Well DAMN I did not see that coming! What an absolutely addictive, twisty, clever thriller! I listened to most of this one on audio (amazing cast), but I know that if I’d been reading the book it would’ve been a one sitting and done kind of read 🙌

I’m not going to say anything more than the blurb because I don’t want to risk giving anything away, but this was such an atmospheric and at times surprisingly poignant read. Whilst the kidnapping plot obviously took centre stage, I also really enjoyed the focus on Jamie’s illness - he has cerebral palsy, and there were many insightful moments into what it’s like to live with a disability and how frustrating and heartbreaking it can be. It’s not something you see often with main characters, and especially not in thrillers, so I appreciated the unique perspective and inclusion of it.

But really it did feel like Victoria’s show - she’s such a compelling character, and whilst I wouldn’t call her likeable, she certainly makes for great reading!

Honestly though, just wait for THAT plot twist. Like I wasn’t hooked enough already! Once there was a big reveal I pretty much had to finish it then and there to see how everything was wrapped up because it was just all so unexpected. Definitely recommend this to any crime/thriller fans - it’s excellent!

Thriller set in CUMBRIA

"A tense spin on the locked-room mystery"

#audiobook

Jamie and Victoria decide to head to the North Pennines for sentimental reasons, just a few weeks before the due date of their baby. Victoria has had her 36 week check up and all is good. They decide upon Cumbria as their destination and choose B&B 'Chorister's Lodge', which, upon arrival, seems to have a rather dark aura. They are welcomed by owners Fiona and Barry (whose stamp-like moustache certainly raises an eyebrow) and they exchange pleasantries. They all have dinner together, chat about their jobs and retire to bed; but in the early hours Fiona's Braxton Hicks contractions move into full-blown labour. Jamie heads off to find help but he discovers that their phones and car keys are missing, the doors are locked and Fiona and Barry, seem to have scarpered. To all intents and purposes they are incarcerated in their remote dwelling with the pressure of a baby about to be born.

Flip to a short while later - only a matter of weeks - and Victoria and Jamie are suggesting that their infant died at birth but it is clear this is not the truth. The whole mystery unfurls: and the thrust of the novel is how the couple copes with the aftermath of events back at the B&B and how it all concludes. There are some staggering twists and turns along the way, history, secrets spilled at junctures, and it all bowls along at a decent pace.

Victoria is 34 and this is her first child. They are a nervous couple awaiting the birth. Given it is her first - as an elderly primigravida - it seems so very unlikely that she and Jamie would decamp to a remote spot at such a late stage in the pregnancy, ESPECIALLY as it transpires that Jamie was himself born a month premature. They haven't got a clue which is the nearest hospital (it seems to be Carlisle) and they don't have the documentation with them that they would need, should the baby come a little early, which we know it (he - Danny) does. Therefore the premise of the novel feels rather untenable right from the outset.

Jamie suffers from a disability which becomes apparent as the narrative moves forward, and which adds an extra dimension and tension to the storyline. He comes across, however, as a really two-dimensional partner. I listened to this as an audiobook and the narrator of Jamie's character enunciates very clearly but there is neither undulation nor passion and urgency (given it is a thriller, this is very important), and it is such a flat and stultifying rendition that it sometimes felt quite soporific, even when the action is racing and pulsing. It felt like the text of the book was being read rather than acted. The narrator of Victoria's mother at times assumes a parody voice, so rather than inflection and animation, she voices a nasally clipped tone, shorthand for an undermining and controlling woman, who of course is just an unpleasant person. Lauren, and her sister Flo, are interchangeably given similar and annoying nasal treatment. There is also an Epilogue which ultimately felt a little superfluous.

The author is a good writer and pulls together a decent narrative, but it is just such a preposterous storyline, which ultimately dominates  (do people get arrested at the drop of a hat, simply on the word of someone who states something has happened, when (at that point) there is no evidence? I don't think so...).

Sadly this wasn't really for me.

My goodness what a rollercoaster of a book. I'll try not to give anything away here.
I listened to the audio version and could only cope with a few episodes at a time. I was so scared for the young couple having a baby in a strange house. It was quite terrifying to listen to their plight interspursed with later events and flashbacks.
From the start I really like the character of Jamie. He is very well portrayed and he remains consistent throughout the book. Victoria, I did not like much but her character too is well constructed.
A good thriller.

The concept sounded interesting, but I found the plot a little unbelievable and the characters unrelatable. That said, the characterisation of Jamie was a refreshing depiction of someone who is differently-abled, so I definitely enjoyed that. I also liked the different narrators, because nothing takes me out of an audiobook faster than someone attempting fake gendered voices.

Overall, an interesting book, but certainly not one that I'll be screaming from the rooftops about.