Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

Unfortunately I cannot rate higher than a 3 as I struggled to connect with this book and therefore had to put as dnf.

Thank you Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for the ARC and sorry I took so long to read this.
This is totally different what I would normally read, but I really enjoyed it - highly recommend as something so different.

An interesting and somewhat tragic read. I was totally absorbed by this book and I was left feeling bereft when I was finished. A really well written book.

Skylark was an interesting read. The undercover scandals were shocking and this book allows those stories to be fleshed out to show the human cost. I feel Dan could have been looked into a little deeper but it was a good read.

Skylark is an activist living on the fringes of 'acceptable' society. She had a job, a flat. But she also participates and organises in peaceful protests with a bunch of like minded friends. When Dan joins the group he changes her life. Whilst he has the same ideals he's far more dependable than previous men she's known. He gives her security she's never known. But he's not what he seems. Dan is an undercover police officer, there to spy on her group. And as she falls in love Skylark has no idea who she's involved with.

I'd been aware of the undercover police scandal for awhile and frankly was shocked at every aspect of it. But reading a news story and then a book like this are very different experiences. Whilst entirely fictional it gives a voice to the experiences of not only the deceived but also the deceivers. It's a well told and sensitive portrayal and very even handed. But most of all it's really thought provoking, this is a story that will stay with me for a long time.

This is different to something I would normally read, but I really enjoyed it. I don’t remember any of it, which is probably why it made a great read for me!

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

A really interesting read, and unlike any other book I have come across before. I really enjoyed it and would recommend to others. It has left me with a lot to mull over.

As usual in my reviews, I will not rehash the plot (there are other reviews like that out there already if that's what you are looking for).

This was an interesting read, apparently based on real events. There are some interesting characters - some, it has to be said, felt rather stereotypical (and indeed several reminded me of people I met years ago when I worked for a charity in London!), but they were well written nonetheless.

Overall the book made me feel rather sad, as the lives of both Sky and Dan (the main characters) - not to mention their wider families - were deeply affected. It was interesting to see how both characters gradually changed their points of view due to their relationship. It was painful to read about Sky's distress when the truth was "helpfully" pointed out to her by an old flame (though she had obviously suspected Dan of something along the way). It was also clear that Dan was not a heartless swine and had suffered too.

The relationships between Sky, Louie, Rev and Co (and indeed Sky's Mother) were also very well written and believable.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC. All opinions my own.

Skylark by Alice O’Keeffe left me feeling a bit sad. The plot, based on true events, focuses on an undercover agent, Dan, who infiltrates a group of activists but does it too successfully in that he ends up having a relationship with one of them (Skylark) and having a child. The predictable complications, lies and betrayal follow but Alice writes this very well. She pulls the reader into the moods and times of events and leads you into the darker side of the protests. An enjoyable, albeit disturbing read. Three and a half stars

I'm speechless and I found hard to review this book because it's full of food for thought and I think I'm still trying to sort my thoughts.
It's a riveting, interesting and gripping story. I loved the style of writing and I loved how the author developed the characters.
It's a story of love, betrayal, politics and the depiction of an era. I loved Skylark and her friends, it was great to read about their lifestyle, their passion and ideas.
I also appreciated Dan even if I found hard to like him. He's a man of shared loyalties and sometimes I wondered why he accepted to spy on her friend.
The style of writing and the storytelling are excellent.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This book is a work of fiction based on a true story about protesters, activists and undercover police.

A little different from books I normally read but I was interested in the topic.

An interesting read that I really enjoyed.

From the day home counties schoolgirl Lilian met the wild and eccentric people who inhabited the local common she found her way in life. Now, after years spend living in trees and protesting across the country, Skylark is settling into her first flat. One day at a meeting she meets Dan and the attraction is instant, he's handsome, strong and stable but shares her passion for changing the world. As they grow closer Skylark still has a shred of doubt, but is it misplaced, is Dan as good as he seems?
This book is based on a scandalous story in which undercover police infiltrated environmentalist groups. Many of the police formed intimate relationships with the women they were spying on and several had children before 'disappearing'. Here the story of one of these women is imagined in a fictionalised account which is both passionate and very sympathetic to both sides. It is emotive and anger-provoking and an excellent read.

Wow! This book was right up my street. Based on true life events I was gripped from the very beginning and couldn’t put the book down till I had finished. The writing style really hooks you. This is the first Alice O’keeffe book that I have read but will not be the last, a great storyteller but the depth of research was obvious too. Simply fantastic

I was offered an early preview copy of this book from the Publishers and Netgalley. It is not the type of book that I would normally choose, but I enjoyed reading it and I am pleased that I have read it.
It is based upon a true story, involving the Undercover Police and Activists. I found it fascinating to read just how far the deception went and for how long. The unenviable situation that the Police and the Activists found themselves in.

I grew up in the 80s and 90s, with a background of raves and alternative culture all around, in the media and on the news. 'Skylark' is set against this background, with a passionate community of people hoping to change the world and stop roads being built, hoping that society will learn to focus more on people and creativity instead. The book starts as they are planning a big street party/ road closure; a new volunteer, Dan, joins the group and quickly becomes part of the core planning group. He and Skylark start getting closer and develop a relatonship, but as readers, we know that he's not what he's pretending to be, and is actually part of a secretive undercover police team infiltrating counter cultures.

Expertly researched and written with love and compassion for her subject, I really enjoyed reading Skylark and thinking about the world that might have happened without police involvement.

Skylark by Alice O'Keeffe is an eye opening glimpse into a shocking police scandal that took place within my lifetime. The titular character Skylark is an environmental activist, and alongside her childhood friend and a very mixed bag of other activists, she is involved in planning and participating in demonstrations to try to highlight the environmental damage and destruction of the increasing development of the city, The movement is starting to gain traction and in an attempt to "know the enemy" the police decide to send in an undercover operative. Enter charming and affable Dan who carefully weasels his way into the group, and soon begins to fall for Skylark despite being married in real life and having new twin boys. As he continues to dig deeper into his role, he begins to lose clarity about what he is really doing, and what lines he should be careful not to cross, and almost inevitably he takes things too far. When his superiors find out, and pull him out of the operation immediately the consequences are disastrous for everyone involved.
This was a fascinating story, and the knowledge that it was inspired by real events made it all the more disturbing. I felt for Skylark, her relationship with Dan was a lie from the beginning and it was always doomed. While the book shows that Dan did not avoid fallout from his actions, it was less easy to feel for him as so many of his actions were selfish and thoughtless.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the Publisher, all opinions are my own.

This is a fantastic book. I remember this story hitting the headlines at the time, with undercover police officers infiltrating alternative protest groups and having relationships with group members. It must have destroyed their ability to trust anyone ever again. The author has researched this well, and the tale is told with empathy from both sides. I highly recommend this book.

I really enjoyed Alice O'Keefe's first novel, "On the Up", so I was intrigued when the publisher got in touch to offer me a copy of her new novel. Then I was a bit unsure when I saw it was based on real events, as I'm not keen on novelisations of real life, preferring to read nonfiction if I want facts. But then it did look tantalising, I said yes, and when I read the first few pages I was hooked in.

It's a lovely and affectionate portrait of the 90s protest movement, just at the turn of when the more violent and organised groups got involved in what had been a generally gentle and rave-culture-orientated movement. Things are getting more settled, and after a life of living in camps and up trees, Skylark has just moved into a council flat, originally with her partner Mike, who has become slow and drug-addled after being a key activist for years, and is getting used to living in one place, with things around her. She has a job at a local play centre run by a tour de force of a brightly clad woman who is great at getting publicity and funding (a great side portrait in itself) and then things really seem to come together when she meets Dan. Yes, he's away with work a fair bit, but he's solid and dependable, though a little secretive at times.

My longer review on my blog: https://librofulltime.wordpress.com/2021/11/18/book-review-alice-okeeffe-skylark/

This is based on the truth that came out not too long ago regarding undercover cops and the shenanigans they got up to when they infiltrated gangs and activist groups in the mid 90s. I had vaguely heard of this prior to starting this book but I wasn't prepared for what I was about to read.
Skylark is an activist - we hear how she got to where she is when we first meet her in flashback during the book - and she is part of an organisation. One that is quite active in trying to change the world for the better. One day, they are joined at their meeting by Dan, a newbie with a van (a definite plus), who wants to join. Sky and Dan become close, closer than Dan should get - that's definitely not in the job description. See, Dan is an undercover cop, tasked with infiltrating and reporting back.
Taking Dan's profession aside for a moment, this is an extremely well written book which details the kind of group and activism that was prevalent in the 90s. Not so different to what is happening today to be honest, we haven't go very far sadly, have we? Anyway, we follow Sky and Rev and their group as it grows and becomes more of a noise, attracting the attention of the authorities. The metropolitan police, no less. And they decide to send in a UCO to stir things up and report back. So, Dan... handsome, nice, dependable, married with young kids, Dan. Who does more than infiltrate - so shocking - I really didn't realise quite the depth of the undercover work that was going on. Lines crossed. And the most heinous of crimes committed. Morally if not actually legally. Jeez! Which meant that I really did feel for Sky. All the way through. I get that love knows no bounds, and that there is a burden of responsibility, but the way Dan was handled... well...
Love, lies, betrayal, activism, flashback to the 90s, I can go on listing things I loved about this book. The characters were excellent - every one, even those with very small parts. They all came across as very real. The incidents described re the activism were also well described and the whole story peppered with flashbacks to how certain characters came to be where they were when we first met them.
All in all, a cracking read that opened my eyes up to something I had previously just glossed over. There's a wealth of extra curricular reading to be found on the internet if you want to go deeper. I'm definitely going to do that!
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.