To Tell You The Truth by Gilly Macmillan #NetGalley

To Tell You The Truth by Gilly Macmillan

Published by Penguin RandomHouse, Cornerstone

Publication Date: 25th June 2020 (ebook & hardback)

Genre: Mystery & Thriller

My thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this title via NetGalley.

All thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own and unbiased.

Book Description:

Lucy Harper has a talent for invention…

She was nine years old when her brother vanished in the woods near home. As the only witness, Lucy’s story of that night became crucial to the police investigation. Thirty years on, her brother’s whereabouts are still unknown.

Now Lucy is a bestselling thriller writer. Her talent for invention has given her fame, fortune, and an army of adoring fans. But her husband, Dan, has started keeping secrets of his own, and a sudden change of scene forces Lucy to confront some dark, unwelcome memories. Then Dan goes missing and Lucy’s past and present begin to collide. Did she kill her husband? Would she remember if she did?

Finally, Lucy Harper is going to tell us the truth.

Cross her heart.
And hope to die.

My Thoughts:

I am a big fan of Gilly MacMillan and have read a few of her previous books. This one seems rather different to her other books and sadly fell slightly short of the mark - I didn't feel gripped by the storyline, nor did the characters particularly work that well for me.  That's not to say I didn't enjoy the overall story though, I just wasn't hooked as much as I expected to be.

Lucy Harper is the narrator of the story, and if you like an unreliable narrator then that's good because I really wasn't sure how much of what she related was true and what was invention.  She's a successful crime writer, married to Dan - one of the least likeable spouses ever to have appeared in a novel.  He's a failed writer himself and has catapulted himself into the published world by becoming Lucy's self appointed personal assistant. He literally rides through life off the back of her success. He then crosses the line of acceptable behaviour in my mind (and that of most others I would imagine) by spending a considerable amount of her hard earned cash on a huge house not far from where Lucy lived as a child.

Not only did he not discuss the transaction or even the possibility of moving house with her, he also chose a property which he knew she had issues with. Instant grounds for divorce on all fronts for me.

We find out that when Lucy was a child her younger brother Teddy went missing. The facts surrounding his disappearance slowly come out throughout the novel and we begin to understand why Lucy has issues - including the basis for the lead character in her highly successful novels. After the unsettling house move Lucy's mental health takes a downward turn and her relationship with Dan becomes decidedly wobbly.  Then when Dan disappears Lucy becomes prime suspect in the police investigation - especially once the link is made with previous events from her childhood.

The book didn't grab me as I really didn't care what had  happened to Dan as he was such an obnoxious character - I wouldn't have blamed her for disposing of him to be honest! But what I was curious about was Teddy's disappearance and how Lucy's friend Eliza, who had literally helped turn her life around, fitted in to things. Would the truth come out about what happened to Teddy that night? How involved was Lucy that night?  

There are some interesting turns of events in this book, but it wouldn't be one I would want to re-read.

I much prefer Gilly's previous work What She Knew, which was one of my favourite reads of the last few years. 

About the Author:

Gilly Macmillan is the New York Times bestselling and Edgar-nominated author of What She Knew, The Perfect Girl and Odd Child Out. She grew up in Swindon and studied at Bristol University and The Courtauld Institute of Art in London. She has worked at The Burlington Magazine and the Hayward Gallery and has been a lecturer in photography. She now writes full-time and lives in Bristol with her family.

The Minders by John Marrs #BlogTour @johnmarrs1 #TheMinders #NetGalley @Livvii @MichaelJBooks

The Minders by John Marrs

Published by Del Ray, Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House UK

Publication Date: 23rd July 2020 (ebook) 17th September 2020 (paperback)

Genre Suspense, Thriller

Book Description:

Five strangers guard our secrets.
Only four can be trusted…

In the 21st century, information is king. But computers can be hacked and files can be broken into – so a unique government initiative has been born. Five ordinary people have been selected to become Minders – the latest weapon in thwarting cyberterrorism. Transformed by a revolutionary medical procedure, the country's most classified information has been taken offline and turned into genetic code implanted inside their heads.

Together, the five know every secret – the truth behind every government lie, conspiracy theory and cover up. In return, they’re given the chance to leave their problems behind and a blank slate to start their lives anew.

But not everyone should be trusted, especially when they each have secrets of their own they’ll do anything to protect…

My Thoughts:

First of all my thanks to Isabelle Ralphs at DelRay publishing for the amazing opportunity to read John Marrs latest novel The Minders and be part of the promotional blog tour.

Once again John Marrs has proved just why he is so popular with today's readers.  The Minders is set very slightly in the future, but not so far ahead for me to see his writing as the sci-fi or fantasy genre. The book links very cleverly with some of his previous novels - that said you don't need to have read the other books to understand the events which have gone before. There is just enough information given here to set the scene for this book and to tempt you to read the others. 

The premise of the book is that the cyber security of all nations of the world is under threat, several countries having been held to ransom for their national secrets already. The Hacking Collective are out to make money from every nation's secrets; from how many weapons each country has access to and where they are stored to names of those involved in government level cover ups which would cause international tensions, and the leaders of the world are worried. They need to come up with ways to keep their information secure. The ways they have come up with so far are nowhere near satisfactory so government scientists have devised a new plan: implanting the information in the brains of suitable hosts in exchange for the chance to start new lives, all connections to their previous lives terminated.  5 candidates are selected from the preliminary test stage and go on to have the information implanted. But this is new and uncharted territory so how do the scientists know their subjects are reliable and won't go rogue?

We follow each of the chosen candidates from their lives before the programme, understanding why each of them has opted to be part of the plan, right through to the closure of the programme. The only person whose role I couldn't quite place was the mysterious Emilia who seems completely different to the others.  Even she doesn't know who she is or her own personal history, having woken up in some kind of facility where all she is certain of is that she is not safe and needs to get as far away as possible.

The journey the author takes us on leads to mistrust virtually every single character in the book.  Who is really in charge of the programme? Is every candidate genuine or has a member of the Hacking Collective managed to infiltrate the programme in order to steal the national secrets of the UK?

I really enjoyed trying to disentangle the facts from the emotional ties which are threaded through the story.  Can you really just walk away completely from the only life you've ever known or will there be strands of your real self which you cannot shake off and will ultimately make you vulnerable? 

As with John Marrs' previous works I found the plot to be totally absorbing and credible - there must be so many things we (the general public) have absolutely no idea are happening which get squirreled away by those in power and could compromise national security if the information got into the wrong hands. I love the way the author's mind works outside the box, questioning everything we know and accept to be the norm in our every day lives, presenting new and quite frankly scary possibilities and challenges to how life could change in an instant. 

If you like to be taken out of your comfort zone and are willing to open your mind to how the dark side of society could take over the civilised world then this is definitely a read for you.  It all sounds a bit 'out there' but honestly, I don't 'do' science fiction and I love all of this author's work. It's definitely different from any other author I have ever read, but that in itself has me on tenterhooks waiting for each and every new title he publishes. If you haven't read any of his books I cannot stress strongly enough how much I recommend that you do. You are definitely missing out!

Shameless plug:  Netflix will be screening a mini-series of one of the author's previous works 'The One' (which is referred to quite often in this latest book) later this year and I cannot tell you how much I am looking forward to watching. Keep your eyes peeled, it's going to be good!

About the Author:

John Marrs is a freelance journalist based in London, England, who has spent the last 20 years interviewing celebrities from the world of television, film and music for national newspapers and magazines.

He has written for publications including The Guardian's Guide and Guardian Online; OK! Magazine; Total Film; Empire; Q; GT; The Independent; Star; Reveal; Company; Daily Star and News of the World's Sunday Magazine

How To Disappear by Gillian McAllister #HowToDisappear #NetGalley @PenguinBooks @GillianMAuthor @MichaelJBooks

How To Disappear by Gillian McAllister

Published by Penguin

Publication Date: 9th July 2020

Genre: Legal Thriller

My thanks to Livvi Thomas at Penguin for the opportunity to be part of the blog tour for this book.

All opinions and thoughts expressed here are my own and unbiased.

Book Description:

You can run, you can hide, but can you disappear for good?

Lauren's daughter Zara witnessed a terrible crime. But speaking up comes with a price, and when Zara's identity is revealed online, it puts a target on her back.

The only choice is to disappear.

To keep Zara safe, Lauren will give up everything and everyone she loves, even her husband.

There will be no goodbyes. Their pasts will be rewritten. New names, new home, new lives.

The rules are strict for a reason. They are being hunted. One mistake - a text, an Instagram like - could bring their old lives crashing into the new.

They can never assume someone isn't watching, waiting.

As Lauren will learn, disappearing is easy. Staying hidden is harder . . .

My Thoughts:

Lauren is an extrovert; bubbly, loud, full of life and is never happier than when she is sharing photos online of her latest bargain from the shops or catching up with her sister to put the world to rights.  Daughter Zara is the polar opposite: a bookish type, quiet and happy in her own company. She never felt like she fitted in with anyone really until she helped out at the local homeless charity and started chatting to the regular visitors out on the streets.  Her desire for the world to be a fairer place, for the homeless community to be supported more and have a voice pushes her out of her comfort zone and she befriends a young man named Jamie.  Then one day she is horrified to see her new friend become the victim of a vicious crime it becomes her mission to ensure she gets justice for him now he can no longer speak up for himself.  Until the day of the trial when her house of cards tumbles spectacularly to ruins, putting not only her own life but that of her whole family -and others - at risk.

The decisions Lauren, Zara and their family have to make must be the hardest any family ever have to go through.  Author Gillian McAllister handles the whole court case and the ensuing bombshells sensitively and from all points of view.  Zara is young and very naïve; she thinks the situation will be solved overnight with the evidence she gave to the police. But the reality of standing in court and putting her version of events to a judge and jury is much harder than she expected. Lauren is there to support her daughter every step of the way yet finds herself questioning whether she and her daughter are strong enough to get through this together.  Stepdad Aidan is my favourite character of the whole book. Is he right to make the choices he does? My heart broke for him as he faced the biggest challenge of his life in order to keep his own daughter and his extended family safe yet I wondered at times if he was being far too reckless in his actions. How far would any man go to put things right and have their loved ones safe again?

The research which has gone into this book must have been extremely difficult as the world of witness protection is clearly not something which the authorities are going to make public. How does it work? How much can they protect people? In a world where almost everyone has a digital footprint and with cameras everywhere you go it can't be easy to just disappear from your daily life then arrive elsewhere with a whole new identity that nobody can ever know is not real. We all have roots somewhere and it's not until reading this that I have really thought about how much of ourselves we share with other people on a day to day basis. Where do you come from? What school/college you went to? What are your interests and hobbies? Siblings, grandparents, cousins - all things we talk about with those we mix with all the time and don't give a second thought to. 

This is certainly a book which makes you think. It would make a wonderful book club read as there are moral dilemmas and decisions to discuss all the way through. Its content is serious but without being a heavy read. The emotions I went through with each of the characters were surprising. The innocence of a teenage girl just wanting to do the right thing, the heartbreak her parents had to go through, the consequences Zara's actions had even for her step-sister then on the flip side, those involved in the initial crime, their families and the effects the court case had upon them - even the feelings of the official from the witness protection scheme were represented. I found this to be a very balanced and emotional read which had a far bigger impact on me than I expected it to.

About the Author:

Gillian McAllister has been writing for as long as she can remember. She graduated with an English degree before working as a lawyer. She lives in Birmingham, where she now writes full-time. She is the Sunday Times bestselling author of Everything but the Truth, Anything You Do Say, No Further Questions and The Evidence Against You.

Just Saying by Sophie Ranald #NetGalley #JustSaying #book #review @bookouture @SophieRanald

Just Saying by Sophie Ranald

Published by Bookouture

Publication Date 3rd July 2020

Genre: Womens Fiction, Humour

Book Description:

I almost gave up on love. My ex, who called his private parts ‘Nigel’, was enough to put me off men forever. But then I met Joe.

Alice thought she’d found Mr Right. Her blue-eyed boyfriend Joe gives her butterflies, makes her bacon sandwiches when she’s hungover, and doesn’t have a nickname for any of his body parts.

She should have known it was too good to be true. Because one day, Alice and Joe bump into Zoe. According to him, Zoe’s ‘just an old friend’. But Alice saw the way they froze, and heard the strange note in Joe’s voice when he said her name.

Then, out of the blue, Zoe needs a place to live. And Joe has the bright idea of inviting her, and her fluffy ginger cat Frazzle, to stay with them.

Alice tries her hardest not to feel threatened. But the thing is, Zoe doesn’t survive off microwave meals, or go days without washing her glossy copper-coloured hair, or accidentally get mascara in her contact lenses.

Joe’s ex might be pretty much perfect, but there’s no way that Alice will let Zoe steal him. She’s on a mission to prove that three (four, if you count the cat) is definitely a crowd…

My Thoughts:

Alice and Joe are trainee lawyers at the same large solicitors firm.  Alice is all set up with a permanent post once her training finishes, Joe is hoping he too will be offered a fulltime position soon. They live together in a small but comfortable flat and Alice is at the point of dreaming that in a couple of years time there will be a wedding, a mortgage for a bigger place and all the things which come with being content in a relationship. Life is good... until it isn't any more.

Within 24 hours Alice's dream world has come off the rails and the train is running away in a totally different direction. The job has vanished along with her boss who has been suspended under a cloud of dodgy allegations, and suddenly they have a house guest (or two if you count Frazzle the cat) who just happens to be Joe's stunner of an ex girlfriend who is dropping not-so-subtle hints that she is still interested in him. Some people might be of the opinion that Alice should have handled the house guest situation in a more forthright manner, however I thought the way it panned out was perfectly representative of Alice's personality. Not one to make a fuss, perhaps a bit head-in-the-sand, it was classic Alice as we find out later in the book that she's not a person to confront any situation head on. We later find out that Alice is actually a very strong person though who has been carrying a huge secret all the time she has been with Joe - she hasn't even told him. Without knowing this secret, Alice's decision to not pursue her dream job does seem rather random but all becomes clear once her secret is out.

I enjoyed watching the interaction between the couple and their house guest - I felt very much like a fly on the wall - with Alice and Joe drifting apart each with their own work commitments and Zoe buzzing around the periphery, constantly there preventing the couple from having any time on their own.  

While Alice's personal life is starting to look as doubtful as her legal career, we meet a fantastic selection of other characters: her best friend Heather who won't change her menu choice from Pret in case she's disappointed with an alternative option, landlady Shirley who is dreaming of retirement in Spain with "chef" Juan, and a plethora of pub regulars who are as varied as the stains on the sticky pub carpet. They all come with their own back stories which will either make you smile or tug at your heart strings.

This book had me keen to pick it back up as often as was possible (in between real life getting in the way) and I was eager to find out whether Alice's job and relationship would survive.  Had she made the right choices? With the delectable Archie selling craft ales and gin next door too, maybe it wasn't just Joe whose head could be turned. A fun page turner of a novel I loved the characters Sophie Ranald has created here, and have downloaded a nice selection of her previous work for future reading too.

My thanks to the publisher, Bookouture, for the opportunity to read this ahead of publication in return for my thoughts.

About the Author:

Sophie Ranald is the youngest of five sisters. She was born in Zimbabwe and lived in South Africa until an acute case of itchy feet brought her to London in her mid-20s. As an editor for a customer publishing agency, Sophie developed her fiction-writing skills describing holidays to places she'd never visited. In 2011, she decided to disregard all the good advice given to aspiring novelists and attempt to write full-time. After one false start, It Would Be Wrong to Steal My Sister's Boyfriend (Wouldn't It?) seemed to write itself. Four more novels and a box set followed, and Sorry Not Sorry was released in February 2019. Sophie also writes for magazines and online about food, fashion, finance and running. She lives in south-east London with her amazing partner Hopi and two adorable cats.