I’m so grateful to the team at Headline for an advanced reader copy of Keep Me Safe by Daniela Sacerdoti in return for an honest review. Keep Me Safe is the first in a new series of books set on Seal Island.

Keep Me Safe will be published by Headline Review on 6th April 2017 and is available for pre-order by following the publisher links here.

Keep Me Safe

When Anna’s partner walks away from their relationship, she is shattered. But it is her little girl Ava who takes it hardest of all. The six year old falls silent for three days. When she does speak, her words are troubling. Ava wants to go home. To a place called Seal. To her other mother.

Anna knows to unravel the mystery she must find Seal and take Ava there. She hopes this tiny island will unlock her daughter’s memories. But could it also offer a new life… and unexpected love… for Anna too?

My Review of Keep Me Safe

When Toby tells his six year old daughter Ava he’s leaving she goes in to shock and doesn’t speak. Three days later she speaks again, asking for her other mother – not Anna, the woman who gave birth to her.

Ooh. I really enjoyed Keep Me Safe. Although I’m not usually keen on multiple first person perspectives I thought the different voices in Keep Me Safe were very well defined and distinct so that I could keep the individuals perfectly clear in my mind. I found the characters realistic and believable and rather wish there was a Sorren in my life too!

I loved the premise for the narrative and found the plotting exciting and captivating. When I wasn’t reading Keep Me Safe I was thinking about it. I was frustrated by Anna’s reluctance to confide in others and kept wanting to read on to see what might happen next and whether she would reveal quite what Ava was going through. As well as enjoying the mystery behind Ava’s words, Keep Me Safe also made me consider memory and human connection very deeply and wonder if the brain can accommodate far more than we yet understand.

The themes of second sight, the supernatural, nature, family, loyalty and love were woven together in a spell-binding way that made me reluctant to tear myself away so that I’m thrilled to find this is the first in a new series. I definitely want to read more and part of the reason for this is Seal itself. Daniela Sacerdoti has such an exquisite touch when it comes to creating settings that I could picture Seal perfectly. The capricious weather, the scent of salt on the air, the effect of moonlight were all so well described I felt as if I was on Seal too.

If you’re looking for a story that will transport you to another place, for characters who will captivate you and you’ll care about and a narrative that is exciting and emotional Keep Me Safe is exactly what you’re after. I highly recommend it.

About Daniela Sacerdoti

Daniela Sacerdoti writes beautiful, haunting and bestselling fiction for adults (the Glen Avich series), young adults (the Sarah Midnight trilogy) and children. Over one million copies of her novels have been sold in eBook, her debut novel Watch Over Me was the 8th bestselling Kindle book of all time in 2015 and she was also ranked as the 11th top-selling Kindle author. Her novels have been translated in twelve languages. Born and raised in Italy, Daniela studied Classics, then lived in Scotland for fourteen years, where she married and taught in a primary school. She has also written for the BBC. Daniela, her husband and their two sons make their home in a tiny village in the Italian Alps.

You can follow Daniela on Twitter, visit her website