a bit on the edge by the end of the day.

A few things that could possibly make one’s life more painful than necessary are…

Sneaking around behind other people’s back
Hanging out with people you don’t particularly like, or find them outright annoying
Voluntarily engaging in dodgy shit at work
Not paying attention to your spouse and treating them almost as a non-person
Dismissing other people’s feelings
Ignoring your child
Not setting boundaries
Generally accusing everyone of every awful thing you can think of
The story opens with Marcus and Tess going on holiday to Greece. Upon arrival to the beach Tess leaves Marcus and their little kid alone for about five minutes. It seems like a very short time, but for Marcus it’s plenty, so he proceeds to promptly fall asleep while the child goes on to be swept away into the see and drown. Brutal. Personally I find being on the beach relaxing under most circumstances, but Marcus is on a whole new level here. Thankfully Dave is around, and thanks to his quick intervention the child is saved. Everyone’s happy. Sort of. The problem seems to be that Dave now wants to be friends. Or so Tess and Marcus think, because they keep seeing the dude around for the rest of their holiday.

Back in the UK shit starts going weird. Tess is being followed, Marcus thinks she’s going nuts. If you ask me, Marcus is an ignorant asshole. At one time Tess tells him she went to the grocery store with their child and while she turned away for a minute to pick something up, someone gave a chocolate to the kid. I’m not a parent of anyone, but that sort of crap would piss me off as well for sure. Whereas Marcus dismisses this with a wave of hand. Dude, you do realise there could have been anything in that chocolate, other than a shitload of calories, like, you know, poison?

Then Dave shows up at their house, totally uninvited, and basically crashes a party, both Marcus and Tess freak out a little bit. After they tell the story of Dave saving their kid, all their friends ooohs and aaaahs, and calls the couple assholes for feeling invaded by the unexpected visit of said saviour. Some friends, eh? I might be an asshole myself too, but I don’t take kindly for unannounced visitors, especially if they are not even my friends. I guess Dave saving their child blurs the lines a bit. Dave tries to explain this with some oriental philosophy which says he’s now responsible for them for the rest of their lives. That’s nice, but we are in England, love, so calm down.

Underneath all that stalking and unpleasant situations there’s also the problem of a crumbling marriage. I enjoyed those moments way more than the suspense created by Dave’s random and alarmingly frequent appearances to be honest.

That said, the story remained really tense until the very end, so I can’t complain.

All in all, this is not a bad story, but if you are looking for an actual thriller with a killer twist or heart pounding suspense, I wouldn’t necessarily pick this for you.

Unbelievably supenseful and shimmering with tension, this pacy psychological thriller is yet another perfect summer read from Sabine Durrant, author of the gripping Lie With Me. Sit back and let the twisted secrets and lies of these delightfully unlikeable characters take you on an absolute roller coaster of a ride.

The plot starts on a Greek Island where Marcus and Tessa are holidaying with their young son Josh. Tessa said she had to go to somewhere private to change into her swimming costume but this was just an excuse to call the man she is having an affair with. Marcus drifts off and isn't watching Josh in the water who then gets into difficulties. Josh is saved by a nearby tourist, Dave Jepsom. Dave is from a completely different walk of life from Marcus and Tessa and although grateful for his heroic rescue they struggle to connect with him. They offer him money and to replace his lost trainers which causes offence. Tessa turns down the offer from one of Dave's companions of a Coke for Josh as she doesn't want him to get a taste for it. Marcus and Tessa take Dave and his group out for lunch where their social differences are very obvious. The rest of the week is spent in awkward encounters or more usually avoiding Dave who is keen to keep in touch and give Josh gifts.

In the following weeks Marcus and Tessa's lives unravel more and more as each behave badly and get more and more paranoid about being watched or followed. Tessa carries on with her affair and Marcus encounters numerous difficult issues that coincidentally go wrong in the same timeframe at the PR business he co-owns with Jeff.

Is it their imagination? Are they being stalked? Is it guilt? Are the PR company problems a coincidence or is there an informant?

I found the plot very slow in the first half with way too much elaborate details about surroundings, food, and objects which didn't help towards the story. The story then picked up in the second half and I read that much more quickly but then it ended very abruptly.,,,and confusingly,. I had to go back and reread the final pages as I felt I'd missed something. Some maybe view it as a good ending with a good twist but I was just frustrated as having investing so many hours slogging through this book I was disappointed with the ending which left too many questions unanswered.

Gripping and a real summer read. I'd rate this a 3.5 star read - Tessa and Marcus are on holiday, both hiding secrets, and when their three year old son almost drowns, a stranger enters their life. And once he's in, there's no shaking him off, is there?

I’m a sucker for Sabine Durrant’s novels and Take Me In is no exception. Durrant’s prose is, as ever, on point and incisive.

Tessa and Marcus are that couple you know. The ones who buy their shopping in Waitrose, sneer gently at the lower classes, live in South West London and are so absorbed in their own lives that they have neglected to tend to their marriage or their three year old son, Josh.

On holiday in Greece Tessa and Mark display the same reckless disregard for each other and in a heart stopping moment of neglect, Josh almost drowns. Fortunately he is rescued the nick of time by Dave Jepsom, a working class builder from Essex who manages at once to make Mark feel less of a man and less of a winner as he stumbled and failed to save his own son.

Durrant’s eye for detail and atmospherically laden descriptions are everything we need to understand the utter horror of this scene. Both Tessa and Marcus are devastated at their failure to be attentive. Tessa feels hugely guilty and simultaneously resentful that Marcus failed to Josh wandering into the sea.

At once we have a compelling scene where the depths and variety of emotions are laid out in front of us. We can see selfishness, terror, self-doubt, guilt and shame. We judge Tessa and Marcus just as much as they judge others.

And judge they do. Grateful to Jepsom for rescuing Josh, it was always clear to them that he was not someone they would naturally spend time with. So they reluctantly offer to buy him lunch as a thank you and then get away as fast as they can. But maybe Jepsom doesn’t want to quietly disappear from their lives?

Tessa’s guilt at her own reasons for inattention plays into anger with Marcus and the fault lines in their marriage start to turn into ever wider cracks. Their holiday is not a success and Tessa and Marcus turn away from each other. Then once they have got home, Jepsom turns up at their house with a gift for Josh. What does he want?

The cracks in the marriage are exacerbated by both Tessa and Marcus forever seeing Jepsom at every turn once they have got home. As their lives falter and things really start to go awry, they start to become obsessed with the idea that Jepsom is behind all their problems.

Although his appearances have perfectly rational explanations, they feel more and more under threat and a pall of gloom is cast over their lives.

Told in a dual narrative by Marcus and Tessa we quickly come to realise the flaws and frailties of these two unreliable narrators, neither of whom is especially likeable and to witness the slow unravelling of their claustrophobic, smug, self-satisfied lives.

In an atmosphere that is tense, menacing and nerve tingling, the secrets, lies and obsessions of this shallow couple will ultimately be laid bare for the reader and when the explosive conclusion comes, it is both surprising and impactful.

Verdict: A tense and razor sharp psychological thriller that will keep you guessing.

"Take Me In" is an unexpected tale of deception and misunderstandings. Touted as being about Dave Jepsom and his obsession with a couple whose child he saves from drowning, Jepsom is disappointingly absent from the bulk of the novel. Instead, the focus lies more on the couple, both of whom are deeply flawed and carrying their own dark secrets.

The story sucks you in and this is one of those read in one sitting books, but I suspect that I would have given it five stars had I realised that Jepsom was a red herring to what was really going on - the relationship between the couple is intriguing enough without his stalking needing to be a focal point.

So this is really a book for those who like stories about unpleasant people getting a wake up call as to what is really important in life.

Plot: Told in dual perspective by “him” and “her”, parents Marcus and Tessa almost lose their little boy in the sea on holiday, but who is saved by Dave Jepsom, a man who dives in to grab the boy from the water. Even as he hands the boy back to them, they feel uneasy about him, and the feeling is magnified when they return home and begin to see him everywhere – turning up at their house, even though he lives far away, to fix a leaky tap and appearing in places he shouldn’t be. But with each of them having their own secrets and problems, the story gets more complicated.

My thoughts: I can’t say I didn’t enjoy the book as I did find the storyline captivating, but I did think there were points at which the attempt to build tension left me skimming a few paragraphs so I could get to the conclusion quicker. One example of this was Marcus’ work – I work in PR so at first I was interested to hear about his job, his office and what was going on. While I can completely understand why we were hearing lots about his clients and the work that was going on to build his character as caring about not a lot else than his work and to build the plot around this that was necessary, but at times I just felt like I didn’t want to hear about somebody else’s work that I wasn’t all that interested in again.
The characters were all pretty unlikable, which is always fun in a book – is that a weird thing to say?! The mystery of “is he really there? Are they imagining it? Why would he be there?!” was also fun, but slightly too dragged out sometimes for my liking. The ending was very tense and had me holding my breath waiting for the conclusion – so much so that I feel it ended up a little rushed and confused. Again, I understand that’s because it was being shown from the characters’ flawed perspectives, but even so, I ended up a little bewildered when I finished.
Overall though, a pretty good read – a good one for a holiday or beach read (although maybe not with small children by the sea?!) that’s easy to get through and filled with tension.

Marcus and Tessa are on holiday in Greece with their young son Josh. A moments' inattention by both parents nearly results in Josh drowning. Enter Dave Jepson who rescues him. Eternally grateful to this man they do not think that he will be sticking to them like glue. Back home they begin to have misgivings as they seem to see him everywhere they go. Initially they put up with him because after all they owe him for saving their sons life and don't wish to offend him. They quickly start to have misgivings, however, and ponder his motives. Is he watching their every move? Are they or their son in danger? The anxiety starts to cause tensions between them. Is this part of the plan?
Sabine Durrant slowly racks up the tension creating menace out of every parents worst nightmare. A disturbing illustration of guilt, conscience and paranoia with a brilliant sting in the tail.
Thoroughly recommended.

Sabine Durrant is head and shoulders above most other psychological thriller writers; her writing more taut, more suspenseful and - somehow even in the most far-fetched of situations - more believable. Her last novel, Lie With Me, was possibly my favourite thriller of recent years and prompted much debate amongst friends regarding the veracity of the narrator's story. She does particularly well when illuminating the unpleasant underbelly of moneyed metropolitan middle class life: the lies, the betrayals, the hidden resentments and prejudices.

In Take Me In, Durrant returns to these themes as we meet, yes, a moneyed middle class family from London. Tess, Marcus and their son Josh are on holiday when a moment of inattention leads to Josh almost drowning. From this traumatic but relatively minor event springs a nightmare for the family, as Josh's rescuer, Dave, suddenly seems to be everywhere.

Take Me In is as gripping and brilliantly written as Durrant's previous books, however I did struggle with some of her representations of class. Her working class characters lack nuance (this, to be honest, is also an issue in Lie With Me), while the middle class Tess and Marcus are unbelievably smug and unpleasant and didn't really gain my sympathy.

Take Me In, by Sabine Durrant.
A really good psychological domestic drama, that makes you wonder how would you re-act in a similar situation.
After parents, Tessa and Marcus, take their eye of Josh their son, whilst on holiday in Greece. David Jepsom, confident and macho, saves Josh from almost drowning and starts a series of events that eat away at their relationship.
The most interesting thing about the story, is how believable the recriminations between the pair, and the misconceptions and misunderstanding of the character of Jepsom. Both parents feel threatened by Dave for different reasons, and at first you begin to think Jepsom is a sinister character, but as you read you see how it is the characters of the parents that is slightly scewed.
Also there is the class system, as Marcus and in particular Tessa look down on David, and this causes many of the misunderstandings. Marcus feels inferior, because he didn't rescue his own son.
I felt the story was good and the characters quite well drawn, but ultimately the plot was a bit thin. However, on the whole a good read.

Marcus and Tessa are on holiday with their young son Josh, when the unthinkable happens. Tessa is changing her clothes, ready for the beach and Marcus is looking after Josh when his attention is diverted for seconds. Suddenly there’s screaming and Josh is being plucked from the sea by a stranger.

In an instant Dave Jepsom is thrust into their lives.

A large, muscular man with an intense stare, he makes Marcus feel woefully inadequate. This as well as guilt leads Marcus to invite Dave in when he turns up on their doorstep unexpectedly following the family’s return from their holiday.

Tessa and Marcus are hosting a dinner party, and it is quickly apparently that Dave is very much out of place. But rather than being put off by their lifestyle, Dave seems intent of integrating himself into their lives, reminding them that they owe him for saving their sons life.

Suddenly, he is seemingly everywhere. Everywhere that they don’t want him to be.

Every couple have little secrets that they keep from each other. Little white Lies. But Dave’s presence threatens to expose Tessa and Marcus’ marriage for all that is truly is. And there is no coming back from that...

Take Me In is a twisty tale of secrets, lies, guilt, betrayal, and all those things we deal with on a daily basis but never really think about. None of us are living a guilt free life, we have all done things we would take back, but Take Me In plays with this theme to the extreme and is a gripping read.

Take Me In is a dual narrative alternating between Him and Her which had me wondering right from page one as to why the chapters weren’t titled Tessa and Marcus? Surely that would have made more sense right? And that’s not the only question that this book throws at you.

For me this was quite a slow burner in the beginning, from the books blurb it was fairly obvious that their son almost drowns whilst at the beach and that it is a stranger, Dave Jepsom, that saves the little boy. It was following that incident that the story slowed down. But that’s not to say that it was boring!

Because of how the story is told you almost feel like a fly on the wall watching as the lives of Tessa and Marcus play out. They would both make great guests on the Jeremy Kyle show!!

Full of secrets, lies and deceit both characters are on an emotional rollercoaster that we are all witnesses too and as the story plays out those lies are coming home to roost! And that isn’t including the “hero” that saved their son.

How do you ever thank someone enough when they have saved your son’s life? Does such an act of heroism embed that person into your life? How do you live with the guilt of not watching your son as he entered the water? The guilt of not saving your own son?

So many questions that all build up and as the tension increases you know its all leading to that one final twist. The big confrontation that makes everything add up in a satisfying conclusion, even if it doesn’t come as a massive shock!

For me personally the ending wasn’t great, I don’t know if that’s because I had worked most of it out before the twist so I didn’t get that surprise. I’m not sure, but it was still a great read.