Globe-spanning conspiracy with personal edge
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Alex is a put-upon Legal Aid lawyer. Kat is a special advisor to the Home Secretary. Natalia was a Moldovan immigrant, now a body dredged from the Thames. The conspiracy that ties them all together spans the world, but also too close to home. What will Alex and Kat do to avoid any further deaths?

Anna Sharpe is the pseudonym of solicitor and historical fiction writer Anna Mazzola, so the legal (and illegal) aspects of this suspenseful thriller ring true. It begins a little dialogue heavy, like a TV pilot, but as the story gets into its stride and the mysteries pile on, the tension ramps up and the stakes grow exponentially until the ending is hard to see but ingenious as it unfolds.

Well done: four stars.

I have loved all of Anna Mazzola's historical gothic fiction books, so when I found out she was writing a political thriller I knew I was in for a treat.

As always, Anna's characters were full, well-rounded and, most importantly, flawed. Each of them was brilliant, yet annoying, in their own way.

Notes on a Drowning covers political corruption, organised crime, misogyny and so much more. A novel for our times.

I found myself often promising myself that I’d go to sleep “at the end of this chapter” but found Sharpe’s writing and set-ups so tantalising that I was compelled to read on way later than I intended.

A perfect plot, compelling characters and a study into abuses of power that seem so rife at the moment.

I loved Anna Sharpe’s writing style, and her experience in law shines through without weighing the plot down.

Perfect for fans of Sarah Vaughan.

Notes on a Drowning is the first I've read from Sharpe and I think it's safe to say it's definitely not going to be my last!

It's an up-tempo legal thriller that immediately draws you into the action, and takes you on an unputdownable journey with Alex and Kat as they delve into the seedy underbelly of politics and corruption.

Both women were fantastic characters, each bringing their own personality and strengths to the story.

An intensely good, enjoyable read. Here's to more from Sharpe in the future.

has switched from her usual historical fiction to write her first thriller. And what a thriller - Notes On A Drowning was an unputdownable read for me, cleverly combining legal and political to create a gripping story that feels very timely.

Alex is a lawyer who takes on more pro-bono work than her firm would like. Kat, having put her somewhat difficult past behind, has recently been appointed as a Special Adviser to the Home Secretary. Though they haven’t spoken in years, the two have a past history, and when they both become involved in the case of a Moldovan young woman found drowned in the Thames, they find themselves reunited. But can they put the past behind them and work together to get to the bottom of something they soon realise extends far deeper than they could ever have imagined - and risks putting both them and their family and friends in danger.

This is a story of corruption at the highest levels and with a plot that ramps up steadily and feels all too topical, there is no shortage of tension, as well as some surprises along the way. Much of the subject matter may be dark, but there are some clever touches of humour along the way, as well as a surprisingly poignant ending.

In Alex and Kat the author has created two fabulous protagonists. We get to know these two interesting women at the beginning of the book before their stories intertwine and as the pace ramps up and the risks intensify, you find yourself rooting for these tenacious but very human women with a strong sense of justice.

It all makes for an intoxicating combination and a book that I would recommend to any thriller lover.

Really enjoyed this thriller, a gripping and tense page turner, whip smart with two very strong female leads. I really hope this is the start of a series because I’ve loved Anna Mazzola’s historical novels and the greedy reader in me wants more like this too please
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read this.
. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I am a huge fan of the historical fiction writer Anna Mazzola, so when I heard that she was writing a contemporary crime thriller, I could not wait to read it. It is a real cracker. Tense, fast paced, thrilling and breathtakingly action packed, Notes On A Drowning has everything I look for in a great political thriller.

Politics, corruption at the highest levels, sleaze, sex and danger, this is a great book that has it all. Though the subject matter concerns the inhuman treatment of women, there is warmth in the characters and their personalities, a strong sense of sisterhood and even some cracking humour.

From the outset there is a sense that one of the characters has something really important that she is hiding. What that is becomes clear as the story progresses. Anna Sharpe manages to build the tension, creating a sense of danger, but also of fear and very real trepidation.

Alex and Kat are the two main characters. Alex is a hard-working solicitor with a penchant for taking on the cases that don’t bill well, but which really help people who have nowhere else to turn. This does not go down well with her boss, who is trying to keep the practice afloat. Alex takes on the case of Natalia, an Moldovan girl’s inquest, because her sister, Rosa, does not believe that Natalia’s death was an accidental drowning. Meaning Alex has to be very careful to work under the radar when she’s in the office.

Kat is a Special Adviser at the Home Office. She loves her job working closely with a man she admires, the Home Secretary. She is a very proficient advisor, and like Alex, a bit of a workaholic. But she adores treading the corridors of power; going into meetings with the Prime Minister and other Cabinet Secretaries and she has proved herself to be on top of her brief.

Kat and Alex know each other, but theirs is a fractured relationship, the cause of which goes back some years to when Alex’s sister and Kat were working abroad. Now their paths are set to cross again, when a freedom of information request that Alex has placed in relation to Natalia’s death comes to Kat’s attention. Kat immediately pieces the request together with another piece of information that has crossed her desk and recognises that this raises questions pertinent to Alex’s request. She’d be breaking all sorts of confidentiality rules and probably the Official Secrets act were she to divulge it to Alex, but Kat’s own history causes strong niggles about how these two things could be connected.

So, she takes the plunge and the two arrange a clandestine meeting in a coffee shop. It’s a tricky meeting, given the way they feel about each other, but they nevertheless see the importance of working together to uncover the truth of what is going on.

Anna Sharpe’s writing is indeed sharp and the dialogue is so good that you can picture the conversation between these two women who have reached something of a truculent truce.

When they begin to work together, pulling in Alex’s ex-husband to assist, they soon find themselves up to their necks in a deadly conspiracy which threatens all their lives.

Verdict: Notes on A Drowning is a brilliant read. Smart, well-written with great characters and a fabulous, twisty and surprising plot-line, culminating in an action packed, thrilling denouement. It has some loathsome characters and a real sense of jeopardy throughout. Because you come to care about both Kat and Alex as characters, this makes the tension feel very real and the danger they face is real heart-in-the mouth stuff.

A highly recommended must read from me.

Readers looking for a superb thriller that offers characters that’ll make you care and a propulsive narrative threaded with disturbing real-life issues should rush to read Notes on a Drowning, the first contemporary tale from British lawyer and author Anna Sharpe, who’s previously written several excellent historical crime novels as Anna Mazzola.

‘Sharpe’ pulls us into a twisting, sordid tale of legal intrigue, power and corruption, and human trafficking. Already starting to fray due to workplace and personal pressures, determined lawyer Alex is roped into more pro bono work – the bane of her boss’s life – with an inquest into the drowning in the Thames River of Moldovian teenager Natalia. A tragic accident fuelled by partying, alcohol and drugs, say the police and others. But resolution isn’t so simple for Natalia’s family, and the facts don’t add up for Alex.

Or is she just projecting the trauma and suspicions raised by her own younger sister’s disappearance overseas, many years ago? Past and present collide when Kat, an ambitious special advisor to the Home Secretary who is trying to forget her own history, becomes involved after stumbling across troubling information that powerful people may be trying to hide. Notes on a Drowning is an excellent modern thriller powered by taut storytelling, fascinating characters, and tough issues. A cracking, troubling tale.

[This review was first written for publication in Good Reading, a monthly Australian magazine]

The story follows two main characters: Alex and Kat. Alex is a lawyer who has a passion for using the law to help people, however, this often means taking on pro-bono cases and her boss is not too keen on her using her time on unpaid work rather than on clients that actually pay. Alex is approached by Rosa, the sister of a young girl who allegedly drowned in the Thames, with the request that Alex represent her at the inquest as Rosa suspected foul play. This was another pro-bono case and one which Alex has to sneak around to pursue further.

We also follow Kat, who works as a special advisor for the home secretary. It's not clear at the start how these two characters intertwine but what is clear, is that Kat has a past that she has worked really hard to conceal and leave behind.

As the story progresses, the two characters lives collide as they delve into a case that neither of them could have predicted would turn as sinister as it does.

I love a political thriller type of story with corruption and deceit and cover-ups and lies aplenty. The story took a turn which I didn't see coming, and once it become clear what the stakes were for Alex and Kat I was racing through the last half of the book to find out how this was all going to be resolved. The last few chapters are very frantic as the story closes out and I was not disappointed with any part. I felt the story evolved at a good pace throughout, with a very good evolution of the characters. The story is very much about the complicated history between these two characters as it is what brings them together to investigate the drowning of the young girl in the Thames. I will definitely be on the look out to see what this author publishes next and I hope it is along the same genre as this book.

I chose to be on the blogtour for this as I was attracted by the blurb that sounded exciting. I didn't know that the author is Anna Mazzola writing as Anna Sharpe. My average rate of Ms Mazzola is 5*.
This is a powerful, strong, emotional, gripping, and heartbreaking at times novel.
Alex and Kat are two complex, strong, and well developed characters. Two women who fights for a great goods and they are involved in the case of disappearing teens even if it can impact their careers.
A political thriller full of twists, turns, surprises. You never know what will be the next surprise till the end.
Loved and enjoyed it, hope there will be more featuring these characters.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to Orion for this digital copy, all opinions are mine

I felt so many emotions whilst reading this book, it was very gripping and the pace was so well done.

A fast paced and intriguing legal / political thriller. I enjoyed getting to know Alex and Kat with their fascinating back stories and enthralling work in the legal and political professions. Major issues were addressed and, I felt, dealt with well and realistically. I haven’t read many political thrillers previously as I never felt particularly drawn to the genre. However, having read this one (thinking it was only a legal thriller), I will definitely be on the lookout for others and more of this genre by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orion Publishing Group for an eARC of this book.

I adored this thriller. High octane but with fully realised characters you care about. I would love to see more of these.

Alex is a solicitor for a law firm in London. She has been told to take no more pro bono case. However, she is still working on one, where a young girl called Natalia has been found drowned in the River Thames. She tells Rosa that she will keep on with the case till she finds answers. Kat is a special adviser to the Home Secretary and she finds a letter with Natalia's details. The story is told in Alex and Kat's voices and we soon learn that Kat is hiding things from her past as Elisa, Alex's sister, disappeared mysteriously 12 years ago. Alex and Kat join forces albeit grudgingly to find answers and discover so much more. It's gritty, fast paced, page turning with a few nail biting moments, which leads to a dramatic conclusion.

This was an intense legal/political thriller that I raced through and thoroughly enjoyed.

The book is written as a dual narrative. Anna is a lawyer and is asked to take on another unpaid case after speaking to Rosa. Her sister Natalia was recently found dead after drowning in the Thames, but Rosa believes it was not accidental. Anna is immediately interested as her own sister disappeared suspiciously over 12 years ago in Tokyo. She can emphasise with Rosa and is desperate to uncover the truth.
The other narrator is Kat, who has recently been promoted as special advisor to the home secretary. Kat starts to discover a series of cover-ups and finds a worrying letter about a girl, Natalia, who recently drowned in the Thames. Could her new boss be involved?
I loved how the two main stories slowly interlinked. The two main characters were really well written and easy to identify with.
I found the dark storyline compelling to read. It was packed with action, suspense, and twists.
I haven't read Anna Sharpe's/Mazzola's historical fiction yet (although I do have them all on my tbr) but I hope this is the first in a series as I would love to read more books with Anna and Kat in.
If you like a fast-paced thriller, I would recommend this!

Notes on a Drowning is perfect for fans of Anatomy of a Scandal. I raced through this book in one sitting. Tense and fast-paced. Must read. 4 stars

Ein tief bewegender und kraftvoller Thriller, der unter die Haut geht!

"Notes on a Drowning" von Anna Sharpe hat mich tief berührt und zugleich auf eine emotionale Achterbahnfahrt geschickt. Die Geschichte über Verlust, Überlebenswillen und das Dunkel der menschlichen Seele ist von Anfang an so intensiv, dass es schwer war, das Buch aus der Hand zu legen.

Die Protagonistin ist eine starke, aber zutiefst verletzte Figur, die auf ihrer Reise mit den schwersten Emotionen und traumatischen Erlebnissen kämpft. Was dieses Buch besonders macht, ist die Fähigkeit der Autorin, die psychologischen Abgründe ihrer Charaktere so präzise und realistisch darzustellen. Man fühlt jede Welle von Schmerz, Angst und Sehnsucht, die die Hauptfigur durchlebt.

Anna Sharpe lässt den Leser mit jeder Seite tiefer in die Geschichte eintauchen und nimmt ihn mit auf eine Reise, die emotional fordert und gleichzeitig Spannung aufbaut. Es ist kein Thriller im klassischen Sinn, sondern vielmehr ein psychologisches Drama, das die Grenzen zwischen Überleben und Untergang, Wahrheit und Lüge, Liebe und Verlust auslotet.

Die Erzählweise ist ruhig und eindringlich, doch immer mit einem unheilvollen Gefühl im Hintergrund. Die Dichte der Atmosphäre und die emotionale Tiefe der Charaktere machen es zu einem besonders starken Leseerlebnis. Das Ende ist überraschend und lässt einen nachdenklich zurück, während es gleichzeitig die Kraft und den Schmerz der vorherigen Seiten perfekt zusammenführt.

Fazit:
"Notes on a Drowning" ist ein meisterhaft erzählter Thriller, der emotional tief geht und psychologisch fesselt. Anna Sharpe hat ein Werk geschaffen, das nicht nur spannend ist, sondern auch eine zutiefst bewegende und nachdenklich stimmende Geschichte über die menschliche Psyche erzählt. Wer psychologische Thriller liebt, die sowohl emotional als auch intellektuell fordern, wird dieses Buch lieben.

What a great novel. 2am! The time I turned the last page and got some sleep. A really cracking legal and political thriller with two strong female main protagonists. Alex Moreno is a solicitor with a conscience and despite being told to work more billable hours she agrees to look into the death of a young girl, Natalia, whose body was found in the River Thames. Kathryn ‘Kat’ Ishida is a Special Adviser to the Home Secretary, but she has a past she wants to keep where it is, in the past. This was brilliantly written and plotted, which is not a surprise when you realise the author is a pseudonym for Anna Mazzola.

Briefly, Alex and Kat have a troubled history but when Kat has concerns over some classified information she finds she contacts Alex. The two women are still not comfortable with each other but both have a need to investigate further. With help from Alex’s estranged husband and sympathetic journalists their investigations go deep to the root of British politics and various high profile individuals. It soon becomes clear that their investigations are ruffling more than a few feathers and some very dangerous feathers at that.

A fast paced and exciting thriller with a great cast of characters. The book addresses some serious international and domestic issues including people trafficking, political corruption and exploitation just for starters and it is all handled sensitively but honestly. There are some things that can’t be glossed over. There were a few shocks along the way that I hadn’t guessed and some tense moments. I loved it, a fantastic read.

This is the first (Anna Mazzola) Anna Sharpe book I've read and boy, if this is her first contemporary fiction thriller then she's aced it.
Without giving too much away... I loved the parallel experiences of the 2 sisters involved. The themes of loss, guilt anger and blame were explored empathetically as wee contemporary issues around misogyny and more.
Sharp uses a light touch to highlight important societal issues and the pace of the novel combined with the well drawn characters kept me well and truly hooked.

More please !

I loved the book in the beginning. However, between the constant cursing of the female lawyers and too many characters to follow I gave up. This wasn’t the right book for me.