Having read two of Anita’s books previously, I knew I was in for a fantastic read.
Set just after the First World War, we begin with Sarah walking the long road towards her new place of employment, Darkacre Hall, with a sense of foreboding. She arrives to find the hall in need of a good clean. Since the last member of staff left, the owners have let the housework slip.
She finds the house occupied by a couple, his brother and a friend. And a parrot.
This is an unhappy house, full of secrets.
Then the police arrive to re-investigate the case of a missing young man following a tip off. They intend to dig up the woods surrounding the hall.
The whole story is set in the suffocating surroundings of the hall, other than a few flashbacks to the war and to an event they would rather remain hidden. The terrible weather adds an extra layer to the bleakness of the situation.
Loved it!

A wonderful post World War 1 story involving a young woman, Sarah, arriving at Darkacre Hall to be companion to severely wounded Leonard Stilwell. Leonard's older brother Maurice and his wife Ida, together with lifelong friend
Victor make up the rest of the household. Soon after Sarah's arrival a detective named Verity turns up. He is investigating the mysterious disappearance of a 17 year old boy in 1914.

The Good Liars is a terrific read with echoes of An Inspector Calls. It is a creepy detective story which I thoroughly enjoyed and really didn't guess the twist at the end. Many thanks to NetGalley and HQ for the opportunity to read and review this excellent book.

In 1914, Bobby Higgins, a 17-year old young man with learning difficulties, disappears without a trace.

In 1920, his case is reopened again much to the shock and confusion of the Stilwell family.
The Stilwells live in Darkacre Hall, a grand house in the past, but now it’s crumbling and hard to maintain.

The house is occupied by Maurice Stilwell and his wife, Ida. Maurice served in the war but the man that returned home has changed: he is plagued by nightmares and has a constant twitch in his eye. Ida is unhappy as the maintenance of the house falls on her. She is reminiscent of the past, before the war, where things were glamorous.

The other two occupants of the house include Leonard Stilwell, Maurice’s brother, and Victor Monroe, the brothers’ friend.

Both men also served in the war. Leonard returned home physically altered: both of his legs were amputated and he also lost one of his arms. He is wheelchair bound, bitter about his experience, often saying he doesn’t want to live anymore.

Victor Monroe loved the war, he was proud to serve his country. He seems to be the only man not affected about what happened in the trenches.

When an Inspector arrives and tells the family that new evidence has come to light with regards to Bobby Higgins, the Stilwells begin to unravel. It seems that they all have a secret (or two) tucked up their sleeve…

What a fantastic story!

I was hooked straight from the beginning – trying to guess whose son was declined their name on the WWI memorial.
What started off as a simple cold case investigation soon turned into a family drama with a supernatural element.

It affected all occupants of Darkacre Hall. Maurice’s mental health deteriorated, Leonard kept talking about repentance, someone sent a nasty package to Ida…

Victor, who was truly despicable, was the only one trying to view the situation rationally. However, someone or something wanted for them to pay for their sins.

The Good Liars explores the horrors of war and how it affected people afterwards. I felt for poor Leonard, disabled at such a young age. He was the only character that I sympathised with.

This book has also taught me something new about the Order of the White Feather and how women would give out white feathers to men who didn’t enlist to fight.

Overall, it’s such a great story about redemption, revenge and seeking justice.

Thank you to HQ for my review copy and NetGalley widget.

In 1920 Sarah arrives at Darkacre Hall to work as a nurse/companion for the youngest Stilwell brother who was wounded in WWI. Leonard Stilwell lives at the Hall with older brother, Maurice, & Maurice's wife, Ida. Their lifelong friend Victor makes up the strange quartet. Up until now Ida has been taking care of all the household tasks as it has proven remarkably difficult to recruit staff, so Ida is happy for Sarah's arrival. Things seem placid on the surface but there are dark secrets hidden below, strange supernatural occurrences begin & both Maurice & Leonard suffer from night terrors which become worse when a police detective turns up asking questions about the disappearance of a boy from before the war.

I read a previous book from the author based on the aftermath of WWII which I thought was well-written, but this one is even better. There is the perfect mix of possible supernatural occurrences, alongside the sinister figure of Detective Sergeant Verity who is reopening the investigation into what happened to the boy who disappeared. None of the characters are particularly likeable but I thought the plot was excellently done (even though I did guess most of what was happening). I thought the author really showed the horrors of war & the issues that returning soldiers faced after the end of the war (permanent disfigurement, disability, & what we now term PTSD). Verdict: well-written & atmospheric, this historical chiller keeps the attention & delivers an excellent conclusion.

TWs: war injuries including graphic descriptions of facial injuries, suicide attempts, execution.

My thanks to NetGalley & publishers, HQ, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

In the hot summer of 1914 a boy vanishes, never to be seen again. Now, in 1920, the once esteemed Stilwell family of Darkacre Hall find their already troubles lives thrown into disarray when new evidence leads to the boy's case being re-opened - and this time they themselves are under police scrutiny. As the dead return to haunt the living, old resentments resurface and loyalties are tested, while secrets risk being unearthed that could destroy them all.

One thing I dislike is liars, but I did like this book even though there were some really good liars. We also get murder, mystery and deceit. We learn of some of the horror's soldiers had to face during WWII. We also get a story of revenge, betrayal, secrets, guilt and grief. The story read like a bit of an Agatha Christie novel. The characters are well developed but not all of them are likeable. The plotline has been well sought out. Although this can be quite a dark read, it also has some humour to it. Not everyone is who they appeared to be. The story is told from multiple perspective. It also has the perfect ending.

I would like to thank #Netgalley #HQ and the author #AnitaFrank for my ARC of #TheGoodLiars in exchange for an honest review.

Set in 1920, the aftermath of WWI leaves a dark shadow over the village and the manor's inhabitants.
A disturbingly poignant beginning sets the tone of this story. A visit from an enigmatic detective to the residents of the manor unsettles them. The oppressive, suspenseful ethos intensifies as the reader learns the players' secrets in this historical crime-noir mystery. All are unreliable narrators and mostly unlikeable, making it difficult to trust their account and perception of events. It is compelling and intriguing with its complex characters and a multilayered plot that reveals itself like the contents of Pandora's box with devastating consequences. I like the gothic setting, supernatural elements, complex characters, and lyrically written storytelling that makes each twist impactful and resonating.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

What an fabulous read. In 1914 a young boy goes missing and no trace is ever found. In 1920 the once wealthy and respected Sitwell family are down on their luck. Double death duties have virtually bankrupted the Darkacre Hall estate, locals will not work at the house and the four remaining residents are lucky to employ Sarah to look after triple amputee Leonard and help with the housework and cooking. A group of very damaged individuals; eldest sibling Maurice and wife Ida, younger brother Leonard and ‘almost family’ friend Victor Monroe - what could go wrong! A well written and constructed gothic style novel full of dark secrets that haunt the inhabitants of the Hall. Told in multiple POV’s largely in the present but with some flashbacks to 1914 this was an addictive read.

Briefly, when the police call at the Hall to say they are reopening the case of the boy who disappeared 6 years earlier the simmering tensions begin to rise to the surface and the previous uneasy peace is shattered. Maurice’s shell shock reoccurs and he starts hearing voices and seeing his dead brother Hugo. Leonard tries to commit suicide, again. Are there paranormal forces at work? Will the police find the missing boy?

I kept thinking I had this book sussed only to be proven wrong time and time again! There were some clues I picked up on but more that I didn’t! The book title says it all; it is full of unreliable narrators, who is telling the truth? Is anyone? A very atmospheric book full of seething resentments and dark secrets this is an excellent read.

Wow. What a well written dark sad novel. The writing was excellent and brought reminders of the horrors of war and the post WW1 period to life. Really great read. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for giving me access to an early copy of this book.

The Good Liars by Anita Frank is an absolutely marvellous historical, psychological suspense that I just could not put down.
Anita Frank drew me in from the start with my questions as to what had happened and why would a name be missing? As I read on, my responses to characters were guided by the artistic pen of Anita Frank. The further I got into the book, the faster my heart beat as the tension rose ever higher. The conclusion was superb.
The book is set in 1920. The first world war is over but it has far-reaching effects. Lives have been blighted by experiences at the Front. Not all scars are visible, many souls returned tormented. Mind ravaged lives as the battle fields lived on in their heads.
Terrible lashing rain leaves a landscape submerged, reminding the reader of the landscape of war. As the rain falls and the sky darkens, the action within a country house mirrors the weather.
The Good Liars is written within the gothic style as an old house has dark corners, attics, basements and creepy goings on.
Life before World War I was in contrast, light-filled – but someone is hiding a dark secret. The reader wants to know who. We read on, trying to guess, until the superb conclusion hits us like an express train.
The Good Liars is a fabulous read. Once I had begun it, I just could not put it down – secrets and lies; light and dark; peacetime and war; plus a fabulous cast of characters – grab yourself a copy of The Good Liars today.
I received a free copy from the publishers. A favourable review was not required. All opinions are my own.

This book is so dark but so good. A historical fiction book with a twist. Will be happy to recommend.

Thank you NetGalley for Anita Frank's third novel, The Good Liars. I raced through this story. It definitely has an Agatha Christie type mystery at its heart, but there is also the lyrical, descriptive writing of Du Maurier there too. Frank is skill at bring the supernatural into the story, as shown by her first novel. This story also goes back to the early, difficult years after WW1, when spiritualism and belief that loved ones are somewhere better became a hope throughout society. However, this story also has a tragic event that took place before war broke out, and how the consequences of that event doomed the participants. Redemption, forgiveness, justice and revenge all have their place in this startling novel.

I found it difficult to get to grips with this book. The extremely lavish descriptions of the most mundane situations, full of metaphors and similes, just became too rich for my blood. If the flowery prose had been watered down just a little, it would have been much more readable, at least for this reader.
None of the characters are likeable, and some are downright detestable frankly. I found I didn’t care what happened to any of them, so this was a DNF for me.
My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my advance copy of this book.

If you take the blurb to suggest a dark tale, you would be right. This story is very atmospheric, as Darkacre, the name of the manor where the action takes place implies. Doom, gloom, secrecy, and shellshock all add to the undercurrent of evil. As the story progresses, that suggestion gets stronger until, in the end, it turns out not to be a suggestion at all.

I’m not sure how to label this book. It’s not quite a mystery, although there certainly are quite a few puzzles to resolve. And despite the haunting atmosphere, it’s also not quite a gothic thriller. And while there are hints of supernatural goings on and the departed certainly haunt those still alive, The Good Liars isn’t a ghost story either. This is however a fascinating and memorable tale; one that may well leave you wondering what you would do under similar circumstances.

Darkacre is a large manor house occupied by a cast of four. There’s Ida Stilwell, the mistress of Darkacre and the wife of Maurice Stilwell who two years after the end of WWI still suffers from shell shock. Leonard Stilwell is the younger brother who is an invalid, having lost the will to live after losing three of his limbs during the war. Finally, there’s Victor Monroe, a friend of the Stilwell brothers who has more or less been adopted into the family. Sarah Hove is a nurse/housekeeper who joins the family to look after Leonard and take care of some household duties. Eventually, this group will be joined by Detective Sergeant Verity, who ends up stranded there when bad weather makes leaving Darkacre impossible.

From the beginning, it’s clear that all is not happy and well with this family. And the tension increases when the police arrive to tell them that they will reopen an old investigation into the disappearance of a young boy in 1914. What’s more, they will be searching the estate’s woods.

Told from shifting perspectives, we watch as the situation in the house slowly moves from mildly uncomfortable to outright horrifying. But, as the title implies, we are dealing with a group of good liars. I mean, you have unreliable narrators, and then you have this lot.

And that’s probably all I should say about the plot. There are a lot of layers to this story, just as there is a lot of evil in it. It’s a fascinating tale though of the unravelling of a family who thought themselves to be untouchable and it asks some interesting questions about guilt, innocence, and justice.

The story is very well written and told. The descriptions of the house, the atrocious weather, and the surroundings add at least as much menace to the tale as the actions of the characters do. The words flow smoothly, pulling the reader along and the further I got into the book, the harder it became to take a break from reading. I did manage to figure out one or two plot twists before they were revealed on the page, but that didn’t diminish the story for me.

Overall, The Good Liars is a fascinating and thought-provoking book.

Initially this book reminded me of an Agatha Christie novel, an old family Manor House, a death, a group of people living in the house and then the police inspector calls. But this is more than just a murder mystery, the characters develop throughout the novel from being quite unlikeable to provok8ng feelings of sympathy and sadness from the reader.
With gothic supernatural undertones, this story kept me reading to the end, and then wanting more.
The horrors and repercussions of. War and the effect on those left behind are well researched and portrayed .

I loved the sound of this one - a 1920s tale of guilt and ghosts, mystery and murder. Thank you to the lovely people at HQ Stories for my review copy of this book.

This book centres on the Stilwell family of Darkacre Hall - Maurice, his wife Ida, his brother Leonard and long-time family friend Victor. When a policeman arrives at the house following up new information about the disappearance of a boy in 1914, the family (along with new servant, Sarah Hove) find themselves under scrutiny. Events conspire to make the meeting even more prolonged and intense, leading the family to re-evaluate the past and their relationships.

The story opens with a heartbreaking scene in which a woman tries to get her son's name included on the village war memorial with no success. This begins the thread that runs throughout the book focused on the effects of war - those who were lost, and those who survived with lasting trauma. Each of the characters in the book is living in the shadow of war, suffering from physical effects, PTSD or intense grief and loss. This is a theme that Frank explores in depth and with real poignancy. This added an emotional depth to the novel that I really wasn't expecting. It was so beautifully done and my heart absolutely went out to the poor, innocent boys who found themselves in the trenches of World War I - those who died and those who never recovered either physically or mentally.

When I first started reading, I'll admit that I found the characters mostly quite unlikeable - exactly as Frank intended, I think. As the past started to come to light, I found that my sympathies began to shift and I became engrossed in the complex back-stories that brought each of them to this moment in 1920. The writer cleverly uses an omniscient narrator to give subtle insights into each of the characters, although the focus is often Sarah who is navigating the complex dynamics at Darkacre Hall along with the reader.

With the focus on war, secrets, lies, loss and grief, you'd expect that the mystery element would take a back seat but I actually didn't find this the case. I found myself wanting to read on to find out what happened to the missing boy - and the denouement of the novel was a total surprise, even though I'd picked up little clues along the way and had pieces of the puzzle.

There's also a ghostly strand to the story - something that both appealed to me in principle but that I sometimes find challenging or unrealistic in practice. Again, this was well handled by Frank and genuinely chilling in places. It reminded me slightly of the kind of supernatural tension that Sarah Waters writes so well - creepy, plausible and unnerving!

This was an easy five star read for me - it wasn't at all what I expected, but was all the better for the psychological insight, subtle exploration of the effects of war and the surprising twists along the way. I couldn't put this down and - now that I have had it prised out of my hands - it will stay with me for a long time to come.

A family destroyed by war. Darkacre Hall is a dreary place. Everyone in the resident Sitwell family has been affected by by the First World War. The eldest son died, Leonard is badly disabled and Maurice is affected mentally. Their sister Ida and her husband Victor run the household. When Sarah goes to work there as a nurse-companion for Leonard, she finds that everyone there has secrets. Then Sergeant Verity, himself a war veteran, comes to investigate a local boy's disappearance. The family will never be the same again. A strong story with touches of magic and the macabre.

All the atmosphere and ingredients of an excellent Gothic thriller, but set after WW1 rather than in the 19th century. It's clever, intricate and keeps you guessing.

It's excellently written, with superb pacing and character building, tension and mystery. Unputdownable.

As in all the best gothic novels, the location itself is one of the main 'characters'. Darkacre is the country house haunted by its own past; you can feel how it has been reduced from its former glory to a cold, unwelcoming, over-large house that is ill-adapted and barely functioning for its current residents. Their discomfort in the house is as palpable as their discomfort with each other. Add to that ghostly doings and bumps in the night, and the scene is set.

The Good Liars is a well-wrought, classic British mystery and a cracking good read.

Thanks to the publisher, author and Netgalley for the ARC.

A haunting tale of guilt and grief - can’t decide if it’s a chilling ghost story or a gripping mystery
Set in 1920, it unpicks the story of a missing boy who vanished before WWI.
As the case is reopened, the lives of the Stilwell family of Darkacre Hall are thrown into turmoil as they come under police scrutiny.
The dead return to haunt the living and secrets are being unearthed that could destroy them all.
It’s a story of crime, deceit and murder.
War fiction at it’s best, a gothic thriller that’s unnerving and mysterious.
Thanks @Ajes74, @hqstories & @netgalley for the eARC

The Good Liars by Anita Franks

This is my favourite of Anita Frank’s novels so far. She’s chosen a fascinating period of history to set this gothic mystery and it adds something a little different to the ‘new servant in a creepy old house’ story. This is time when the country is traumatised, mired in grief and adjusting to the changes wrought by World War One. A time when loss looms large and people are searching for answers. Sarah is the new employee arriving at Darkacre, the family seat of the Stilwells. Like many aristocratic families, WW1 has wreaked havoc on the men in this family. When their father died, the eldest son Hugo became the heir of Darkacre. Yet his time as heir was very short, as he was killed on his return to the front leaving middle brother Maurice as heir to the Stilwell estate. Maurice was not prepared to be the master of the house and with double death duties already crippling the estate, he has learn fast. Unfortunately Maurice has returned from war a changed man, plagued by nightmares, flashbacks and extreme responses to loud noises, he has PTSD or what was then referred to as shell shock. With youngest brother Leonard severely disabled by his war injuries and struggling to come to terms with the loss of his limbs, the family are depleted and barely coping. However, as Leonard so cryptically tells us, perhaps it is no more than they deserve? Sarah’s arrival is the catalyst for this story and it isn’t just the relationship between family members that points to there being issues at Darkacre, soon a series of unexplained happenings start to gnaw away at the nerves of even the most stoic inhabitants.

Darkacre is the perfect gothic setting for the story and to some extent she represents the changes wrought on the aristocracy during this time period. Where before the war the family would have had several house servants, as well as gardeners, land agents, farm managers and so on, there is now just the brothers, Maurice’s wife Ida and Victor, a lifelong friend of Maurice. Due to the way army units were organised, Hugo Stilwell would have found himself the officer to a group of men he knew well, comprised of his brothers, tenants, young men and boys from the village. The losses were astronomical and not a single family in the parish missed out on their share of grief. This also left Maurice facing families of the young men he led to their deaths on a regular basis, including the upcoming ceremonies at the new war memorial. Servants were now in short supply and the tradition of going ‘into service’ had started to decline. We can see how social groupings have become blurred in the way Ida invites Sarah to eat with the family, instead of in the kitchen alone. They converse as equals, often as sitting together after dinner in the parlour. We can see how Ida has been craving female friendship and where it would be unsuitable to be passing confidences on to village women, Ida does start to confide in Sarah. Up till now it has very much been Victor’s role to inject a little levity into the proceedings and to amuse Ida. He confides to Sarah that both he and Maurice fell in love with her on sight, but she was more interested in Maurice and possibly the house and land that have her a title she craved.

On Sarah’s part there are few confidences shared and I found her rather mysterious and enigmatic. I was at first sure this was only a residue of the deference she had always shown employers in the past, but perhaps there is more to it than that. In a therapy situation, silence tends to draw the client forward and share confidences. In fact silence has often been my most powerful skill in terms of growth for the client and Sarah seemed to be using it for good effect. Is she simply trying to forge good relationships with her employers or is there something more sinister going on? The growing closeness between her and Leonard definitely feels genuine and I wondered what it was about their relationship that made Sarah relate to him differently. Was it that she saw him differently due to his disability, or is it a natural affinity? He seems to have different world views to the rest of the group, more compassionate and accepting of human imperfections. This is ironic given the family skeletons hiding out in closets and cupboards all over Darkacre. What was behind the sense of collaboration I felt between Ida and Victor? Why was Maurice so disturbed, not just by flashbacks and dreams, but possibly by his own conscience? Why is Ida unwelcome at the village’s ceremony for the new war memorial and does it have something to do with the disturbing parcel of an animal’s heart covered feathers that she receives?

Since I have a disability it would be remiss of me not to mention the veterans of WW1 left disabled by this horrifying war. Over one million men were killed in combat, but a further two million were left with some form of disability, 40,000 of which were amputees like Leonard Stilwell. He sits alongside such contemporary literary characters as Clifford Chatterley with a lot of the same emotional issues coping with the change of self-identity. Sarah represents a new stage in Leonard’s recovery, one he might resent, but yet they do become friends. On her first morning, Sarah arrives at Leonard’s room to find Victor smoking and Maurice laid across his brother’s bed rather like they’re still in barracks or the hospital. It’s a little glimpse into the institutionalisation of the men, more used to other male company in a military setting than the domestic sphere. Sarah could be seen as a barrier between Leonard and his fellow veterans, whereas before his care was kept within the sphere of the family now it is contracted out for money. Leonard could have felt as if he belonged, that his brother and Victor were still in the trenches with him, sharing the seismic shift his life has taken. His getting up routine was part of family life, whereas now it’s a job. A stranger has to perform the most intimate care for him and they are obliged to do it for money. He is now facing his disability alone. Yet he and Sarah muddle on quite well together, helped in part by Sarah’s training and professionalism, but also because they perhaps share the same anger and disdain for the futility of war.

Early on in the novel we see that Maurice is tormented by the memory of a young soldier who has half his face blown away. He can’t forget the horror of it, so it is perhaps fitting that the visiting Sergeant who arrives in the storm has a facial disfigurement. It’s as if Maurice’s worst nightmare has come knocking on the door. The inspector has only visited the day before and the sergeant seems to be following up, carrying out orders by interviewing the family. His disfigurement is covered by a copper mask, it’s smoothness belying the tangled and complex injuries underneath. For Maurice it almost seems worse that his injury is covered, because he can imagine in detail what’s actually there and imagination is worse than the reality. His mask also gives that element of disguise, it conceals his expression and leaves people wondering what he’s really thinking. There’s a definite Agatha Christie feel as a storm cuts the house off from civilisation and the family are trapped with these two outsiders. One of them a detective, trained to uncover secrets and the other has shown herself to have psychic tendencies. There are twists and turns, more than I expected in fact! I loved the atmosphere and Anita is brilliant at those little creepy happenings, that might have an innocent explanation, but start to unnerve you. The battle scenes are so well written too, perfectly capturing the chaos, the fear and a different kind of horror. This is a great read and Anita’s writing goes from strength to strength.

This dark thriller is almost Gothic in it’s telling. Based in the post WWI era with all those horrifying realities men who had post traumatic stress disorder from the France etc faced.
Setting is spooky and story is reasonably paced.