The story line revolves around a school shooting and the investigation thereof. It was well written and I were glued to the book until the end. Recommended.

I am frankly stunned that this is a debut novel. I’m not at all surprised that it has been nominated for, and won, prizes. I loved everything about this book, the writing, the characters – it is so accomplished that the author has shot straight on to the top of my "must-read" authors list.

When a lone gunman enters his college in Edinburgh and shoots dead 13 young women, before killing himself, he leaves behind him a trail of destruction, grief and questions. DI Birch attempts to lead the police force dealing with the traumatic aftermath, the questions of why Ryan Summers would do such a thing, and attempting to shield his family left behind from terrible threats. Ishbel and Moira, two grieving mothers find their lives changed forever.

This is a slow paced crime novel follow three different people left behind after a terrible tragedy. The first 20% or so of this book deals with the day before, of and after the shooting, and while we don't get any perspectives of the shooting while it happened, readers so get an idea of the scenes from a policeman who entered the building right after the attack and a media run through of the event.

I enjoyed the exploration of each characters' shock and grief following the shooting, as well as the difficult relationship they both had with their children. Moira's POV in particular was, both terribly sad and intriguing as she had to figure how to process her grief over her son while all too aware of the grief he had caused others because of his terrible act of violence.

The book does have that trope of a lead detective who has something in their past that seems to have given them a personal stake in the case. I don't always like this and it was okay in this book - I liked that the DI didn't let her history completely cloud her judgement and I do feel like her not having that backstory wouldn't actually have affected the story that much.

I did have some issues with the portrayal of media in this story, once again, like most thrillers/crime books I read. There was a lot of immoral, tabloid-esque stories published about the shooting and one journalist who basically went against any kind of newsroom rules ever. I'm not a fan of the terrible journalist and inaccurate/immoral reporting and sensationalist media due to us living in a world now where there is such distrust in legitimate media and 'fake news' is thrown about.

I did accept the storyline with the journalist as it became more a part of the plot and i liked how it all resolved.

One thing you should know about me is that I have an immensely long list of Netgalley e-arcs to catch up on. This is one of them. You should also know that I often forget what these books are about but I've requested them so I might as well read them. What I vaguely remember is that I requested this at a time when there had been quite a few terrorist attacks and this fictionalised version of it felt like it might offer up some answers as to why terrorists do what they do (it didn't, I won't lie).

I was quite conflicted while reading this book. On the one hand, it was really interesting and I was really hooked on the ins and outs of the shooting and what his motive was and how people were going to deal with the situation. It felt very real with flocks of protestors and online hate comments and sadistic journalism. I have to comment that I occasionally felt like I was reading an episode of Line of Duty with DI Birch's narrative. She made a convincing Kate Fleming. 

On the other hand, the book just progressed so slowly. When you think you're halfway through, think again because you've probably only made it 30% through. While I can understand the constant grief and the need to really explore the characters' thoughts and feelings in-depth, I think some of that could have been hacked away to allow for better storytelling. I didn't feel like I really knew any of the characters, which was a let down since the 'grieving' was meant to leave everything bare. 

Generally, All The Hidden Truths was rather mediocre. I don't really know if there was meant to be a big reveal or a plot twist. I felt like I was just reading about the grieving process - which was really well done - rather than about any 'solution' or detective work as I'd expect from a novel of this calibre. Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for this ARC in exchange for an honest review - all opinions expressed are my own!

A great, quick and easy read! I loved the three main female characters and reading how their lives changed after the shooting. It would be interesting to see if Helen Birch's story continues?

All the Hidden Truths is Claire Askew's debut novel, inspired by real-life events happening throughout America, and is both highly compelling and utterly heartbreaking

This is my first Claire Askew book but not my last

I really enjoyed the story and the subject and how the lives of everyone involved became entwined

Some of the characters were unlikeable but given the subject matter this is understandable

Well done Claire nicely written story

All The Hidden Truths by Claire Askew

When 20-year-old Ryan Summers walks into his college in Edinburgh and shoots dead thirteen female students before using the last bullet on himself, the shocked community is changed forever. All the Hidden Truths strips this horrendous crime bare, searching for the reasons behind it, its devastating repercussions, by focusing on three of the women most affected – Moira, the mother of the killer; Ishbel, the mother of Abigail, one of the victims; DI Helen Birch, the newly promoted officer in charge of the case and also one of the first on scene.

All the Hidden Truths is one of the most intense novels I’ve read in quite a while. It’s one of those books that makes you miss bus stops, makes you not hear when people speak to you (I can vouch for both of these), and its beginning is utterly gripping. We know that this horrendous mass shooting is on the way and it’s all the more powerfully presented as it’s revealed bit by bit, through the experiences of people who were there, the ones who survived. The chapters move between these women (two of them traumatised, the other troubled) and scattered throughout are newspaper reports because this is also a novel about the role of the media at a time such as this. And here they are, the vultures with one foot on the victim’s lawn, or wedged in the doorway.

Each of the women has a fascinating tale to reveal, bit by bit. Moira and Ishbel are almost destroyed by their grief and confusion. But is Moira really a victim? Did she know what Ryan intended to do? Is she to blame? It isn’t any easier for Ishbel as her dead daughter’s character is scrutinised and everything in Ishbel’s life falls apart.

This is all deeply intense and the mood is actually eased a little by the sections which focus on Helen Birch and her efforts to hold her investigation together when she is faced by difficulties from every side. I particularly found these chapters interesting for what they reveal about the role of family liaison officers in situations such as these. Some are new to the job, others have years of experience, but all of them are out of their depth here.

I found All the Hidden Truths a compelling read but I also found it a distressing one. Its mood is sustained throughout and I couldn’t read it all in one go. Instead I read it in three sittings with two other books fitted into the gaps. The novel is superbly written by Claire Askew and she has certainly done her research. So the fact that I found it too intense to read in one go is actually a compliment. It all feels horrifically real, Ryan Summers feels like a young man you can meet on the street, Abigail could so easily be a friend, child or sister. The agonising questions of Why which follow a mass shooting are so hard to answer. Claire Askew here treats those questions with insight and great feeling and care. All the Hidden Truths is an extraordinary and powerful debut.

I really enjoyed this book. I enjoyed reading it from the different perspectives which really opened the story up. I'd definitely recommend this to readers.

I am in charge of our Senior School library and am looking for a diverse array of new books to furnish their shelves with and inspire our young people to read a wider and more diverse range of books as they move through the senior school. It is hard sometimes to find books that will grab the attention of young people as their time is short and we are competing against technology and online entertainments.
This was a thought-provoking and well-written read that will appeal to young readers across the board. It had a really strong voice and a compelling narrative that I think would capture their attention and draw them in. It kept me engrossed and I think that it's so important that the books that we purchase for both our young people and our staff are appealing to as broad a range of readers as possible - as well as providing them with something a little 'different' that they might not have come across in school libraries before.
This was a really enjoyable read and I will definitely be purchasing a copy for school so that our young people can enjoy it for themselves. A satisfying and well-crafted read that I keep thinking about long after closing its final page - and that definitely makes it a must-buy for me!

I really, really, really wanted to like this book. I actually met the author in passing a few years ago and she's still a Twitter contact.

This book just seemed incredibly addled to me, flitting from ranting about tabloid culture to incense to blaming the mother. None of the characters felt truly realised and a lot of the plot defied logic.

I don't want to post a review online as it would just feel a bit rude given that I know people who know Claire Askew and they did enjoy this book. It was just disappointing and I don't think I'll be reading anything by her again.

Wow, this is a five star story. Student, Ryan, goes into college one morning and kills 13 students, then himself. The story is narrated by police officers, parents of the dead students and Ryan's mother. A brilliant read.

4.5*

The story of the aftermath of a lone killer who murders thirteen young women and injures one man in a shooting at an Edinburgh college. Yes this is a book about death and grieving to some extent but it covers the police investigation – they know who did it, just not why, so is this just a futile exercise? – newly promoted D I Helen Birch investigates, co-ordinates the family support and, after a surprise encounter has to deal with some of her own ghosts. DCI McLeod, her boss, is ‘leading’ the investigation but he’s a bit old school and has a tendency to put the team on edge. The families – it follows mainly Abigail’s family – and Moira the mother of the perpetrator. It also shows that media frenzy (in the shape of one particular reporter, Gary) – the need to know everything however inappropriate and put it out to the world regardless of what this kind of reporting does to the families – can have some devastating effects and yet may even, possibly for all the wrong reasons, end up giving the strength to battle.

It shows how justice cannot always be found but that maybe closure can be – albeit in a somewhat unexpected and surprising way.

This is may be a difficult book for some to read although it does not wallow there is a deep, sometimes overwhelming sadness in the story – yes from the very act, from what happened, from the heroism, from the waste of lives or, rather, what they could have been but also from the aftermath what happens to the families who have lost loved ones only to find some hidden truths that will break them, build them or even do both. It is a testament to how humans survive terrible tragedy even when that tragedy has been compounded by those hidden truths.

This book is well worth reading.

With thanks to Hodder and Stoughton via NetGalley for an eCopy of this book. Thoughts are my own.

An interesting story, well written and constructed. I'll be looking out for more books by this author.

An intense and emotional book which is thought provoking and gripping. I've been recommending it to others.

4 stars,

Thanks to NetGalley and Claire Askew for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I couldn’t finish this book as the formatting resulted in it being unreadable partway through the book.

What a very clever book! I thought I was going to read a Scottish noir novel ,which I love, but this could have happened in any town or city. Told from the perspective of three women it was so insightful and raw. I couldn’t put it down and was both horrified and angry how the drama was manipulated by the media for sensation. Just brilliant.

This was a really good read, I shall be looking for more by this author in the future. 3 perspectives of a mass killing are explored from 3 different, but connected women giving us insight into the why of the case.

Review

It's been a while since i read a book in one sitting but this was one of those times, the other day i sat and read the whole thing in one go. All The Hidden Truths was a review book i've had from netgalley for some while right now and i just picked it at random with not much knowledge or remembrance about it.

Ryan Summers walked into Three Rivers College and killed 13 women then turned the gun on himself. Why? The families want answers, the media wants answers and so does his mother. Told through the eyes of those families, the police, with media excerpts, texts and diary entries it makes for a real interesting read.

I feel like this would really benefit from been read in a book format as i feel this elements really added depth to the narrative. I felt that this book was deeply emotional although like alot of books/instances of a school shooting you dont always get the answers you are seeking.

All the hidden truths is told from the perspective of DI Birch - a newly promoted police woman who is dealing with some personal issues of her own, taking on her first major case in her new role and trying to keep a handle on the media all at the same time, i really warmed to her and felt for her as she battled all this whilst trying to get answers for the families.

Secondly it is told from the mum of one of the girls who is murdered, Ishbel. We meet her before the tragic event and get an insight into the relationship between the mother and daughter. I again really enjoyed getting to know Ishbel - seeing how she dealt with not only this major trauma but other issues that were going on as well.

Lastly we meet Moira - Ryans mother, who has had her own share of heartbreak already and now has to come to terms with what her only son has done and does she even really know why?

All The Hidden Truths is a deeply moving book that really tackles a serious issue but from the perspective of a fiction reader you dont get much answers, you dont get to learn about the characters - their families and what motivates them but i dont feel like i got full closure. That been said - i would reccomend it in a heartbeat.

This book follows the story of a school shooting. It focuses on three females: the mother of a victim, the mother of the shooter and the police officer in charge of the investigation.

Unfortunately the story feels very slow and drawn out & sadly I couldn't finish it as it just didn't hold my interest