Who is lying and why? You won't know, and when you finally find out, you won't believe it.
This novel is about lies and family secrets, terrorism and forgiveness, conspiration and truths. It's dark and gripping, cleverly done.

Day One by Abigail Dean

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to NetGalley and Hemlock Press (HarperCollins UK) and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

Marty seems to do no wrong. Trent can’t seem to get things right. When they are thrown together by tragedy, their futures may be defined by one What really happened on Day One?

Stonesmere is an English seaside suburb defined by poignant traditions passed from generation to generation, and the bonds of small town community spirit. But when a lone gunman disrupts a school assembly, he sets of a chain of events that throws this close-kint town into turmoil.

Marty is a golden girl, albeit one sometimes in the shadow of her father’s accomplishments and the care of her mother—an outsider who became a beloved teacher. Meanwhile, Trent’s home life is in the only child of a mother forever on the lookout for the boyfriend who can remake their lives, Trent longs for Stonesmere’s stability. But he and his mother only pass through. 

In the wake of the violence in Stonesmere, Trent is transfixed by the news coverage of his former home, and his sense that something doesn't quite add up. As he dives deeper, he falls under the spell of a slick online media personality and the conspiracies he peddles. As Marty fumbles to play the part of the grieving good girl, she becomes the focus of these conspiracies—and Trent’s attention.  

My Opinion

I really enjoyed Girl A so I was excited when I saw that Abigail Dean had a new release coming out. Day One gives the reader an insight into the thoughts and feelings of the victims of Day One whilst slowly revealing what happened on that day. The timeline jumps around but for me this was easy to follow. A gripping read that I knew I would enjoy from the opening pages.

Rating 4/5

In Day One we are immersed in Stonesmere primary school, an idyllic Lake District town, where things will never be the same again after a masked shooter opens fire on the crowded school theatre.

The grief, anger and chaos can certainly be felt from the opening pages right through until the final moments and Dean really does a fantastic job of anchoring you within that terrifying moment. Multiple timelines and POVs that don’t really dive deep enough is where it unfortunately begins to get a bit messy.

In an interview Dean notes she really struggled writing this book, in fact she rewrote it twice and unfortunately this struggle is quite apparent. While her outstanding writing skill does shine through in places, it doesn’t mirror the heights that she was able to reach with Girl A.

I think if you approach the book as a slow burning mystery rather than the intense thriller it is marketed as, you will get much more enjoyment.

This book is harrowing and dark simply because of its subject matter. You can’t help but keep reading to try to learn more and piece together the narrative.
At times I found it challenging to follow as we moved between characters and viewpoints but this did not detract from my overall enjoyment of this book. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for my copy of this book.

Day One, by Abigail Dean
Rating: 4/5
Published: NOW
A lone gunman walks into a school assembly, and opens fire on the teachers and children. The village of Stonesmere is thrown into turmoil, and grief haunts each and every resident. However, a group of conspiracy theorists don’t believe that the shooting ever took place, and set out to torment and terrorise the survivors. In the midst of the turmoil, the daughter of a deceased teacher, Marty, begins to lie about where she was during the shooting, and is slowly exposed for it. Nothing is as it seems though. This book is a brilliant exploration into how people grieve, and how societies respond to mass tragedy. It also sheds light on the damaging nature of conspiracy and those that end up embroiled within it. A fantastic book. I loved it.

"Girl A" is a psychological thriller by Abigail Dean that delves into the story of a girl who escapes a house of horrors where she and her siblings were held captive by their parents. It's a gripping and intense read that explores themes of resilience, family dynamics, and the lasting impact of childhood trauma. If you enjoy psychological thrillers, this book is definitely worth checking out!

After initial excitement with the shooting and excitement the rest of the book lost momentum and did seem to drag for me. Disappointing,

In the aftermath of a primary school shooting in a picturesque lakeside village, Marty mourns her mother, Trent doesn’t believe the shooter is guilty, the villagers are turning on each other and the newspapers are having a field day, The truth of what happened on that day unfolds slowly, and no one’s life will ever be the same.

I like Abigail Deans writing style, but found the pacing too slow for me. I guessed the outcome early on, but was invested in finding out if I was right. I hoped the ending would be a little more satisfying, but I suppose there can’t be a satisfying end to a story about such a horrific event. I would read more by the author, and enjoyed Girl A too.

While the subject of the book is a bit harrowing, it was still an interesting read. After a gunman enters a school leaving dead and wounded, the book looks at different experiences from the point of view of various characters and their involvement in the event.
Although I did enjoy the book I found it a bit slow at times.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

Girl A was one of my favourite books of the year when it was released, so I was heavily anticipating Dean's next project. I will say I didn't like this one quite as much, but it explores some similar themes - family, what happens behind closed doors, the false idyll of small-town life - as well as adding newer ones such as conspiracy theories and the rise of right-wing propaganda and fake news. The narrative itself jumps around quite a lot in time which takes a bit getting used to, and some of the POVs feel slightly gratuitous, but all add up to a whole picture of Day One and its aftermath. A solid 4 out of 5.

Day One is Abigail Dean’s second novel, following on from the huge success of Girl A, a few years ago. That book broke my heart but I was interested to see what Dean would write next.

Day One is set in Stonesmere primary school in the Lake District. Traditionally the junior infants class perform a play for the rest of the school, parents, teachers etc. Horrifyingly, this years play is abruptly cut short by a masked man with a gun, killing many of those present.

The rest of the book is told from the perspectives of the victims of this crime, and surviving relatives of those killed. One of the main characters, Marty, is interviewed after the shootings about her mother who is a teacher in the school, and also a victim. Her interview goes viral and sparks a campaign to discredit her by a group of conspiracy theorists who believe that the school shooting never actually happened. We hear the point of view of one of these “truthers” throughout the book too.

Firstly, it has to be said that this is a deeply sad book. I felt uneasy reading it and melancholic having finished it. It’s a tough subject matter.

I think Dean writes beautifully; her dialogue doesn’t feel clunky and she weaves a good story. Unfortunately in this case the actual structure of the book felt unbalanced to me; the multiple POV’s added to the constant jumps in timelines are confusing and jarring. I kept being taken out of the storyline.

As far as the actual concept is concerned, it’s quite timely. The internet can be a dangerous place for vulnerable people and that’s well portrayed here.

While I appreciate what the author was going for, I feel like hearing from so many different characters means we only got to know them on a superficial level. It could have been more impactful if the focus was more refined.

Overall, this is a harrowing read with a confusing layout. I wouldn’t describe it as a thriller as much as a slow paced drama. It is a deeply upsetting topic, but is sensitively written. I’ll read whatever Abigail Dean writes next as I feel it was mostly the execution of this story that let it down.

3.5 stars rounded up. While I did enjoy this book overall, it did seem to slow down quite a bit in the middle. What I enjoyed was the way the different lives were interwoven up to, and from, a single event. Marty wasn't a particularly likeable character, and at one point I was questioning the motives of just about everyone, but then, I guess that's what human beings are, complicated.

(Review copy from NetGalley)

I loved Girl A so I was really excited to read Day One and, whilst I didn’t think it was quite as brilliant as Girl A, it is still a tense, twisty and incredibly intriguing read from beginning to end. It takes on an extremely harrowing topic which can be difficult to read at times. However it is handled with intelligence and a deft hand by Abigail Dean. I didn’t find the characters particularly likeable overall but that’s not something that puts me off at all and it certainly didn’t here. I would recommend Day One to anyone who likes thorny and intense thrillers with no easy answers.

Thank you to the author, HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction and NetGalley, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. My apologies for the delay in posting this review, I had a bit too much going on.

Not a thriller, but rather a slow-burn drama about a school shooting in a small village in rural England, and the aftermath. The premise is emotional, and at times harrowing, but I found the writing largely too disjointed and overly stylized to pull me in. The rapid and frequent jumps in timelines and diverse POVs were jarring and I kept having to go back to work out what was going on. The focus on conspiracy theories and lies is sadly timely, and the grief is real - I just wish the characters had been less surface-level, I found depth lacking.

Very dark but compulsive read about the effects of a school shooting in a small town. Multiple points of view and bouncing forwards and backwards in time made it a bit hard to follow but I had to keep going to find out what had happened. The writing about grief was powerful.

I really wanted to like this one. The premise is something that I'd usually eat up. A school shooting. Emotive dialogue. But for me personally it failed to live up to my expectations. The start was great, I could feel my heart thumping in my chest as my brain realised what was going on. It conjured up images that made my heart ache, both for the adults and children. It made me think how I'd cope in a situation like that- the truth is, I wouldn't.

After that initial introduction, the story was very slow and I struggled to connect with the characters, something I hadn't anticipated especially after the emotive and heart wrenching start. I stuck with it but it was a real struggle. I didn't look forward to picking it up due to the pacing. I am going to check out the author's other works but for me this just didn't work.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my copy of this e-arc.

This book was very well written and the plot flowed effortlessly for me and I wanted to keep reading to see what would happen.

I’m sorry to say this one was a poor choice for me. There were far too many similarities with the Dunblane shooting. As I was a primary school teacher less than 40 miles from Dunblane, I just didn’t feel comfortable reading it. Additionally, I’m not keen on the style of writing as I feel it’s disjointed and jumps around too much. I didn’t finish reading it.

My thanks to the author, to the publisher and to Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

3.5
Abigail Dean, author of Girl A returns with a compelling retelling of a mass school shooting aftermath in a quiet suburban town around the English Lake District. Through various character perspectives we go back and forth to events that lead to the tragedy and its many victims. The story is told mainly through the perspective 0f Marty who survived the incident but whose Mother died trying to save her pupils . We also have various conspiracy theorists and opinions on what happened before and after the unthinkable tragedy.

The concept and character development is solid and thought provoking . We get multiple points of view and insights into how everyone deals with trauma differently ,however the format was a little disjointed and didn't quite come together seamlessly .

Trigger warnings for the events that happened On Day 1 and scene of a graphic nature.

Gripping and well plotted, it kept me on the edge even if I found it a bit too slow at times
A more extensive review will follow
Recommended.