This is a heartrending tale; told from the perspective of a 9 year old girl whose mother has died and who is living with her father, stepmother and stepsister and who is so keen to find out about her mother and how she died. However, she's forbidden from speaking about her and is 'taught a lesson' by her Dad, every time she tries.

She knows 18 things about her mum and on her tenth birthday, she is given a note that makes her question the little she thinks she knows, as well as giving her a thirst for the truth. What follows is an emotional journey and at times I found it hard to read as it deals with mental and physical abuse. But, it's told well and July is so likeable, I had to stick with it.

I've enjoyed this author's previous work and trusted her enough to keep going. Overall, a challenging read for the reasons I mention, but, one worth reading. A solid 3* Good Read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to preview and I wish the author much success as this will touch many people and I my wish is that it also gives hope to anyone in this heartbreaking situation of abuse.

I thought this book was well written and covered the topics with care.

The twists and turns kept me guessing and kept me invested in July's mission to discover the truth.

Very enjoyable and thought provoking book - will be recommending to friends..

Thank you for the opportunity to read this.

I have read, and enjoyed, a couple of this author's books already so I was quite excited to get my hands on this!
July Hooper, aged 10, lives with her father. Her mother having died in a car accident. Her father is strict and doesn't like her talking about her mother so, what she does know, she keeps secret from him. He has remarried and July has a step-sister. Then, one day at school, she finds a note in her book suggesting that her mother is still alive...
And that's all I want to say as you really do need to meet and get to know July as the author intends. She is a wounded soul but a wonderful character, so very very genuine and so well drawn. I connected with her instantly and that connection only grew as the book progressed.
It's not an easy read. It tackles some quite heavy domestic issues, as well as bullying and other dark stuff. But the way the author writes, the book never gets too heavy. That said, I did have to walk away a couple of times. It's a bit emotional. Tugging at your heartstrings all the way through.
That said, it is well researched, and well written. I imagine it's hard to broach such topics without fear of sensationalising or going over the top for the sake of fiction. The author does neither here and that also helps keep the book on an even keel.
July and her story, once she gets the truth, is a character and story that will stay with me a while. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

The summer heatwave permeates the whole of this story of July and her quest to find out more about her mother. her stern authoritarian father cannot possibly be asked, her stepmother won't answer, and her stepsister just ignores her as much as possible. But July has a school project to complete and seeks the truth and gets some startling results.

This is a great story with some exciting plot lines. I think it would be a good young person choice, maybe from about 12+ as there are some dark themes which are written very well. it's also very suitable for adults. I woudl highly recommend it.

July Hooper knows eighteen things about her mother.

Like number thirteen: she loved dancing on the kitchen table. And number eight: she was covered in freckles.

And then there's number two: she died after being hit by a car when July was small.

She keeps this list hidden in a drawer away from her father. Because they're not allowed to talk about her mother. Ever.

As July starts her school project to discover more about her dead mother, layers and secrets are gradually revealed. Trying to find the truth from adults can be very difficult and July’s family don’t want the past dug up.
As well as the gradual reveal about her mother, keeping the reader intrigued with flash forward letters from July’s father in prison and old letters to her from her mother, there is a more heartbreaking and sad narrative of domestic abuse.
July’s father doles out beatings and punishments to her and her stepfamily and the pattern of abuse is one of dependency and self-loathing with the victims putting the blame on themselves.
The reveal at the end was already clear to me, following the letters, but the real shocks were how so many turned a blind eye or didn’t report anything - neighbours, teachers, family.
July is a great sympathetic character and Koch writes well to bring a child’s point of view in this situation to the page.
It’s certainly a good book for a reading group to start a conversation about domestic abuse, spotting the signs and what to do.

A sweet story - interesting to have such a young protagonist in a piece of adult fiction, but she has a compelling voice and you are engaged with her mission. The depiction of her relationship with her manipulative father (as well as his new partner's) is sensitively and accurately drawn, building your empathy for how July can still love and seek the approval of this awful character. The mystery and plot were quite simple and straightforward. I found this very readable, if slightly forgettable.

What a different read!
I loved Koch's 'if I die before I wake', and as soon as I saw the blurb, I knew it was one I wanted on my TBR.
This is a huge change of direction for the author, but she is talented enough to be great at both genres in my opnion!
July, our protaganist is a very unusual character, and I adored her. She has a very difficult childhood, and has so many questions about the death of her mother, and who her mother was as a person. This broke my heart, she had me questioning things about my own mother's life too. July's mum list was amazing, and had me hooked throughout as we learned new things and how things might not be as they first appeared.
Brilliant.

WHAT JULY KNEW

An engrossing and emotional family mystery.

Family secrets, Grief and Growing Up. What a rollercoaster.

An absorbing psychological read, that gets you hooked and doesn’t let you go.

Thank you #netgalley, Random House UK and of course the author Emily Koch for the e-arc of #WhatJulyKnew and giving me the opportunity to experience this utterly compelling novel it was an amazing read and I was enamoured throughout.

Out February 9th 2023 and it is an absolute must read.

Just stunning. A contender for one of my favourite books of the year, WHAT JULY KNEW is a compelling and yet horrifying glimpse into one girl’s search for the truth, amid the backdrop of domestic violence and tense summer heat. I loved the narrative voice and was genuinely surprised by the twists and turns. A must-read!

4.5⭐️

The setting is 1995, so a retro setting, I wouldn’t class it as historical. July Hooper is a sweet kind good natured child who lost her mother as a youngster. No one will talk about her mother or what happened. All she has managed to learn in her 10 yrs are 18 random ‘facts’.

As July hits her 10th birthday, she finds a note hidden in her exercise book, from which she begins her own search to solve the mystery
Bless her, she doesn’t have an easy life, she nonchalantly mentions the way that her father ‘teaches her a lesson’ as though it’s normal. I instantly loved July’s character, she’s just so appealing,effortlessly rising above her adversities.
It’s a delightfully written child character study with a mystery element. It hits the right tone for being a young narrator. I love the innocence. It’s so moving living through her punishments with her, she is so accepting and so desperate to please, all she wants is to be loved by her father. July is most definitely my favourite character.
The main narrator is July, but we also hear from the teacher Emma Glover, and some letters.
The story looks at a strained family relationship, with second family dynamics thrown into the mix. We also see love, caring and empathy sometimes in unusual places.
The only reason this doesn’t score higher for me, is the pace, it’s slow, I’m places it felt a bit drawn out, but overall I really loved it.

This is a dark and at times upsetting book to read about a young child being emotionally and sometimes physically abused by her father and when she is asked by her teacher to write a project on her dead mother she puts herself in more danger to get answers as no one will tell her anything about her mother or what happened to her and her memories of her mother are all confusing. This was a great read but may be triggering for some people.

With thanks to netgalley and the author for allowing me to review this book.

What July knew does deal with with domestic abuse and violence.

What July knew had me hooked from the very first page and wouldn’t let me go until the very last page. I couldn’t put it down.

July and the quest that she has on finding out about her mother will tug on your heart strings.

I’m sure this book will become a best seller

Go buy and read it now.

TW: this book contains descriptions of child and domestic abuse, parent death and grief.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harvill Secker for accepting me as a pre-publication reviewer of this book.

Emily Koch, you had me totally hooked reading this. Like wow! It was honestly so difficult to put this down because you go me so encapsulated by the story that the pages turned themselves (well slid as I read it digitally but same thing).

It’s set during a swelteringly hot summer in a British seaside town in 1995 with our main character July Hooper just about to turn 10. She knows only 18 things about her mother “These facts were a precious collection of ribbons, scraps of thread and shreds of cotton, the odd button and a sequin - each torn from the patchwork quilt of actions and wishes and feelings that, sewn together over a lifetime, had made up her mother. They fitted neatly on to one side of A5 - the List of Mum.” Number 2 is that she died in a car crash when July was 2. But on her birthday, she’s been left a bit stating ‘she didn’t die in a car accident’ which pushed July to reignite her longing to find out more about her mum and the truth. She can’t speak to her dad Mick as he becomes violent, her step-mum Shelly and -sister Sylvie don’t want to say anything in fear of Mick’s retaliation but do seem to know more then they’re letting on and her grandmother Yaya isn’t very forthcoming either, resorting to to crying instead. Over the summer, July sets out to discover what really happened to Maggie Hooper and who who she is.

The characters are very developed and complex, July the most as we follow her more then the others. Mick I detested so much - omfg nope go away now, byeeeeee. Shelly and Sylvie I didn’t particularly like but as it goes on you do understand things more. The same with Rob Salter too. The 1990s nostalgic feelings were portrayed well (not that I was alive then but like you get what I mean) and the descriptions of people, places and events was rather transportive. It’s definitely well written with a focus on the mystery elements that just constantly pull you in. Some plot twists and cliff-hanger-ending chapters weren’t particularly to my taste but are forgivable.

I am super happy I got to read this as was considering not due my general lack of experience/enjoyable in mystery books. But it was really really good and I would totally recommend this book. It does deal with domestic abuse, specifically aimed at children, so this is something to consider but it is handled well discussing the notion of one deserving the treatment they’re given, hence the mental toll of physical acts. Different perspectives from Shelly and July’s teacher Miss Glover are done well too. At the end, Koch has listed websites and phone numbers to various organisations dealing with domestic abuse which is a good addition.

A really enjoyable and emotional book, beautifully written with great characters. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me an advance copy, I will definitely be recommending.

This brilliant novel is like being carried along at speed by a tidal wave. I found it so hard to put down following July as she tried to discover the truth about her mother, whilst living with an abusive father.

What an amazing tumultuous read this as. I could not put it down as I just wanted to know the truth about her mother. The characters are so well described some likeable, some so so and the rest just hateful but all of them can be visualised by the reader. At age 10 July knows 18 things about her mother when her teacher set summer homework that involved July to research into her mother. The book is centered around the premise that her mother is dead but how is the question and who knew her to talk to July about her. Her father Mick is a domestic abuser and in places the reading becomes tough because of his behaviour. Her step mother and step sister go from being against July to helping her and poor July does not know how they will ever respond to her.
It is an emotional ride of a story which has been so well written.

July is 10 years old. She knows 18 things about her mother, who died when she was young, and her family found too upsetting to talk about. So when her teacher assigns them a summer project of writing about a family member they don't know, July begins to wonder if this is the perfect opportunity to discover more about her mum.

I was a little unsure about this book going into it. A 10 year old narrator could go either of two ways. To be honest, I'm still on the fence about it. The impact of the ending meant a lot more, but there were often times I questioned the actions or words of this supposed 10 year old.

It took a little while to get into the story, if im honest. However, the story was so intricately and well written that I found it hard to put it down. The slow reveals and the unexpected (for me) twists really blew me away!

As other reviews have said, some of the characters' actions and reactions did feel a little off and over forced, but not to the point that I overly noticed them.

Its not often I mention trigger warnings, but the physical and mental abuse, particularly directed towards a child, but in some instances towards other adults, really needs to be highlighted at the beginning of reading, as it caught me a bit off guard and is quite severe in my opinion.

I’d like to thank NetGalley and Harvill Secker for approving me for an ARC of this book. I had seen nothing but positive reviews of the book and was excited to read it. My fellow book friends, Bex and Dee joined me for a buddy read too, using Storygraph.

Where do I possible begin to review this amazing book? I read it in the space of 24 hours and barely came up for air, utterly invested in July Hooper and her journey. From the first chapter I had those nostalgic feelings, the games on the school playground, the hair styles even the music brought back fond memories of my childhood. I was also tasked with writing a biography of a family member during primary school so this part also brought fond memories of my nan back.

The story opens with July, our ten-year-old protagonist, discovering that her mother’s death, eight years ago, may not have happened as she first thought. This leads her to embark on a journey of discovery and she soon finds she has more questions than answers. This running mystery is brilliantly crafted with red herrings and a scattering of breadcrumbs, to keep the theories going. Having the story told predominantly from July’s POV was a refreshing concept, it brought home the emotion of the story and the naivety of that age.

It’s not long till we discover that July’s home life isn’t as lovely as others may have thought. She has a very strained relationship with her father Mick and her step sister Sylvie seems determined to get her into trouble. Knowing her father’s feelings about her mother and her death, July strives to conceal her investigation. This part of the story was heart breaking to read and seeing others in the community turn a blind eye made my blood boil.

I felt all the emotions whilst reading this. From nostalgia to anger, to happiness and eventually tears, I felt that rollercoaster of emotions play heavily on my heart. You can’t help but love July and want to egg her on, knowing that the results may lead to heartbreak. You see secrets revealed and an almighty showdown as well as changing relationships and a beautiful portrayal of grief and loss. It’s a story that creeps into your soul and steals a little part of it.

Set in Britain during a heatwave in 1995, the protagonist July is 10 years old. She lives with her step-sister, step-mother and father in an unnamed village by the sea.  Her grandparents also live locally.  Yet despite the apparent normality of her life, she struggles to get any straight answers to straight questions about the circumstances of her mother’s death.  It is not exactly a secret, there are records, but aged 10 you don’t really know about records.

July makes notes of questions that occur to her but finds that she cannot ask openly; she dare not ask her father anything because he has a volatile temper and when he loses his temper things start getting scary quickly.  The relationship between these two is one of the prime points of the story, I felt.

But then some aspects of the work start to feel a bit unlikely.   For example, everybody tells July that they cannot talk about her mother's death because get upset talking about it, but we slowly learn that there is a much darker reason for their silence.  That's great.  But when July launches her own investigation into the matter after a teacher suggests she might write a project about her mother I started to doubt.  Query: would a teacher suggest/insist to a ten year old that he or she writes a school project on a deceased parent? Most unlikely, I thought.

Koch is good on the horrors of domestic violence - how everyone is too busy or too embarrassed or self-absorbed to notice the suffering of others.  Also how victims make excuses for the perpetrators or blame themselves for the abuse which they suffer.   The author states that this was one of her main aims in writing the book and for me it was the most successful aspect of the work.

Reading it,   I was reminded of W. H. Auden’s ekphrastic poem based on Breughel’s Icarus ‘Musee des Beaux Arts’:

About suffering they were never wrong,
The old Masters: how well they understood
Its human position: how it takes place
While someone else is eating or opening a window or just walking dully along;

Despite the fact that a child turns up to school with bruises and neighbours overhear shouting and screaming,  nothing is done.  (There is quite a long list of phone numbers and information at the end of this book,  if you are a victim of domestic violence or know of someone who is).

July’s father is frankly terrifying.  The plot rackets along and I read the book in two sittings.  But I did feel that even though Koch keeps up the tension,  the plot gets the better of the characterisation which to me was a shame.

There are inconsistencies in the plot.  For example,  we are told that July likes to spend Saturday at home in the hope that her father will notice her, buy her an ice cream, suggest they watch TV together.  He never does - but she waits anyway.  Then later we are told that July knows what the expression ‘released on bail’ means from the hours she had spent watching the Bill with her father.

July asks the local vicar why her mother is not buried in the churchyard but he doesn’t really give her a direct answer preferring instead some convoluted action of leaving record books open for inspection on a table! Why?

And the heatwave.    Yes there was a heatwave in the UK in 1995 I’m not disputing that – it’s a meteorological fact!  But since the UK is more normally cold and wet than it is baking hot,  I found the constant references to extreme heat throughout the work - coupled with the lack of any geographical reference points real or imagined - detracted from the story and made the location vague.

I was not persuaded either, by the narrative voice since for me,  July and her step-sister Sylvie show a degree of emotional maturity and insight that felt nearer to age 13 or 14 than age 10.

Although I enjoyed reading this book, I am not currently tempted to read more by this author.

Thank you @Penguin Random House and @Netgalley for approving me for a review copy of this book.