What if you left your child alone, and something terrible happened?

Anna James is an anxious mum to three girls, eleven year old twins Harrie and Elise, and seven year old Molly, living in the village of Barton St. Martin. She is currently looking after them on her own while her husband Rob is working away on an oil rig in Nigeria and he only returns home every couple of months. One evening she decides to let Harrie stay home alone whilst she takes Elise to gymnastics, it's only 20 minutes away, nothing can go wrong in that time can it? Except things do go wrong, Anna is held up due to a road accident and returns hours later to find her daughter has become very withdrawn and unable to explain the bruises that have appeared, will Anna find out what happened to Harrie that night and is it connected to the disappearance of a local businessman?

Safe at Home is told from the perspectives of both Anna and Harrie, beginning with a group Whatsapp chat on Halloween night and then goes back ten days to tell us the story leading up to Halloween and beyond. Anna is a very private person, feeling the strain of being a 'single parent' while Rob is working away and even though she's made friends with some of the other mum's and villagers, she never quite feels that she belongs, which probably explains why she's a bit overprotective with the girls, but she also has a secret that nobody else in the village is aware of and she's hoping it stays that way, but of course nothing stays secret for long in a small village. Harrie is a typical eleven year old, until that night when her whole attitude and demeanour changes in a split second. The premise of this story is authentic, the chapters short and seamless, with the added WhatsApp chats and the interviews intertwined. The characters are believeable, some not very nice ones I have to say! Its a tense read with some unexpected twists. This is the first I've read by this author, recommended by a friend, and I'll certainly be looking at her other books.

I'd like to thank Random House UK Transworld and Netgalley for the approval, I will post my review on Goodreads and Amazon.

A well written book of mystery and intrigue set in a village where some people are not as they seem to
The story goes back and forth in time but found it easy to keep up with
The Watsapp messages were a good touch
Lots of characters to love to hatw
A good read

I absolutely loved this book ,it had me gripped right from the beginning .Told backwards and forwards the mystery is ramped up .Set in a small village where gossip is rife Anna ,Rob and their three girls have moved there from London in the hope of a quieter life but mystery surrounds the disappearance of one of the villagers and nothing is ever the same again .There are many twists and turns ,secrets and red herrings ,I had no idea of why these things had happened until the reveal and just when I had got my head round that ,the final pages threw me a completely unexpected ending ,just brilliant !! Many thanks to the Publisher the Author and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest review .

Fast-paced, addictive, and unputdownable!

Anna has never left her children home alone; she barely lets them out of her sight. So, when her 11-year-old daughter Harrie begs her to be left at home one evening, Anna is not keen at all. She’s not going to be gone long though, surely Harrie will be fine for twenty minutes. What could possibly go wrong in such a short space of time?

Delayed by unforeseen circumstances, Anna is much longer than intended, however, she is relieved to find Harrie asleep in bed upon her return. All is not as it seems though, with the back door unlocked, mud on the floor and bruises on Harries’s neck, Anna is convinced something happened to her daughter while she was gone.

Anna makes it her mission to find out what happened that night, Harrie is not the same child as before, getting into trouble at school, refusing to talk and being angry and rude, Annas’ heart breaks for her daughter and she fears the worst about what could have happened to her. They live in a very small tight-knit community, somebody must know something, but who?

This book is so gripping, intense and highly addictive. The chapters narrated by Anna allow us to follow a worried mother who desperately wants to help her daughter whilst trying to keep it together for her other two children and the chapters narrated by Harrie allow us to follow a frightened young girl too scared to speak of what happened the night she was left alone.

With many unreliable and suspicious characters, this book will have you guessing throughout as to what could’ve possibly happened. I didn’t know who to trust and had many scenarios run through my head, none that were accurate though! With the perfect amount of suspense, some brilliant twists and an awesome ending, this book contains everything a great psychological thriller should.

Based in a sleepy village around the time of Halloween makes for a very atmospheric read and helps to give the story a very dark feeling!
As the nights are about to grow darker, why not grab a copy of this fantastic book and read whilst you’re ‘Safe at Home’ 😉

Thank you to Lauren North, Transworld Books & NetGalley for my copy of this book 😊

Safe at Home takes a topic faced by all parents - at what point do you feel safe leaving your child at home on their own - and created a gripping and tense read that kept me turning the pages.

Anna is an anxious mother, trying to juggle parenting three children while her husband works abroad. One evening she decides to leave eleven year old Harrie at home briefly while she collects Harrie’s twin sister - they live in a quiet village, so what harm is she likely to come to? But Anna’s quick trip turns out to be far from it following a car accident that blocks the road, and it soon becomes clear that something has happened to Harrie that night. With Harrie unwilling to talk to her mother about it, Anna finds herself trying to figure out what has happened to have such an impact on her daughter. The following day someone from the village goes missing - is there a connection between the two events?

The book has three different time lines - before the event, the event itself and the aftermath, and is told from the viewpoints of both Anna and Harrie. Add to that Whats App conversations amongst the women of the village and interviews with a journalist after the event and the tension builds as the reader tries to figure out how everything fits together. It’s a book that keeps you guessing constantly with plenty of twists and turns and an ending I didn’t see coming.

My thanks to NetGalley and publisher Random House UK, Transworld Publishers, Corgi, for the electronic copy.

This is an interesting read with a good storyline, although I did become rather exasperated at times by the repetitive angst portrayed in the main character's point of view - it kind of "went on a bit". However.........

Anna James, together with her 11yr-old twins Harrie and Elise and 7yr-old Molly are living in a rented house in the village of Barton St Martin. Her husband Rob is working on an oil rig off the coast of Nigeria and returns home for only 2 weeks every 3 months. Anna is extremely over-protective of her children; she's run off her feet with their after-school activities; they're short of money and she can't afford to become involved with a group of neighbours and their activities. Anna and Rob have a reason why they are living there - why they had to move from their spacious London townhouse - why they had to "run".
Rob Skype's his family every Sunday at 7pm and finally Anna is convinced to allow Harrie to stay home whilst she collects Elise with Molly from Gymnastics club. What should have been a 20 minute round-trip turned into hours, due to an accident on the main road. Anna's frantic, she can't get hold of Harrie - why had she left her at home.
Harrie's whole personality changes from that night - she won't tell anyone what's wrong and Anna notices bruising on her - what on earth had happened? At the same time Dean, Anna's friend, disappears.

The narrative is interspersed with messages on the village's chat group and the story converges between the night of the crash and Harrie's disappearance on Halloween.

Not everyone is who they seem to be in this sleepy village; Anna takes them all at face-value, even best friend Kat - but many hold a secret which turns Anna's life upside down.

Yes, there are a few twists and turns in this story of betrayals and lies; I didn't care much for any characters in particular though - Anna just annoyed me and the rest of the neighbours were rather shallow - except one - June, Anna's nearest neighbour - she's the best!

Thank you to #NetGalley for allowing me to read #SafeAtHome by #LaurenNorth

Under pressure from her husband Anna James leaves her 11 year old daughter Harris at home while she picks up another daughter from Athletics. The live in a small village, what can go wrong? But something does happen and Anna cannot get Harrie open up and tell her about it.
Her happy football mad daughter has changed overnight.
This story is told by different characters slipping backwards and forwards in time. It is not my favourite mode of storytelling but I got so involved in the story I had to keep going. A gripping read that will keep you turning the pages long after bedtime. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Anna and Rob have three daughters eleven year old twins Harrie and Elise and Molly.
Unfortunately Rob works away in Nigeria on an oil rig and only has contact with the family once a week on a Sunday.
Anna struggles with the day to day running of the home and finances especially as they had to leave their home in London because of Rob losing his business. And moved to the quiet village of Barton St Martin.
After yet another hectic day of running around after the girls Anna needs to pick up Elise from gymnastics and it only is a ten minute drive and Harrie begs to stay at home. Reluctantly Anna agrees but on the way back there is a fatal accident and the road home is blocked Anna tries phoning home to let Harrie know that they will be late but there is no answer after several hours and numerous attempts to get hold of Harrie they arrive home to find her fast asleep .
But come morning there is something terribly wrong with Harrie but she won't talk about it.
I live in a small village and Lauren has got the characters down to a tee!

A very twisted, clever plot.

What would you do if you’ve left your eleven-year-old daughter at home, supposedly for no more than twenty minutes, but thanks to an accident don’t get home for hours? Not only have you left her alone, but the child you find at home is not the happy child you left – she’s terrified of being touched and won’t tell you what happened. This is what faces Anna James, the mother of twins Harri and Elise and Molly aged seven. Her husband works on an oil rig in Nigeria and only comes home every two months. This means that the burden of bringing up the children and especially now that Harri (Harriette) has changed and refuses to talk, is so terrifying for her.

I’ve deducted one star because I thought it was somewhat repetitive. But then, I’ve never had a child who has changed from a happy pleasant child into a very frighten morose child.

The plot is quite brilliant – I sort of suspected some of the characters but their lies were so well disguised I’d then have to change my mind.

Rony

Elite Reviewing Group received a copy of the book to review.

It was a fast read, very well written story...I was honestly completely hooked onto this book. I would like to say that it's plot based, but there is an interesting exploration (albeit not in-depth) exploration of the human psyche through various characters. Good twists, some expected, some not. I rate this book 3.5 stars (even though the rating shows as 4 - halves are not possible) but perhaps that's more to do with my personal preferences and less to do with the book. I generally don't enjoy reading thrillers that have any plot points with a child involved (but this one hooked me from the get go; I was only going to read a few pages, but I couldn't stop...). Plus - VERY MILD SPOILER ALERT - I feel rather than eleven years old, to make some of the events more plausible, perhaps the child should have been a teenager...but then again, I can see why that might not have worked because of other events that took place. Anyway, all in all, a good read. Thanks for the story.

Read and reviewed in exchange for a free copy from NetGalley. 'Safe at Home' was gripping and easy to read, and I got through it quickly. I was invested in the storyline throughout, but felt the resolution was implausible, confusing and ultimately let it down. However, the characters were well written and the concept was an excellent one.

Thank you Net Gallery for sending me the proof copy of this ahead of its release. This book was definitely full of twists and turns. It was fast paced to begin with and I was hooked. As the story went on I felt like it was taking its time to get to the big twist, but once that big twist came it was getting really good.

Brilliant thriller!

So i was not sure what to expect going into this book because it’s a totally new author for me, but I did like the premise. A mother leaves her child at home for several hours one evening during which something disastrous happens and then things change from there. I won’t say anything more about that because I hate to give spoilers. The book started a bit slow for me and some of the interview sections were slightly confusing. However once it reached roughly the half-way mark, the pace quickened. There was even a twist right up to the last page that was pleasing to see.
I recommend this book heartily to all book friends. Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. I look forward to more from this author.

I really enjoyed every second of this brilliant thriller! Nothing is what it seems, literally nothing!
I really loved the writing style, and Anna's character as well as her girls, I felt her anxiety and worry for Harrie, and as someone with anxiety I totally relate to her irritation with those who dismiss her as a Worry Wart!
Superb thriller, grabs you completely from page one, I did not guess any of the twists and found the storyline so clever and well considered, the end was a stunner too!

Wow! This is an excellent, thrilling, read and I loved it!

Anna is a slightly neurotic mother; who has a chequered family history and is currently bringing up her 3 children whilst her husband works abroad. She never leaves her girls; but, one night it's necessary and what follows is a web of lies, intrigue and suspicion.

The story unfolds in a fantastic way that kept me both intrigued; suspicious; curious and riveted.

For anyone who enjoys a solid well told thriller... this is for you! Highly recommend.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishers for the opportunity to preview. Wonderful!

I absolutely loved this book , just the right amount of tension and suspense. I loved the main character and her children and what a strong lady she was . Shame couldn’t be said for her husband . Definitely a 5 star read , I would highly recommend

Safe At Home tells us the story of Anna's family and her small village. Anna's husband works away so she has to deal with the day to day duties of school runs, after school clubs and house work herself. With one child (Harrie) going off the rails slightly after she was left home alone one evening this proves very difficult.
I was hooked to this book once I was half way through and could picture all characters. It has a few twists which keeps you on your toes!
This was my first Lauren North book buy wont be my last. I would give this book 5 stars.

New Review 🥳

Safety at Home 🏡
Lauren North

I pretty much inhaled this book, I couldn't put it down and as such read it in three days.

🏡 The story follows Anna who lives in a sleepy village with her three daughters, Molly and twins Elise and Harrie - her husband works in Nigeria on an oil rig. Anna leaves 11 year old Harrie home alone for what should be 30 minutes whilst she collects Elise from gymnastics. A car crash causes them to be several hours and it is within that time something happens to Harrie - but what?

Suspense!!!

The flicking between time can sometimes be frustrating in a book, but within this, it was exciting each time we went back in time because you knew something new would be revealed. I particularly loved how all of the separate events were connected.

I really enjoyed this and give it 5 stars.

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Many thanks to @netgalley for an advancedcopy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

#confessionsofayorkshirereader #Safetathome #netgalley #readersofinstagram #bookstagram #bookreview #bookreviewer #readersofinstagram

Anna James has been dumped, with her three daughters, in the small village of Barton St Martin having fled from the bailiffs homing in on their repossessed London house. Her husband, Rob, whose financial incompetence was responsible for this disastrous fall from grace, is now working six-months on one off contracts on an oil-rig off the coast of Nigeria to earn high wages and clear their debts. Over protective, unsurprisingly, of her girls (Harrie and Elise, 11 year old twins, and Molly, five) she is reluctant to give them any freedom, even in this cosy and seemingly caring place. I say ‘seemingly’ because, behind their friendly and open personae, the other mothers are a cliquey, catty, gossipy bunch. Even her best friend, Kat, is not quite as she seems.
However, one evening, as an experiment, she leaves Harrie at home while she takes the other two to after school activities. A fatal crash on the main road means it is hours before she is able to return, to find Harrie apparently asleep in bed. But why are there muddy marks on the floor and where did she get the bruised shoulder? Is this connected with the disappearance of a local businessman which happened on the same night?
The book falls into the category of psychological mystery, because its rationale is driven by Anna’s trauma and Harrie’s eleven-year-old-child’s behaviour. The story is told in three time frames: the week between the above event and Halloween, the night of Halloween, the subsequent days. It is also told from four perspectives: Anna’s, Harrie’s, the mother’s chat groups’ (one open and one restricted), post-event interviews by a local reporter. This type of approach can help with the build up of tension although here it feels like it is more for obfuscation, hiding the fact that this is just a linear story with a predictable outcome. The ending does contain some surprises (or at least tidies up the motivations), but I felt it was something of a Deus ex Machina.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.

Every parents worst nightmare and a real page turner. Didn't see the ending coming. If you like thrillers then take a comfortable seat and dive in.