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A review by thebooktrail88
Letters to My Daughter's Killer by Cath Staincliffe
4.0
Set in Manchester
Shortlisted in the CrimeThrillerAwards on itv3 – http://www.crimethrillerawards.com/
Ruth’ s daughter Lizzie has been murdered and as the title would suggest, what follows is the heartbreaking account of a woman trying to terms with that fact (if a person ever comes to terms with something so horrific)
She tells her story to a diary which we read thereby getting in to the mind and thoughts of a woman in turmoil. What would you say to a man you believe has murdered your beautiful daughter? Where do you even start? The way in which the book is written really brings the horror and inner turmoil of Ruth to the fore as the diary is that one medium still left in the world where we share our deepest darkest thoughts that we don’t share anywhere else. Letters are personal between two people giving the writer the power to control events and say whatever they want without being interrupted. As the diary progresses and Ruth works through her emotions, its as if we are there at the murder scene, the arrest,and everything which follows.
This for me was the where the real horror must start – when the funeral is over, the people have gone back to their lives and you wake up the next day as usual. What the hell do you do now?
Ruth’s pain is strongly evident throughout and I had the strange feeling of being so involved that as I was reading I found myself slowing down as if to respect the grief of the people ‘talking’ and sharing their hearts. Only a powerful and very clever writer can do that.
This book is certainly about things we would never want to face or personal situations we would never want to think about but everything is done subtly and without sensationalism so only the raw real emotions are left.
This is a very emotional read – Anger, sadness, shock, horror, disbelief and something which stays with you after the final page. Don’t be put off if reading someone’s inner conflict is not for you – this is so much more.
Shortlisted in the CrimeThrillerAwards on itv3 – http://www.crimethrillerawards.com/
Ruth’ s daughter Lizzie has been murdered and as the title would suggest, what follows is the heartbreaking account of a woman trying to terms with that fact (if a person ever comes to terms with something so horrific)
She tells her story to a diary which we read thereby getting in to the mind and thoughts of a woman in turmoil. What would you say to a man you believe has murdered your beautiful daughter? Where do you even start? The way in which the book is written really brings the horror and inner turmoil of Ruth to the fore as the diary is that one medium still left in the world where we share our deepest darkest thoughts that we don’t share anywhere else. Letters are personal between two people giving the writer the power to control events and say whatever they want without being interrupted. As the diary progresses and Ruth works through her emotions, its as if we are there at the murder scene, the arrest,and everything which follows.
This for me was the where the real horror must start – when the funeral is over, the people have gone back to their lives and you wake up the next day as usual. What the hell do you do now?
Ruth’s pain is strongly evident throughout and I had the strange feeling of being so involved that as I was reading I found myself slowing down as if to respect the grief of the people ‘talking’ and sharing their hearts. Only a powerful and very clever writer can do that.
This book is certainly about things we would never want to face or personal situations we would never want to think about but everything is done subtly and without sensationalism so only the raw real emotions are left.
This is a very emotional read – Anger, sadness, shock, horror, disbelief and something which stays with you after the final page. Don’t be put off if reading someone’s inner conflict is not for you – this is so much more.