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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
Lucy Clarke's fifth novel is a suspense-filled psychological thriller that introduces us to author Ellie Fielding. After the phenomenal and almost overnight success of her debut novel Ellie is living the dream - from her cliff-top house she posts regular social media updates showing the beautiful sea views from the perfect writing room that overlooks the sea. But how much of it is real? In fact, Ellie's husband has left the dream home that she can no longer afford and she has such severe writing block that her long-anticipated second novel is looking like it will never appear - and that means the huge advance from the publisher will need to be paid back. Bang goes the fantastic career, the house, the image - the lot.
While ignoring these worrying truths, Ellie heads off on a pre-arranged writing retreat, and to try and make a little extra cash, she decide to 'AirB&B' her home for the few weeks she will be away in France. When she comes back things feel odd…and she can't quite put her finger on why. From this point, things get weird and Ellie, trapped in a nightmare that she doesn't understand, begins to get increasingly paranoid. There were a few things that happened that seemed unlikely and a few too many red herrings for my liking - but on the whole, the plot is well written and the reveal was clever and surprising.
While ignoring these worrying truths, Ellie heads off on a pre-arranged writing retreat, and to try and make a little extra cash, she decide to 'AirB&B' her home for the few weeks she will be away in France. When she comes back things feel odd…and she can't quite put her finger on why. From this point, things get weird and Ellie, trapped in a nightmare that she doesn't understand, begins to get increasingly paranoid. There were a few things that happened that seemed unlikely and a few too many red herrings for my liking - but on the whole, the plot is well written and the reveal was clever and surprising.
I would give this book 3.5 stars if given the option.
What I enjoyed about this book was that it was easy to read, a page turner that enabled me to read it in a couple of days. I enjoyed Elle's character progression in the main story, and trying to figure out who had been terrorizing her since her Airbnb rental and how the story was going to resolve. I also enjoyed the variety of other characters, though at times the story felt a bit cluttered with others - especially during the book club, when this was the only time certain characters were mentioned. The setting was beautifully described, and I found myself able to picture most of the scenes described, though some of them were beyond my reach, as is bound to happen in any novel.
I found that Clarke used a lot of the same themes and even words throughout the novel, which got annoying. For example, she used the word vertiginous at least three times, and at least once in a way that I thought was odd, but that may just be me. There was another either word or theme used repeatedly throughout, but I am unable to remember it which I think speaks to its lack of effectiveness.
I found that the pace of the story was quite slow as well, to the point of frustration as the threads didn't come together until the last few chapters, and the ending felt incredibly rushed. I was glad to finally see the story resolved at the end, but I felt disappointed with the urgency of the ending.
What I enjoyed about this book was that it was easy to read, a page turner that enabled me to read it in a couple of days. I enjoyed Elle's character progression in the main story, and trying to figure out who had been terrorizing her since her Airbnb rental and how the story was going to resolve. I also enjoyed the variety of other characters, though at times the story felt a bit cluttered with others - especially during the book club, when this was the only time certain characters were mentioned. The setting was beautifully described, and I found myself able to picture most of the scenes described, though some of them were beyond my reach, as is bound to happen in any novel.
I found that Clarke used a lot of the same themes and even words throughout the novel, which got annoying. For example, she used the word vertiginous at least three times, and at least once in a way that I thought was odd, but that may just be me. There was another either word or theme used repeatedly throughout, but I am unable to remember it which I think speaks to its lack of effectiveness.
I found that the pace of the story was quite slow as well, to the point of frustration as the threads didn't come together until the last few chapters, and the ending felt incredibly rushed. I was glad to finally see the story resolved at the end, but I felt disappointed with the urgency of the ending.
Great read. Lots of twists. Kept me guessing and ended very unexpectedly. Just what I like from a book!
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Second of Clarke’s book that i have read and is definitely my favourite so far. Loved the continuous plot twists, constantly suspecting different characters and then getting proved wrong !
I actually liked the fact the protagonist is exposed. Unusual for a book and really caught me off guard in a good way !
Will definitely be turning to Clarke again for a good psychological thriller
Will definitely be turning to Clarke again for a good psychological thriller
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3.5 - a good thriller, good plot twists, just felt like the three storylines that are running through it could have been linked a bit more, or the ending developed more or smth?
3.5. Very entertaining reading, quick to read. However, I couldn’t root for Elle after knowing she was a fraud. And what kind of ending is that? She and her husband split up over a lie and, now that he knows about even a bigger lie they are back together?
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3 stars because I can’t fault the general writing style and I don’t think it’s bad enough for a 2. If there was a 2.5 I’d be giving it that.
I just don’t feel anything for the main character and most of the supporting ones. It was very very slow at the beginning, I only continued reading because my husband and I were doing our own tiny book club with this so I needed to keep up! From halfway it picked up, but it was full of cliches and obvious red herrings.
Really disappointing as I loved Last Seen so I had high hopes, this fell short.
I just don’t feel anything for the main character and most of the supporting ones. It was very very slow at the beginning, I only continued reading because my husband and I were doing our own tiny book club with this so I needed to keep up! From halfway it picked up, but it was full of cliches and obvious red herrings.
Really disappointing as I loved Last Seen so I had high hopes, this fell short.
This was a really strong thriller! I didn't expect the twists at all, I was constantly kept guessing. I really enjoyed reading from a writer's perspective and the setting of Cornwall where my family is from. Can't wait to read more from this author.