Sarah J Naughton

TattletaleTattletaleTattletale

""...I was pleasantly surprised." "

Synopsis:

One day changes Jody's life forever. She has shut herself down, haunted by her memories and unable to trust anyone. But then she meets Abe, the perfect stranger next door and suddenly life seems full of possibility and hope.

One day changes Mags's life forever. After years of estrangement from her family, Mags receives a shocking phone call. Her brother, Abe is in hospital and no-one knows what happened to him. She meets his fiancé Jody, and gradually pieces together the ruins of the life she left behind. But the pieces don't quite seem to fit.

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Review:

Jody is devastated when an accident leaves her fiancé, Abe in a coma. Abe's sister, Mags flies in from the States to visit her estranged brother in hospital. This line forms the main part of the book; Mags getting to know her brother through Jody, together with flashbacks to her childhood, explaining why the siblings became estranged. Jody herself has also had a traumatic childhood which has had a huge impact on her current life and relationships. Whilst reading, some parts of the plot were to me quite obvious, I am not sure if this was actually meant to be the case as there are quite a few surprises. At times I felt pretty sure I knew what was going to happen - only to be proven wrong. I did find myself getting rather impatient with the character Jody; she came across as weak and dithering. I also struggled to get into the book - although I enjoyed it, I didn't feel compelled to read it. I am unable to easily pinpoint the reason for this - characters I was unable to identify with, maybe the way the author writes. But conversely when I did actually continue reading, I once again enjoyed it. There's a nice little twist at the end, and I think because the ending wasn't quite as I expected it to be, I was pleasantly surprised. This was quite a slow burn psychological thriller that snowballed and improved as the pages turned. Well worth sticking with.

Reviewed By:


H.A.