Scan barcode
meeramira's review against another edition
4.0
I thought it started out a little slow...a little hard to get into but then it got great! Each page made me want to keep reading and instead of just reading one chapter, I stayed up until 3am to finish reading the whole book! To me, the characters were very unlikeable at first, but once you learn their backstories you start to understand why they are the way they are. The story is a bit far-fetched but still entertaining, nonetheless. I definitely recommend this book if you're in the mood for a mystery with lots of twists and turns.
sony08's review against another edition
5.0
From time to time I go back to my own library of paperbacks I have collected over the years and pick out a real cracker. And this was definitely one of them. Second novel by Sophie Hannah that I have had the pleasure to read and happy to say there are another three on my shelves that I can look forward to reading.
Sophie has a real talent in getting the reader involved in the story, not giving anything away until the last few pages and letting you get completely engrossed in the lives of all the characters.
When Ruth turns up at the police station to see Charlie Zaylor, she has no idea that this one step will start an avalanche of events that will change her live and the lives of all of those she loves. The man she loves told her that he killed a woman called Mary Trelease. But to Ruth that’s not the problem. The problem is that she know the woman and she is very much alive.
From there on things spiral very quickly and events from decades ago have to be brought up to surface in order to understand the present. The characters have a real live to them which forces the reader to experience their emotions and have a proper relationship and involvement with the story.
Fabulous book, a proper page-turner.
Sophie has a real talent in getting the reader involved in the story, not giving anything away until the last few pages and letting you get completely engrossed in the lives of all the characters.
When Ruth turns up at the police station to see Charlie Zaylor, she has no idea that this one step will start an avalanche of events that will change her live and the lives of all of those she loves. The man she loves told her that he killed a woman called Mary Trelease. But to Ruth that’s not the problem. The problem is that she know the woman and she is very much alive.
From there on things spiral very quickly and events from decades ago have to be brought up to surface in order to understand the present. The characters have a real live to them which forces the reader to experience their emotions and have a proper relationship and involvement with the story.
Fabulous book, a proper page-turner.
krobart's review against another edition
4.0
I have found that Hannah’s novels are deliciously dark and always difficult to figure out, even though by now I know the pattern that someone is being deeply deceived. The trick is to figure out who and how. Her police officers are seriously flawed and have a difficult relationship.
Sophie Hannah is another find for those who like edgy, complex mysteries with a touch of the gothic thriller.
See my complete review here:
http://whatmeread.wordpress.com/tag/the-dead-lie-down/
Sophie Hannah is another find for those who like edgy, complex mysteries with a touch of the gothic thriller.
See my complete review here:
http://whatmeread.wordpress.com/tag/the-dead-lie-down/
aoibhrua's review against another edition
3.0
It was ok. It had so much more potential though.
It seemed like there were some brilliant plot ideas/twists and towards the end it sped up and was so exciting but it became a bit unrealistic. There was no way a reader could have guessed the resolution and fair enough, twists are good, but it go to the point where a character went from a liar, to trusted, to a liar, trusted, liar.. and then you lost track of what was real and what wasn't.
The end was just disappointing and the story in general was dragged out too much.
It seemed like there were some brilliant plot ideas/twists and towards the end it sped up and was so exciting but it became a bit unrealistic. There was no way a reader could have guessed the resolution and fair enough, twists are good, but it go to the point where a character went from a liar, to trusted, to a liar, trusted, liar.. and then you lost track of what was real and what wasn't.
The end was just disappointing and the story in general was dragged out too much.
hoovera's review against another edition
3.0
So the premise is great - a man confesses to killing a woman who is still alive.
I just didn't love the execution.. it was at least 100 pages too long with too much exposition at the end to bring it all together. If you need a lengthy internal monologue of a denouement then the story is perhaps too complicated.
I just didn't love the execution.. it was at least 100 pages too long with too much exposition at the end to bring it all together. If you need a lengthy internal monologue of a denouement then the story is perhaps too complicated.
cherircohen's review against another edition
1.0
this took forever to get going and just made no sense to me. i stopped reading about 3/4 through. it goes nowhere.
livck's review against another edition
4.0
I’ve read a few of Sophie Hannah’s books before and this is up there as one of her best, in my view. The mystery keeps you gripped to the very end but you can tell Hannah is a clever writer - there isn’t a heavily reliance on violence or shock tactics; there are instead psychological twists at its heart and turns you can’t predict. I’m already researching which of her books to read next!
joyfilledwander's review against another edition
2.0
Sophie Hannah is a great suspense writer and one that captures the broken human psyche like I've never read. I really enjoyed The Wrong Mother, which preceeded this story in her Spilling CID series. However, in this story, I LOATHED the main narrator. By the end of the book, I understood her oddities a bit more, but I could not stand her evasiveness. I almost quit the book several times just because of her. But I was intrigued by the bizarre plot that I wanted to know the end. It didn't really help me like the book any more. But I'm still impressed with Sophie Hannah as a writer. I might just wait awhile before reading another. Needing a break from all the crazy.
robynryle's review against another edition
3.0
There was a lot of stuff going on in this mystery, and I'm not sure it all got properly wrapped up in the end. But amusing enough to read, and I liked the characters of the detectives.
nrhayes16's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5