Title: In Her Shadow
Author: Mark Edwards
Pages: 358 pages
Published: October 4th 2018 by Thomas & Mercer
Source: NetGalley
GoodReads Description: "Isabel’s life seemed perfect. Successful business, beautiful house, adoring husband. And then she was dead.
For four years Jessica has never doubted that her sister Isabel’s death was an accident. But when Jessica’s young daughter seems to know long-forgotten details about her aunt’s past, Jessica can’t shake the feeling that there’s a more sinister truth behind the tragedy.
As Jessica unearths disturbing revelations about her sister, and about the people she loved and trusted most, it becomes clear Isabel’s life was less than perfect and that Jessica’s might also be at risk.
Did someone murder Isabel? Are they now after Jessica and her family? The key seems to lie in the hands of a child. Can Isabel reveal the truth from beyond the grave, or is the answer closer to home?
In Her Shadow is a gripping tale of family secrets, lies and obsession from the two million copy bestselling author Mark Edwards."
MY REVIEW:
My thoughts: British. Creepy. Whodunnit. Feminist themes.
What was it exactly that made this book feel so very British? I have no clue! Maybe just words like "flat" instead of apartment? But either way it felt British and I love a British book. Like it easily adds one star just for the fact that it is written by a British author.
And the author? The author is a man. And over and over I kept thinking, he totally gets women. I thought he wrote female characters really well! He was writing about some things like a mother feeling like she's a bad mother all the time (even if she's not), like the relationship between sisters, infidelity, sexual assault and I just felt like he hit the nail on the head.
This book will definitely will give you the creeps in some parts. Like the ghostly creeps because it is kind of a ghost story... Kind of. I'm not always a fan of the paranormal in books (which is a ridiculous thing to say since I literally read and re-read Stephen King's books, but Stephen King is just on a whole other level amiright? Like no matter what weird crap he pulls in his novel I will defend it and simultaneously cringe as I recommend my mother read a book about rats becoming possessed by the corpse they ate....) but I felt like the entire time in this book the main character was trying to talk herself out of believing in ghosts - and into believing in ghosts - and it was a very relatable reaction.
Last, I didn't know who did it until the end of the book - which basically is the mark of a whodunnit done well.
In the end, I really, really liked this book! I really wasn't sure going in - because of the ghost story thing - but I really enjoyed it! But really, how many times can I say 'really' before it really starts to get really annoying? Or before it really starts to sound like a made-up word? About 8.
MY RATING:
Entertainment Value: 4.5
Characters: 5
Voice: 5 (I mean he is British)
Plot: 4
Overall: 4.75 (I know the math on that isn't right but that's why I'm on Goodreads and not Goodmath - we can't be good at everything).
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
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