4+

Once upon a time, Margo Finch is Jane, but they’re very different characters - maybe! As Jane, she works in a hospital, but that’s a whole other story but her only intention is to help, honestly. Margo applies for a job at Carlyle public library, she likes the calm working environment and on the whole that’s exactly what it is, as she surveys her surroundings two years later. Now, she tries to help at the library but will chaos erupt from the proverbial peace and quiet? All is going well until Patricia (Pa-tree-shee-ah) a wanna be author arrives. The story is told in alternating points of view by both women.

This is so good! It’s a well written psychological thriller that’s creative and different and which hooks me in from the beginning. The characterisation of Margo and Patricia is outstanding, though they’re not at all likeable and as far from reliable narrator as it’s possible to get! Margo’s anxiety and distinct unease at Patricia‘s arrival is palpable as her nerves are distinctly stretched. However, Patricia‘s reaction to Margo is, well, interesting. It’s fair to say they each become obsessed with the other but in different ways and for very different reasons. A fascinating game of cat and mouse begins as they try to “score points” off each other. Are they both chameleons or maybe even wolves in sheep’s clothing? Who is the harbinger of doom? Is a deliciously dark puzzle of lies and secrets galore as you try to figure it out.

The library setting is a perfect choice for the drama as it’s calm belies the storm building beneath the surface. I love the inclusion of Shirley Jackson’s “We have always lived in the castle” which is so appropriate and clever. It’s a well paced gripping novel which is darkly, entertaining and chilling on more than one occasion. The tension between the two of them radiates off the pages as situations escalate to a dramatic ending.

It’s a quick, easy, fun read and one I can recommend to fans of the genre.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to VERVE Books for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

This book is great if you look for a thriller / crime story to entertain you. It's quite fast paced and has short chapters and the characters are unlikeable in the best was possible. I like how Patricia was instantly suspicious about Margo and how we got to know a little bit more about her past as the story went on. Great read for in between but nothing that's on your mind for too long.

Jane has moved on from her one-time career as a nurse to reinvent herself as (of all things!) a librarian in a new location. Now going by the name Margo, she drops disturbing hints about her past, and displays to the reader her preoccupation with the possibility of being exposed in her new workplace.

Patricia is a failed novelist and comes to work as a reference librarian in the same library. Her interest is immediately snagged by Margo's behaviour, which she deems worthy of closer scrutiny.

When it turns out that the two of them are practically neighbours, things get a little too close for comfort. But this is a slow burn novel, so it's a while before the story hits its climax. In the meantime, settle in for a creepy read about two not-very-likable characters...

I give it 3.5 stars.

A feel good thriller novel for an evening! Loved the juxtaposition of Margo, desperately trying to hide the secrets of her past, and Patricia, the new library entry who is suspicious (italics intended). The setting was adorable and inventive; both Margo and Patricia were utterly unlikeable which only made the storyline more interesting, and Margo's creepiness factor was absolutely a delight!

This was a pretty good thriller. I think the ending felt a bit rushed and a bit too easy - but I enjoyed following the two main characters, Margo, who works in a library and hides a troubled past, and Patricia, who has just started working at the same place and immediately has suspicions about Margo. It was well-paced and interesting, I found the characters unlikable but engaging, and I liked the premise of the plot.

Description:
An ex- killer nurse has secretly settled down into a much calmer life at a local library. When a failed novelist joins the staff, she quickly notices that Margo is not all she seems.

Liked:
Short, sharp, easy to read. Margo and Patricia were colourful characters and the library and tower block well-detailed and atmospheric. Patricia's boyfriend is believably detestable.

Disliked:
A pronounced lack of substance - this won't leave you with anything to think about. It's pure entertainment, which is totally fine, but felt a little emptier than what I was in the mood for.

Would recommend as a quick, light read.

Compelling from the start as mysterious Margo arrives in town, finds solace in the library, and discovers there's a vacancy. She drops some disturbing hints about her former job as a nurse.

Two years later and Margo is well established as a popular member of staff. She feels disquiet when Patricia is hired as the first reference librarian for 11 years. Patricia finds herself fascinated by Margo, who it transpires, lives in the same apartment block. A frustrated writer, she finds Margo a source of inspiration, particularly after she finds Margo astride an elderly woman who's died in the library toilets.

Margo gets restless and realises how much she misses her old profession and killing ways.

As Patricia frantically writes in her notebook, creating a murderous nurse novel, Margo is planning just one more murder.

Events race towards a thrilling climax in a confrontational finale. I'll never look at librarians in the same way. An original psychological drama with ordinary women who are anything but.

Margo (or Jane) is an ex-nurse on the run following a series of unexpected deaths at hospitals where she's worked. Margo has settled into a quiet and unsuspecting life working at the Carlyle Public Library, but things start to fall apart when Patricia, the library's new Reference Librarian, arrives at the library and smells a rat. Following a death in the library, Patricia finds herself slowly being pulled in by Margo and her murderous past.

This is a slow-burn psychological thriller without many twists and turns. I won't lie, I spent the first 70% of this novel waiting for things to pick up but I was so relieved that this went somewhere, even if it came a little late.

Between Margo's fear of being caught and Patricia's dark obsession with Margo and her past, I really enjoyed the tension created as we shifted POVs. Unfortunately, the well-crafted momentum was lost with a rather underwhelming conclusion.

Overall, How Can I Help You is a solid read that rewards a patient reader with an acceptable conclusion, without confusing and cliché plot twists.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review!

How Can I Help You by Laura Sims is something very different and great fun. Possibly the first psychological thriller based mostly in a public library it features 2 women with pasts circling around each other,at first attracted then distinctly uneasy in each other's company.
This is a slow burn story, reserved Patricia enters the domain of "Queen of Library" Margo and a tentative friendship is at least attempted and a lack of social skills has one of the women dropping clues to her past, a past that truly dark.

This is an excellent read,and an obvious,and acknowledged, homage to Shirley Jackson with its Gothic horror in a seemingly mundane environment involving unlikely protagonists. The characterisation is excellent, Margo in particular is "complicated" to say the least but entirely believable,a great story with a touch of dark humour.

4 stars
Hohohohohooooo damn I liked this. This was messed up and weird to read the POV of Margot (especially when she talks about certain things) and even to see how Patricia sort of starts going off through her POV.

I really liked this but the damn ending didn't do it for me like I wanted. What did I want? I have no clue maybe something even more messed up or intense I don't know but I do know that I felt a little deflated by it compared to the rest of the book.

BUT really did enjoy this! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC to review!

This was an easy and quick read, I read it in one sitting smd it did keep me hooked. I definitely recommend it.

This a short novel about two librarians. One has a murky past and the other is trying to spread her wings after disappointment. Margo and Patricia become colleagues but also begin to share their personal stories. We read about the same events from both perspectives, so can see the flaws in how they understand each other. The ending is a surprise. The novel is an easy read, there is no puzzling over its theme or its contents. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a prepublication ebook in return for an honest review