July 2022 – Kat Pollock

The Hook:

Emma and her husband, Ben, move into a dilapidated mansion with a creepy backstory. Not long after they’ve started settling in, strange things begin happening that make Emma question her sanity.

My Impressions:

Okay so obviously we all know someone is getting gaslit in this story right? Like there’s never not gaslighting in a book with that kind of description. If the blurb of a book tells me that a woman is questioning her sanity, I pretty much set out with the strong hypothesis that she’s being gaslit.

I promise the book is still fascinating even though we all know that. In fact, I think the efforts the author made to subvert that trope actually made the plot a little less coherent by the end, but frankly, it was still a damn enjoyable read. Let’s be real here, if you’ve read Bell’s previous work, you know that it’s not necessarily the plot itself we’re here for, it’s the impeccable, gloriously entertaining style and panache with which Bell executes said plot. Her writing style is a joy to experience, and I highly recommend this and all her works.

Happy Reading!

The Hook:

When newcomer Isabelle moves into the small suburb of Pleasant Court, she stands out as a single woman among the neighborhood of mostly young families. Her new neighbors suspect that she may be hiding a secret, but is that because they have so many secrets of their own?

My Impressions:

As usual, Sally Hepworth delivers a stunning domestic suspense with layer upon layer of secrets, lies, and ulterior motives. Hepworth’s style, which I’ve come to think of as “slice of life, but with crimes,” is truly at its best in this book. Every moment of the characters’ mundane daily lives is infused with tension by their own secrets and their suspicion of one another.

Fans of the domestic thriller genre who haven’t yet experienced Hepworth’s writing should immediately go out and read her entire backlog, as I’ve rarely seen her equal. This book in particular managed to set me on my heels with it’s twists, despite knowing going in that there almost certainly would be at least one big twist on its way.

Part of what makes this subgenre so fun in my opinion is the tension created by the reader’s knowledge that there will be a twist at some point, a secret revealed which will inevitably cast every event that preceded it in a new light. This book is no exception, and the twist in question is such a doozy, it’ll have you racing to tell your friends to read the book as soon as possible.

Happy Reading!

Month: July 2022

Review: “All I Want” by Darcey Bell

Review of “The Family Next Door” by Sally Hepworth