The Library Suicides

This book is described as a thriller with a difference and it certainly fulfills the bill. It starts off quietly like a firework when the blue touch paper is lit and then rockets along with lots of twists and turns along the way. Ana and Nan are identical twins with Ana being the older by 12 minutes. Despite this, Ana has always tended to defer to the whims of her younger sister. When their mother Elena commits suicide, Nan blames her death on the unfair and vitriolic criticism made by a reviewer called Eben and she convinces Ana that they need to get their revenge. They hatch a plot to capture Eben by allowing him exclusive access to their mother's diary to enable him to write her biography. Their actions unleash a chain of events which they did not foresee with tragic consequences. This book will make you look at libraries and their custodianship of books in a whole new light.

This is a difficult book to synopsise without giving away too much of the story but what I will say is that this was not what I was expecting!

Whilst there are a number of books about identical twins around, this was definitely a gripping read which I would recommend to all.

Thanks to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to the author, netgalley and Hodder Stoughton for the chance to review this book.

I was initially attracted by the plot description and the cover, it seemed like a book that I would enjoy. I was a little confused at the beginning as I wasn’t sure where the book was set but I soon got into it.
The characters are all flawed and the author does a great job of explaining why throughout the book. I enjoyed the twists and turns and I did not expect the ending! An interesting storyline which I could imagine happening in the future (the no paper and electronic only) that I am glad I got to read.

A well written and very thought provoking read that engaged me all the way through. I am not going to ssay anything else as I feel like I had the best experience with this book by going in blind. I will say though that I really enjoyed it and I am still thinking about it now.

A great read creating a tense and claustrophobic atmosphere in the same way The Handmaid's Tale does and just when you get a feel for what's happening there are twists and turns aplenty. I didn't see the end coming at all! I kept thinking that this is one of those books just waiting to be a TV mini-series, and it has been!

Beautifully written, this is a thriller with a difference.
Twisty with an excellent plot, I can't say much more for fear of giving away the plot.

Wow! What a book! I really enjoyed it and the characters make it so unpredictable, I had no idea how it would unfold. It’s well written with a great plot and I definitely recommend it. Thank you #netgalley

This is a tale about Matriachy and Patriarchy, and about how one voice needs to be silenced for another voice to be heard. This is a story about standing out, and fitting in, and being left in the shadows, This is a book about secrets, and lies, and what truths we choose to tell. This tale is about second chances, and doing the right thing., and retribution, and forgiveness. This is a story about legacy, literature, and Love.

I am really surprised how much I enjoyed this book! The book wasn't what I was expecting at all but I am totally fine with that. It was an easy 5 stars for me
This book has multiple POVs, love love LOVE! I really thought that Dan's POV was particularly heartbreaking, and he ended up being one of my favourite characters after despising him at the start. I also thought the side characters were strongly developed, particularly Pale and Colleen for instance.
I really enjoyed the two plots running side-by-side with the twins, their mother and the uncertainty of paternity, along with the other plot of the government's agenda in the library and the books. It was only slightly convoluted at the ending which got me a bit confused. Usually dystopian style books aren't my kind of books, but this was such an interesting proposal that the transmission of germs and disease is through books and paper. This isn't my typical genre but it was very suspenseful and kept me hooked.
Also worth mentioning: after some more research I realised that this story had already been adapted into a Welsh film by the author, so I think I will have to give that a watch to see how they compare.
5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley, Fflur Dafydd and Hodder & Stoughton for sending me this digital review copy.
This review has been published on Goodreads.

Ana and Nan are twins, born 12 minutes apart. They are lost after the death of their mother Elena, who was all they had in life, apart from one another. Elena was a highly renowned author, and everyone knows that she was driven to suicide by her long running, incredibly harsh critic Eben. The twins are heartbroken, but also want vengeance.

Eben is desperate to clear his name. He requests access to Elena’s diaries at the National Library, knowing the twins work there. He hopes he can write a new piece, and seek the twins forgiveness through it, and in the process, write his way to society's forgiveness. The twins have other ideas. They hatch a plan to lock down the library, intent on making Eben suffer, and ultimately, wanting to make him pay the ultimate price. No one else is to get harmed. But the plan quickly starts to unravel, and with it their bond. How far can sibling love, twin love, go before the bond breaks?

This book was absolutely not what I expected when I started reading it. It took off in a completely different direction, and along with the main story, wove in teasing glimpses of a newly forming dystopian world. What exactly is happening? What is this world? When is this world? How much of it has an impact on the story playing out in front of us? It is hard to explain more of this story without giving away too much. I went into it expecting one thing, and came out with something completely different. I came out with questions about life, society, the conservation of knowledge and more. A very engaging and thought provoking read.

*I received this book from NetGalley for review but all opinions are my own.

This book is hands down one of the best books I've read this year!.... It started off a bit slow in the first few chapters, but then picked up momentum and swung it off the park.
I will definitely recommend this book to anyone, you won't regret the time spent on it!.

Thank you for letting me have an early copy of this book in return for an honest review. I found it to be a thought provoking read.
It is set in a somewhat dystopian period in the aftermath of a pandemic called "The Great Sickness" Almost all of the storyboard place over a period of one day, in real time, and it is good through the various chapters by the four main protagonists.
It is well written, though I did find some paragraphs very lengthy.
At its simplest level it's a story of a simply plan that becomes very complicated by events beyond foreseeable control. To put more detail here I would run the risk of potentially spoiling the unfolding tale for a reader.

I couldhave done with a little bit more background on the dystopain setting of the libray- everything was a bit vague and initially difficult to follow but that was perhaps intentional to draw you in with a myriad of questions.
\With a cast of flawed individuals the story follows the crusade of Ana and Nan, set mostly within the walls of the library where they work.
The plot is well thought out, the characters are all easy to dislike and the narrative, althoughunreliable, is told well from the viewpoints of Ana and Nan and as the truth is revelaed you have a real "aha- now I get it" moment!

The description of this story caught my eye and it mostly lived up to the promise of it.
I liked the confusion that identical twins bring to a story. I liked the story very much but found it a bit hard going about half way through with a decent enough ending to it.