Izzy’s father has just been released from prison where he’s served 18 years of a life sentence for murdering Izzy’s mother. Izzy, who was 17 when her mother was murdered, is now in her 30s and running ‘Alexanders’ restaurant which was her mother’s business and named after her. Izzy only visited her father once in jail and then cut off contact. Shortly after his release, her father turns up at the restaurant claiming that he is innocent. Izzy would like to believe that and starts trying to piece evidence together that might exonerate him. She keeps all this secret from Nick, her husband, who is a police analyst.

The first 10% and last 10% of this book had me gripped and were a good pace but the middle section was slow and felt repetitive with Izzy starting to believe her father but then someone casting further aspersions on his supposed innocence. She then withdrew from contact with her father until something else came to light. This seemed to go on and on and I was just anxious to know the ending as it was getting dull

The ending was rushed and tenuous. Everything apparently became clear to Izzy due to one paragraph in a document she read. Fair enough, but there had been many similar pieces of information in the book so I have no idea why this one made things so clear to Izzy. I found the ending quite unsatisfying.

With thanks to NetGalley and Penguin UK - Michael Joseph for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was looking forward to reading The Evidence Against You. It was billed as a psychological thriller and the plot was very intriguing but I found the whole book lacked pace. I kept feeling the next chapter was going to blow me away and draw me in but it never quite happened. There are some plot twists towards the end but overall I found this book just ok.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin UK Michael Joseph and the author for the chance to review.

Thank you to Netgalley and the author and publishers for the opportunity to read this arc of The Evidence Against You.
I devoured this book in a couple of days . Gripping, compelling and with a real twist that I didn't see coming
The characters were believable and I felt very sorry for the father especially at the end. It does show though what institutionalization does to a person and the need for more support once prisoners are released .
I have read all of Gillians previous books and I was not disappointed in this latest work of fiction.

Another great book by Gillian McAllister. I loved the emotions that Izzy the daughter goes through trying to work out if her father was really innocent or not. Did he kill her mother or was he incorrectly convicted? I did not guess the ending at all. Absolutely loved this book.

Izzy had an idyllic childhood until the age of 17 when her father was convicted of murdering her mother and sent to prison.

It is now 18 years on and her father is being released, he writes and asks Izzy if she will see, he wants her to listen to his side. what does Izzy do? She has always believed that her father was guilty and she is frightened that he might want to seek revenge over his alibi which she did not substantiate. But what if her father did not murder her mother, what if the life she carved out for herself could have been so different!

Gillian writes so movingly of the relationship between father and daughter, both before and after the murder. At times it was so heart wrenching thinking of all those years lost if he was innocent, but in the next breath, soul destroying to think he could have committed such a terrible crime.

The way the author builds up the drama and tensions as Izzy and her father try to piece together what really happened on the night her mother was murdered kept me awake all night.

I am usually quite good at guessing the ending of a book, but not this time. Gillian McAllister your ending was so unexpected, but told with such insight and feeling that I finished the book bereft and in tears.

What a wonderful read this book was. It was compelling and I found it difficult to put down. It was a real roller coaster not knowing who was to blame. Was it a miscarriage of justice or not? As well as intriguing it was also very sad at times. Ms McAllister did a great job in writing this book.

Der Vater von Izzy English wurde vor 18 Jahren für den Mord an ihrer Mutter verurteilt. Sie ist jetzt 36, hat das Restaurant nach dem Tod ihrer Mutter übernommen und ist irgendwie dabei hängen geblieben. Mit ihrem Mann Nick, der Polizeianalyst ist, lebt sie auf der Isle of Wight. Sofort nach der Entlassung taucht ihr Vater bei ihr auf. Sie sieht ihn vor dem Restaurant. Er wirft einen Brief für sie ein. Hierin beschwört er sie, dass er nicht der Mörder war und sie ihm die Möglichkeit geben soll, ihr seine Version aufzuzeigen. Er bittet sie wenigstens mit seinem besten Freund Paul Wakefield zu sprechen, sie denkt dass es nicht schaden kann und macht sich am nächsten Tag auf den Weg zu ihm. Zunächst erzählt sie Nick nur unabsichtlich nicht direkt davon.

Bislang hat Izzy all die Jahre die Gedanken, ob ihr Vater schuldig war oder nicht von sich geschoben und verweigert, doch jetzt kommt sie ins Grübeln und erwägt die Möglichkeit, dass er unschuldig sein könnte. Sie beginnt erstmals sich mit den Details des Falles und dem damaligen Prozess zu beschäftigen.

Auf der einen Seite die Beobachtung wie sehr Erinnern die wirkliche Vergangenheit verändern kann bis hin zur selbst geglaubten Lüge und auf der anderen Seite das immer tiefer werdende Lügengeflecht, in das sie sich selber verstrickt.

Ich halte es für interessant aber auch etwas unrealistisch, dass sie sich 18 Jahre lang Scheuklappen aufgesetzt hatte und sich allem um die Tat und ihren Vater einfach entzogen haben soll.

Ich konnte leider mit der Protagonistin gar nicht warm werden und mich auch nicht in ihre Erlebniswelt hinein finden.

I've read a few of this authors books and enjoyed them, but not this one. It started off well but about half way through I lost interest.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
The Evidence Against You follows 30-Something year old Izzy, who lives on Isle of Wight with her parole officer husband Nick, where Izzy runs her late mother’s restaurant. Izzy’s father killed her mother decades ago and has been released from prison. He wants to get in touch with Izzy and explain his version of the story. At first Izzy is reluctant, even scared, to meet her father but the pull of parental love is too much and she gives in and her father’s convincing versions of past events plant seeds in Izzy’s mind and she wonders has gotten things wrong: has her father been innocent this whole time or is he manipulating her?
I personally enjoyed the father-daughter relationship the best and their subjective, varying recollections of the past and McAllister creates compelling, psychologically complex and relatable characters that I was completely and utterly absorbed in the story. My only gripe and the reason why I’m torn between 3-3.5*** is that a brilliant beginning, and middle fizzled out by the end with a disappointing last 20%. I personally felt that the pace in the last act went from 3rd to 5th gear and this abrupt change of pace was jarring and inconsistent and I felt disappointed by the punchline ending where random characters and events were inserted to resolve the story which in my opinion wasn’t layered in at all thus made go ‘huh? What? Where did this come from?’ and I felt cheated.

I have read all of Gillian McAllister’s book now and there’s something in her writing that has me questioning what I would do if I were in the same situation as her characters. If I was Izzy, how would I react to the release of my father from prison having served 17 years for the murder of my mother? If I was Gabe, how would I rebuild my life on release from prison? I felt like it took me a while to get going with this book but I did reach a point where I was hooked in and reading as fast as I could to see how it would all turn out. I’m sure it’s not a spoiler to say that as per usual it didn’t end how I had imagined.

What an excellent book. The plot was very well thought out and revealed.
I loved how the character of the girl whose mother was murdered, wanted desperately to believe in the innocence of the man accused.
The story slowly built up and began to feel a bit dark and scary and made me feel that she had walked into untold trouble and danger.
The culmination and revelation at the end was so unexpected and it just had me enthralled to the last sentence.
Without giving anything away, I have to say, the author described with feeling and empathy, the very real problem of rehabilitation back into life outside of a cell.
Thoroughly well written and a highly recommended read.

A slow starter that ramps up the pace as you progress. Izzy's father is released from prison after serving time for murdering her mother. Izzy has lived with the repercussions of losing both family members at once in horrific circumstances. Her dad contacts her to protest his innocence. Is he the violent murderer that all the evidence points to or can she believe him. A great read with some stunning twists which have you doubting and believing all through. Heartbreaking at times with a superb ending.

This has been an interesting and enjoyable book to read. The basic plot line is simple - the central character's mother was murdered and her father was convicted of the crime. As the book opens, the father is released on licence and the question is then explored from different angles - did he, or didn't he, commit the crime for which he was convicted. The story is straightforward, but well-told, with a good series of twists and turns that leaves the engaged reader forming conclusions and then - just as quickly - rejecting them as new 'evidence' is presented. The denouement presents its own surprises and is a satisfying end to enjoyable read. `highly recommended.

I have enjoyed this authors other books and found the whole idea behind this one intriguing. It was enjoyable but I just found it a little slow and it didn’t keep me hooked like her previous books have done.

Izzy’s father Gabe is released from prison after being found guilty of her mother’s murder 18 years previously. The evidence against him was ultimately convincing, but Izzy was just a teenager at the time of his arrest, and after years without either parent around, she finds herself desperate to believe his claims of innocence.

Izzy lives a safe, risk-free half-life with police analyst husband Nick on the Isle of Wight and runs her mother’s restaurant, but has little interest in what was her mother’s passion. Encouraged by Gabe, she starts re-examine the murder case herself, but is her father to be trusted?..

The Evidence Against You by Gillian McAllister is a thrilling, fast-paced read with moral dilemmas, dramatic twists and captivating characters. I couldn’t put it down. McAllister has cleverly woven drama and danger into a story that also tugs on your heart strings. Excellent.

Loved this book, as I always love Gillian McAllister's books! This might just be her best yet. Will be giving a full review on YouTube!

A really intelligent, well written thriller that didn’t disappoint. Twisty and taut and a very good, polished read. I loved it.

I waited patiently for this book and was thrilled when it appeared on NetGalley.
I saved it for when I had enough time to devoured it in one sitting as I just knew it wouldn’t disappoint.
Which it did not! I woke early this morning to finish it before work and I’m now currently at work mulling it all over. Was there clues at the beginning that I missed or didn’t read as being important.... clever!
This book was similar to the psychological thrillers out there but it had a different take on it which was refreshing.
I wasn’t sure who to trust and for once I didn’t guess the end. During the whole book, I liked and disliked all the characters due to its many levels which were all becoming clear at different times. It was easy to follow the flash backs and still stay in the moment of the plot which doesn’t always happen.
The description of the island and their small community was easy to picture and put yourself there like you were watching it all happen, which adds to it all for a reader but doesn’t always happen.
This is the third book by Gillian McAllister that I’ve read and enjoyed. I would say she is one of my favourite authors and I look forward to her next book.
Thank NetGalley for the chance of reading and reviewing this book.
Well done Gillian, it’s a great book!

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this book

my second book by this author and i have to say i did wonder in the beginning what i was reading..but somewhere around the middle i was hooked and couldnt put it down
and the ending was just as shocking as the crime....

a family is torn apart...mom is found dead, dad is arrested for murder and the daughter is left to live her life with her grandparents wondering what had happened...

18 years later her father is released from prison and the fun begins....a slow start but it picks up its pace and the ending has quite a few shocking twists to it....

another great book by an amazing author

You experience a gamut of emotions, as you progress through this story. The plot grips you and makes you keep turning the pages, but amidst the solidly based thriller, are the poignant reminders of something lost, and an ethos of gut-wrenching sadness.

Essentially, this is a story of human frailty, and how one incident can alter lives irreparably. The thriller has a psychological element because of the main protagonist Izzy, who desperately wants to believe what she sees and hears from the important people in her life, but can she?

The plot is cleverly written and plausible, for those who like solving mysteries, the clues are gradually filtered into the story, and it is possible to work out who has done what, but not easily. The story is complex and emotional, you empathise with Izzy and more importantly Gabe, even though you are not sure if he is telling the truth.

The characters are believable and have real depth, the story concentrates primarily on Izzy and Gabe, with historical flashbacks, from their points of view, but for this reader, there is no lessening of interest or skipping over details, it is all-absorbing and heightens the reading pleasure.

A riveting, realistic read for lovers of cerebral thrillers and human behaviour.

I received a copy of this book from Penguin UK- Michael Joseph via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Review will be shared on my blog on release day - 18 April 19.