Scan barcode
serenitynowgirl's review against another edition
3.0
Slow pacing, some plot points that went (imo) beyond a willing suspension of disbelief. I usually relish Bolton’s plot twists, but this one didn’t work for me.
granolagina's review against another edition
5.0
I love a good twist! Easily the best book I've read this year.
fictionfan's review against another edition
5.0
Brilliant!
Hamish Wolfe is a prisoner, convicted of the murders of three young women. Maggie Rose is a defence barrister and author of several books regarding possible miscarriages of justice, some of which have resulted in the convicted men being released. Hamish and his little group of supporters on the outside are keen to get Maggie to take on his case. Pete Weston owes his promotion to Detective Sergeant to his success in catching Hamish, and he's adamant that no mistakes were made.
This is Sharon Bolton at her twisty, twisted best, and her best is pretty brilliant! Told in the third person, we're only allowed brief glimpses into the mind of each of these three main characters, so we're never quite sure who's telling the truth. But we're pretty sure from early on that each one is hiding something.
Hamish is a charming, exceedingly handsome and intelligent young man, so he has even more than the usual quota of strange women declaring their love for him despite, or perhaps because of, his convictions. But is he guilty? The evidence looks pretty solid but he's always insisted he's innocent and there are plenty of people who're willing to believe him. Pete seems like one of that rare breed (in fiction) – an honest hard-working cop who sticks to the rules. But as Maggie begins to delve into the case it does begin to look as if coincidence played a pretty big part in his original investigation. And what is Maggie's motivation for getting murderers released from prison? She claims it's not about guilt or innocence but about whether they got fair treatment under the law – a moral standpoint, if true...
Bolton's skill is not just in the plotting, great though that is. Where she really excels is in setting up an atmosphere of growing tension and dread, always helped by the settings she chooses. Her last couple of Lacey Flint books have made us all see the Thames in a new and sinister light, and in this standalone she uses the caves and tunnels beneath the Somerset coast to brilliant effect. Her descriptive writing is fabulous – the lowering snow clouds, freezing cold and short dark days all adding beautifully to a scary sense of creepiness and fear. But there's a healthy dose of humour which prevents the book from becoming too dark, meaning that it's a truly enjoyable read even while it's deliciously tingling the reader's spine.
As well as the three main players, there's a small host of quirky secondary characters, most of them part of the little group campaigning for Hamish's release. Bolton does address a couple of serious issues – the way some people are drawn to notorious, violent killers for all sorts of reasons, some saner than others, and how society sees and reacts to fat people (all of the victims were fat women). But she does it with a light touch so that it never feels like she's grinding an axe or thumping a tub – she is observing rather than judging.
It's a strange thing that sometimes the best books are the ones that require to have the least said about them. The joy of this one is in being lead so skilfully through all the various twists, constantly having to reassess one's opinion of the leading characters as each new piece is added, so I don't want to reveal too much. I'll simply say that in reading over my short notes made while reading I see I've used the word 'brilliant' no less than nine times, with a couple of fabulouses thrown in for good measure, and I've already made space for this one in my Book of the Year roundup. In case I haven't made myself clear – highly recommended! In fact, brilliant!!
NB This book was provided for review by the publisher, Random House Transworld.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
Hamish Wolfe is a prisoner, convicted of the murders of three young women. Maggie Rose is a defence barrister and author of several books regarding possible miscarriages of justice, some of which have resulted in the convicted men being released. Hamish and his little group of supporters on the outside are keen to get Maggie to take on his case. Pete Weston owes his promotion to Detective Sergeant to his success in catching Hamish, and he's adamant that no mistakes were made.
This is Sharon Bolton at her twisty, twisted best, and her best is pretty brilliant! Told in the third person, we're only allowed brief glimpses into the mind of each of these three main characters, so we're never quite sure who's telling the truth. But we're pretty sure from early on that each one is hiding something.
Hamish is a charming, exceedingly handsome and intelligent young man, so he has even more than the usual quota of strange women declaring their love for him despite, or perhaps because of, his convictions. But is he guilty? The evidence looks pretty solid but he's always insisted he's innocent and there are plenty of people who're willing to believe him. Pete seems like one of that rare breed (in fiction) – an honest hard-working cop who sticks to the rules. But as Maggie begins to delve into the case it does begin to look as if coincidence played a pretty big part in his original investigation. And what is Maggie's motivation for getting murderers released from prison? She claims it's not about guilt or innocence but about whether they got fair treatment under the law – a moral standpoint, if true...
Bolton's skill is not just in the plotting, great though that is. Where she really excels is in setting up an atmosphere of growing tension and dread, always helped by the settings she chooses. Her last couple of Lacey Flint books have made us all see the Thames in a new and sinister light, and in this standalone she uses the caves and tunnels beneath the Somerset coast to brilliant effect. Her descriptive writing is fabulous – the lowering snow clouds, freezing cold and short dark days all adding beautifully to a scary sense of creepiness and fear. But there's a healthy dose of humour which prevents the book from becoming too dark, meaning that it's a truly enjoyable read even while it's deliciously tingling the reader's spine.
As well as the three main players, there's a small host of quirky secondary characters, most of them part of the little group campaigning for Hamish's release. Bolton does address a couple of serious issues – the way some people are drawn to notorious, violent killers for all sorts of reasons, some saner than others, and how society sees and reacts to fat people (all of the victims were fat women). But she does it with a light touch so that it never feels like she's grinding an axe or thumping a tub – she is observing rather than judging.
It's a strange thing that sometimes the best books are the ones that require to have the least said about them. The joy of this one is in being lead so skilfully through all the various twists, constantly having to reassess one's opinion of the leading characters as each new piece is added, so I don't want to reveal too much. I'll simply say that in reading over my short notes made while reading I see I've used the word 'brilliant' no less than nine times, with a couple of fabulouses thrown in for good measure, and I've already made space for this one in my Book of the Year roundup. In case I haven't made myself clear – highly recommended! In fact, brilliant!!
NB This book was provided for review by the publisher, Random House Transworld.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
tapsisbuchblog's review
5.0
Hamish Wolfe sitzt wegen 4-fachen Mordes im Gefängnis. Der charismatische Arzt beteuert seine Unschuld und bittet die True-Crime-Autorin und Anwältin Maggie Rose um Unterstützung. Schließlich hat die junge Frau schon so manchen verurteilten Häftling aus dem Knast geholt. Doch Maggie Rose hat kein Interesse....vorerst...
„Er liebt sie nicht“ war mein erster Thriller von Sharon Bolton und hat mich umgehauen. Die Autorin schafft es mit einer leicht widerspenstigen Anwältin und einem sehr attraktivem Häftling eine so spannende Story zu erschaffen, dass ich mich über jede Lesepause geärgert habe.
Die Geschichte wird von einem auktorialen Erzähler berichtet. Dabei folgt man nicht nur Maggie Rose und ihren Recherchen, sondern sitzt ebenso mit Hamish Wolfe im Gefängnis oder ermittelt mit dem leitenden Detective Peter Weston, der alles daran setzt, Maggie Rose von der Übernahme des Falls Wolfe abzuhalten. Neben diesen Erzählsträngen darf man auch die Briefe Hamishs aus dem Gefängnis an seine unbekannte Liebste lesen sowie der Berichterstattung über das Gerichtsverfahren folgen. Was auf den ersten Blick verwirrend klingt, ist eine toll erdachte Mischung, um dem Leser die Möglichkeit zu geben, sich eine Meinung über Hamish und seine Verbrechen zu bilden.
Zu Beginn und vor allem nach der Lektüre des Klappentextes hatte ich Befürchtungen, dass dieser Thriller in eine kitschige Liebesgeschichte a la Bad Boy meets Good Girl abdriftet. Dem war zum Glück nicht so. Maggie Rose ist eine toughe und direkte Juristin, die sich weder von der Polizei noch von den Schmeicheleien des Häftlings einlullen lässt. Das hat mir sehr gut gefallen, da sie somit eben nicht dem Klischee entspricht. Des weiteren fand ich es großartig, dass Sharon Bolton mit Hamish Wolfe zwar einen attraktiven männlichen Charakter erschaffen hat, diesen aber nicht ausschließlich über sein Aussehen definiert. Sowohl Maggie als auch Hamish sind starke Persönlichkeiten mit Ecken und Kanten, mit Fehlern und guten Seiten. Diese realitätsnahe und gleichzeitig spannende Darstellung hat mich von Seite 1 an in ihren Bann gezogen.
Die Story selbst ist fesselnd und zugleich leicht verwirrend. Die Autorin lässt ihre Leser lange im Unklaren, was wirklich vorgefallen ist, füttert sie lediglich mit kleinen Erkenntnishappen, um dann Seite für Seite so viel Nervenkitzel aufzubauen, dass man kaum aufhören kann zu lesen. Die Kapitel sind erfrischend kurz, so dass ich auch morgens auf dem Weg zur Arbeit zumindest ein wenig mehr über Maggie Rose erfahren konnte.
Das Finale hat sehr gut zum gesamten Thriller gepasst und mir den Atem geraubt. Ich hatte während der Lektüre so manche Idee, wie die Morde passiert sein können, doch DAS hatte ich nicht im Sinn. Großartig!
Der Stil von Sharon Bolton ist sehr gut und flüssig zu lesen. Ihre Erzählweise ist direkt, ohne Umschweife und emotionsarm. Genau so muss ein Thriller sein, der es nicht wagt, in eine verschwurbelte Liebesgeschichte abzudriften.
Fazit: Auch wenn er sie nicht liebt, liebe ich diesen Roman. Eine klare Leseempfehlung.
„Er liebt sie nicht“ war mein erster Thriller von Sharon Bolton und hat mich umgehauen. Die Autorin schafft es mit einer leicht widerspenstigen Anwältin und einem sehr attraktivem Häftling eine so spannende Story zu erschaffen, dass ich mich über jede Lesepause geärgert habe.
Die Geschichte wird von einem auktorialen Erzähler berichtet. Dabei folgt man nicht nur Maggie Rose und ihren Recherchen, sondern sitzt ebenso mit Hamish Wolfe im Gefängnis oder ermittelt mit dem leitenden Detective Peter Weston, der alles daran setzt, Maggie Rose von der Übernahme des Falls Wolfe abzuhalten. Neben diesen Erzählsträngen darf man auch die Briefe Hamishs aus dem Gefängnis an seine unbekannte Liebste lesen sowie der Berichterstattung über das Gerichtsverfahren folgen. Was auf den ersten Blick verwirrend klingt, ist eine toll erdachte Mischung, um dem Leser die Möglichkeit zu geben, sich eine Meinung über Hamish und seine Verbrechen zu bilden.
Zu Beginn und vor allem nach der Lektüre des Klappentextes hatte ich Befürchtungen, dass dieser Thriller in eine kitschige Liebesgeschichte a la Bad Boy meets Good Girl abdriftet. Dem war zum Glück nicht so. Maggie Rose ist eine toughe und direkte Juristin, die sich weder von der Polizei noch von den Schmeicheleien des Häftlings einlullen lässt. Das hat mir sehr gut gefallen, da sie somit eben nicht dem Klischee entspricht. Des weiteren fand ich es großartig, dass Sharon Bolton mit Hamish Wolfe zwar einen attraktiven männlichen Charakter erschaffen hat, diesen aber nicht ausschließlich über sein Aussehen definiert. Sowohl Maggie als auch Hamish sind starke Persönlichkeiten mit Ecken und Kanten, mit Fehlern und guten Seiten. Diese realitätsnahe und gleichzeitig spannende Darstellung hat mich von Seite 1 an in ihren Bann gezogen.
Die Story selbst ist fesselnd und zugleich leicht verwirrend. Die Autorin lässt ihre Leser lange im Unklaren, was wirklich vorgefallen ist, füttert sie lediglich mit kleinen Erkenntnishappen, um dann Seite für Seite so viel Nervenkitzel aufzubauen, dass man kaum aufhören kann zu lesen. Die Kapitel sind erfrischend kurz, so dass ich auch morgens auf dem Weg zur Arbeit zumindest ein wenig mehr über Maggie Rose erfahren konnte.
Das Finale hat sehr gut zum gesamten Thriller gepasst und mir den Atem geraubt. Ich hatte während der Lektüre so manche Idee, wie die Morde passiert sein können, doch DAS hatte ich nicht im Sinn. Großartig!
Der Stil von Sharon Bolton ist sehr gut und flüssig zu lesen. Ihre Erzählweise ist direkt, ohne Umschweife und emotionsarm. Genau so muss ein Thriller sein, der es nicht wagt, in eine verschwurbelte Liebesgeschichte abzudriften.
Fazit: Auch wenn er sie nicht liebt, liebe ich diesen Roman. Eine klare Leseempfehlung.
terryh's review against another edition
5.0
Hamish Wolfe is in prison for murdering 3 women. Maggie Rose is a successful lawyer & author. Hamish wants her to look at his case and save him. Can she resist him? Pete Weston is the police officer who got Hamish put away. Pete and Maggie could be friends, if things go right.
Good read, long book, but interesting and creepy. Very enjoyable and a good ending.
Good read, long book, but interesting and creepy. Very enjoyable and a good ending.
km0220's review against another edition
3.0
This book was a bit of a disappointment. The plot was pretty predictable and the characters were tedious and cliched. I like Ms. Hannah's writing style so I am giving it 3 stars, but overall I can't think of anything more positive to say about this book.
jnl_dayton's review against another edition
4.0
Gosh she writes well! I had read the Lacey Flint books, when she used S. J. Bolton, and liked those a lot. This is the kind of British writer I like: just enough British slang so you know author is a Brit but not so much it slows your reading to figure it out!
Story was good, too, with a good ending twist.
I didn't give it 5 stars because I felt a bit set up -- I wanted Maggie Rose to be the heroine, but she turned out (the twist!) to be the villain.
Story was good, too, with a good ending twist.
I didn't give it 5 stars because I felt a bit set up -- I wanted Maggie Rose to be the heroine, but she turned out (the twist!) to be the villain.
keberis's review against another edition
4.0
There was a lot I enjoyed about this novel, but I feel like the reveal was somewhat wasted in how it played out. There was a bit of bait and switch in the latter half of the book and it distracted from the overall story. I've always enjoyed Bolton's stories, but this one doesn't rank as high as her others, in my opinion.
allysbookshoparoundthecorner's review against another edition
5.0
4.5 Took me a while to get into it, but that ending was a 5 star ending