The book is about Michael who recounts the tragic events from the 1970s when he just a young boy. The Freemans, the neighbors next door, win a large sum of money. This leads them to becoming victims of a heinous crime. They are robbed and the wife is murdered, leading the husband to seek revenge. The husband begins to place blame on Mikey's family and will stop at nothing to bring them down but is he seeking revenge on the wrong people? Who actually killed his wife?

Well I did not see that coming! What a great read that had me gripping the book and flipping the pages as fast as I could to get to the end.

This book kept me entertained and guessing from beginning to end. This was a first from the author for me, and I will read some more of their books in future. Recommended.

New author for me but pleasantly surprised. Thank you for the approval and look forward to a book relationship with other reads in the future,

This is great. Everyone will love it. It’s well written and funny and intense and just a damn good story. 5/5 on good reads

Thankyou to NetGalley, Troubador Publishing Ltd, Matador and the author, S Lynn Scott, for the opportunity to read a digital copy of A Patient Man in exchange for an honest, unbiased opinion.
This is a story told through the eyes of an eight year old and I really enjoyed reading it.The story was well thought out and written with a central character that grabs ahold of you and keeps your attention.
Well worth a read.

I received a copy of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I started A Patient Man not knowing what to really expect. Was it another crime thriller that I would devour so readily? Was it a coming of age story? It transpired to be both which delighted rather than frustrated me.

Whilst the hook of the story is the kidnapping and murder of a local Canvey Island resident following a sudden windfall, the detail is in the impact this tragedy has on Mikey, an 8-year-old boy with more street smarts than the Artful Dodger. Told exclusively from his point of view, Scott juxtaposes eloquence of description with grating dialect, bringing life to the harsh beauty of this east coast town.

Initially stalled to start (so I thought), I did wonder whether I would persevere with this story as I wasn’t vested from the word go as I find myself with so many other novels, but I am so glad I did as I found myself warming to Mikey and his situation the further I delved. A neglected and seemingly unloved child - by some family members if not others - Mikey matures as the pages turn and it is a journey we follow from start to finish.

I mentioned the dialogue and this is a sticking point. To me, this is written as though the only experience the author has of the south east is a history of watching Eastenders and Ray Winstone films (unless we all do actually speak like that and I am too biased to notice my own speech patterns?!) I favour written, rather than ‘spoken’ speech in my stories.

All told, this slow burn story offers much in the harsh realities of growing up in 1970s Essex on the poverty line and the impacts others’ behaviours have on our own lives, and I enjoyed the parallel stories of growth and redemption alongside the more traditional ‘howdunnit.’

I absolutely loved this book. The opening line of 'The man who murdered my mother lived at the end of our street' just grabbed me. You start off knowing who was murdered but the story is beautifully told by Mikey, an 8 year old boy from a dysfunctional family living on Canvey Island, Essex in the 1970's. His father is away a lot mixing with criminals in London, his mother doesn't care about him, and so Mikey is left most days to fend for himself. But then his elderly neighbour Bert Freeman and his wife are attacked in their home and fingers soon start pointing at Mikey's family.

It's a story of revenge and breaking the cycle of an eye for an eye but it's the way the revenge is meted out that is the twist. I highly recommend this book.

“The man who murdered my mother lived at the end of our street.” This is the opening sentence. With a sentence like that, you know it's going to be a good book!

It's told through Mikey’s point of view, when he was 8-9 years old, he adds a bit of humor to the story. A Patient Man is definitely an interesting and recommended read.

Thanks again for this ARC!
#ApatientMan #NetGalley

This book's opening few chapters grabbed me, but then the pace slowed down until the final quarter of the book, which is part of the reason why it took me a good chunk of time to finish the story.

The setting was described so well that I could picture it clearly, despite not knowing the area well myself. The contrast between the working class and upper class lifestyles was used effectively.

My second book in a row with too much of the dialogue written in an overly phonetic dialect, but it does at least serve a purpose in this book.

What was distracting was that there were a few grammatical errors littered throughout, plus at least one occasion where the wrong character's name was used!

Given that it was written from the perspective of a much older Mikey looking back on his childhood, I would have liked to have learned more about his life now. Otherwise, why choose that point of his adulthood to use as the perspective?

Thanks to NetGalley and Troubadour Publishing for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

For explanation of the star rating system I use, please check out my Goodreads profile: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/7401612-polly

‘Whatever my father might do to earn his daily bread, much of which was not entirely restricted by the law, he still considered begging another for money as beneath him.’
It is lines like these that make this book a wonderful read; full of humour yet also filled with tragically things going wrong. Mikey looks back on the most painful period in his life, yet he is not bitter. He wants revenge for what has been done to him and his family, yet he can find it in himself to forgive. The book makes you alternatively smile, giggle or a little sad. It makes you realize that it is not always possible to live your life as you would want to, that you need to go through a difficult time to get what you want. And even that may not always be what you thought you would like to have.

Thank you Netgalley and Troubadour for a digital copy of this book.

With thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the loan of the book in exchange for an honest review.
A Patient Man by S Lynn Scott is the story of two families who live on Canvey Island in 1976 told through the eyes of an 8 year old boy, Mikey.
It is a story of violence and cruelty, neglect and a disparate family.. it started when the Freeman’s won some money on the pools and how 3 unidentifiable assailants kidnapped the elderly wife, who dies before the kidnappehrs can get any money. Then the grieving husband decides to split the money between the four older members of the family knowing they would not be able to cope.
It is a strange story told by Mikey, who is sent to a private school for his education funded by Mr Freeman in the hopes that he would be the future.
Recommended.

I received an advanced copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This book had me on the edge of my seat the whole time! It was definitely a book that kept you thinking! I would definitely recommend this book to fellow readers. Thank you!

A Patient Man by S. Lynn Scott was one of those quiet, unassuming books that you get wrapped up in. I enjoy reading an actual linear story these days, so many timelines meander back and forth and for me, that device is getting old. Scott writes her characters with perfection, creating a realistic foundation for the basis of the story. Ultimately this is a story about revenge, and daringly about the evils of having too much money. Truly enjoyed this book for it's unconventional approach, and a solid story. Mikey was a charming, quick-witted, sarcastic, and fun character to get to know. I was rooting for him the whole time.

Wow was that a book.. it had a killer( no pun intended) opening sentence. “The man who murdered my mother lived at the end of our street.” You would think this would give away the plot and the ending, but the author manages to keep the readers guessing. My only complaint was that they spoke a lot in their local dialect and it was kind of hard to understand.

4.5/5 stars

I liked the story, and it's written really very well, you get invested in (and caring) what happens to the family.

Thanks to the publisher for the ARC.

I wanted the story to unravel for decades, with unique destruction of each, the old man (Mr. Freeman) to live to see it (certifying the title as opposed to what it means in the book). Also, it would have been cool if the actual criminal turned out to be non-family member.......imagine, all the suffering that these people brought upon themselves through their actions (enabled by seemingly endless supply of money) and for the old man to see it and then when he thinks all are repentant, or at least cognizant of their own misery, everyone gets to know, someone else did the kidnapping.........I don't know. Thinking out loud. Loved the story.

A Patient Man by S. Lynn Scott is an English murder mystery set in 1976 and told from the perspective of an 8 yr old boy named Mikey. Mikey is a wild child so to speak and roams the streets all day and some into the night. His mum is out with her friend at pubs and his father is gone a lot. So with that he does not attend school and searches for coins and things to buy his food and drink. One day his neighbors find out they have won the lottery. Everyone shortly finds out. Including Mikey. Mrs. Freeman, one of the winners, turns up dead. It is a very interesting tale told by a child that is what keeps the readers interest. The writer has a passion with descriptive writing also. You can visually see what is being written. The tale of revenge afte the murder is the best part I think of how the writer shares her gift with us, the reader. I highly recommend this book.


Thank you to netgalley as well as the author for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.


5 stars ⭐️ out of 5

I enjoyed how the plot built up and came together but the storytelling was very...
very...
slow.
It was like watching someone knit a scarf in real time: waiting and waiting to see what the final pattern reveals, knowing that it's taking forever to finish.

Oh! How I liked this one. For some reason, I am a sucker for sarcastic, witty, British humor and S. Lynn Scott's writing is just my type of thing. I enjoyed it so much that it took me almost a week to finish it (yes, I take my time when I like a book).

From any angle I look at it, I can't find anything wrong with this story! I wouldn't mind reading more about Michael at boarding school ( like the book Spud by John van de Ruit).

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this title.

An incredibly enjoyable book from start to finish. So much attention to detail, both of setting and characterisation. Totally transported me to that time and place and spun a unique twist on the usual murder mystery genre.

There were so many things I loved about this book! There was the matter-of-fact, clear-eyed depiction of poverty, petty crime and family dysfunction in London's East End during the 1970s. There was the quiet but powerful contrast between the heavy Cockney dialogue of Mikey's family and the cultured, highbrow voice of the narrator in his 40s.

Mikey is eight when "the first thing" happens -- a neighbor couple wins an enormous lottery jackpot. Next follows a kidnapping, intended to be for ransom, which goes awry. So far, so predictable. The third and fourth momentous events are surprising, even astonishing, as they occur, yet there is a sense of inevitability when they occur from what we've learned of the characters.

This book was not a thriller, but it was thrilling. It simmered with class tension and greed, and revenge played a huge role,and yet there was a thread of hope hiding throughout the narrative. We were treated to multiple views of each person's character -- Mikey's parents', his neighbors', his half-siblings' and in the end, his benefactors' -- and of the effect of money on each.

I give five stars only to those books I want to read again, and A Patient Man qualifies. Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC.