This month’s U3A book group choice was Into the Water by Paula Hawkins and I’m very pleased to share my review today as I simply didn’t get time last week when we had our meeting.

Into the Water was published by Penguin way back in 2017 and is available for purchase through the links here.

Into the Water

The addictive new psychological thriller from the author of The Girl on the Train, the runaway Sunday Times No. 1 bestseller and global phenomenon.

In the last days before her death, Nel called her sister. Jules didn’t pick up the phone, ignoring her plea for help.

Now Nel is dead. They say she jumped. And Jules has been dragged back to the one place she hoped she had escaped for good, to care for the teenage girl her sister left behind.

But Jules is afraid. So afraid. Of her long-buried memories, of the old Mill House, of knowing that Nel would never have jumped.

And most of all she’s afraid of the water, and the place they call the Drowning Pool . . .

With the same propulsive writing and acute understanding of human instincts that captivated millions of readers around the world in her explosive debut thriller, The Girl on the Train, Paula Hawkins delivers an urgent, satisfying read that hinges on the stories we tell about our pasts and their power to destroy the lives we live now.

My Review of Into the Water

Nel has drowned. 

Into the Water is an absolute maelstrom of a book. Reading it is akin to being in an eddying whirlpool where you hardly know which way is up. There’s a primeval sense of threat, of evil and deception running through the pages so that every character feels like an unreliable narrator and truth is difficult to grasp. Having seen the character list at the start of the book I was filled with dismay because I feared I’d be unable to keep tabs on who was whom. This didn’t happen. They all felt distinct and equally unlikeable, untrustworthy and fascinating. 

The plot is as sinuous and fast flowing as any river and I think what works so effectively in Into the Water is the sense of human powerlessness in the face of water’s power and our obsession with its ability to harm and heal. Paula Hawkins weaves together the iterative image of water; fluid truth, release and death incredibly skilfully. If the reader substitutes the word ‘truth’ for ‘water’, the complex cleverness of the book becomes even more apparent.

Although the fast paced plot revolves around the motif of water and events at the Drowning Pool over several centuries, spiced by an undercurrent of the supernatural through Nickie, it is human relationships, particularly that between Jules and Nel, that make Into the Water such a gripping read. Our assumptions about the lives of others, our mis-interpretation of their words and actions, our overlaying of societal norms and expectations are just some of the themes Paula Hawkins explores. There are dark and disturbing aspects that add to the sense of menace highly effectively. I thought the way Nel is at the heart of the action even though she is dead was deftly handled too. 

I found Into the Water an unpleasantly mesmerising and gripping read. I think it will probably divide readers but as I’m about the only person who has neither read Paula Hawkins’ The Girl on the Train nor seen the film, I came to Into the Water with no expectations and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

About Paula Hawkins

Paula Hawkins worked as a journalist for fifteen years before writing fiction. Born and brought up in Zimbabwe, Paula moved to London in 1989 and has lived there ever since. Her first thriller, The Girl on the Train, has been a global phenomenon, selling 23 million copies worldwide. Published in over forty languages, it has been a No.1 bestseller around the world and was a No.1 box office hit film starring Emily Blunt.

Into the Water, her second stand-alone thriller, was also a global No.1 bestseller, spending twenty weeks in the Sunday Times hardback fiction Top 10 bestseller list, and six weeks at No.1.

For further information, visit Paula’s website or find her on Instagram.

It’s a little over a year since I stayed in with P N Johnson to hear all about his thriller Killer in the Crowd in a post you’ll find here. Today, as his latest thriller, Run to the Blue is released, Phil has kindly allowed me to share an extract with Linda’s Book Bag readers.

Run to the Blue is published by Burning Chair today, 14th April 2023 and is available for purchase through the links here.

Run to the Blue

Run to the Blue is a fast moving thriller set in London, Suffolk and the beautiful Greek Islands. There are secrets and lies, killers and spies!

….Breaking News!… TV reporter Tess Anderson is on the run – her husband’s affair with a Government Ministerhas been exposed and a London crime boss has ordered her death. She was last seen in the Greek islands with a mysterious American yachtsman….more follows….

An Extract from Run to the Blue

I was dreaming of him and those precious hours we’d spent together in Two Rock Bay. How we swam from the boat in the early summer sun, the glistening water forming droplets on wet, naked skin. The astounding revelation of who he really was…

Then I opened my eyes and came back to reality. As I crawled into consciousness, I could make out the now familiar sound of Greek being spoken outside the room. In amongst the rapid-fire words, I picked out my own name: Tess Anderson. The constant blip from the monitor by the bed became uncomfortably loud as I fought the pain and eased myself up on the pillows. Snatches of what had happened were seeping back. I looked out of the window, the only relief from the stark white walls of the hospital room, to see the beckoning blue sky and sense the rising heat of the Corfu sun.

Slowly, I eased myself up a little further. Every part of me seemed to hurt. I caught a glimpse of a stranger in the mirror above the sink: was that really me? There was dried blood on my cropped, newly blonde hair. When I raked my fingers through it, I saw my nails were broken, my wrists were bruised. I looked down at my legs, scarred by raised, red cuts. I clasped my hands together, wishing I was holding his.

I needed answers. I manoeuvred myself out of bed as carefully as I could and sat down on the side of it, trying to make sense of those last few days… Who were my betrayers and who were my friends? What had really happened last night? Had he died too? Whatever the answers, I knew it wasn’t over yet. I was still in danger.

There was a knock on the door. A doctor walked in, accompanied by a policewoman. Grave-faced, they stared at me as I waited, in silence, for them to tell me the news I was desperate to hear.

****

No! You can’t just leave us dangling like that Phil. I now need to know exactly what happens…

About PN Johnson

As a TV Newsreader, Reporter and Producer for both BBC East and ITV Anglia, Phil Johnson covered everything from tracking down criminals in Spain and going on high-octane police chases, to interviewing pop stars, politicians and celebrities.

Phil was also the face and voice of Crimestoppers in the eastern region for many years and created the successful TV series: “999 Frontline”.

Now living near Norwich, England, Phil loves music, travelling, walking, and sailing, and bringing exciting new characters with amazing stories to the page.

For further information, follow Phil on Twitter @PhilJohnson01. You can also find Phil on Facebook and Instagram.

My enormous thanks to Sophie Ransom for inviting me to participate in the blog tour for No Place To Hide by JS Monroe and for sending me a copy of the book in return for an honest review. I’m delighted to share that review today.

Published by Head of Zeus today, 13th April 2023, No Place to Hide is available for purchase in all the usual places including here.

No Place to Hide

You might be paranoid, but that doesn’t mean they’re not watching you.

Adam lives a picture-perfect life: happy marriage, two young children, and a flourishing career as a doctor. But Adam also lives with a secret. Hospital CCTV, strangers’ mobile phones, city traffic cameras – he is convinced that they are all watching him, recording his every move. All because of something terrible that happened at a drunken party when he was a medical student.

Only two other people knew what happened that night. Two people he’s long left behind. Until one of them, Clio – Adam’s great unrequited love – turns up on his doorstep, and reignites a sinister pact twenty-four years in the making…

No Place to Hide is a spellbinding tale of psychological suspense, weaving together the dark web, murder, and blackmail…

My Review of No Place to Hide

Adam’s life is in free fall. 

I absolutely loved No Place to Hide because it’s effective, alarming and gripping as a result of the fast paced chapters, the mix of first and third person with Adam at the centre, and the brilliant motif of Marlowe’s Dr Faustus woven so intelligently throughout. I thought naming Adam after the first man was a stroke of genius too because it adds to the sensation of temptation, threat and danger.

There’s a creepy, almost distasteful atmosphere that permeates the narrative set in 1998 so effectively that the reader feels almost as tainted by it as those who come into contact with Louis seem contaminated. I thought this effect was quite brilliant. Once the two time scales intertwine then the same effect occurs in Adam’s present too, making for an affecting and disturbing story. 

The characters are so well drawn. Adam shows how one wrong decision or careless moment can shape a whole life – or indeed a whole death and illustrates how easily we can be manipulated. Clio is enigmatic with a potent mix of sexual power and vulnerability so that the reader is as unsure of her integrity as Adam is, and Louis is both Faustian and Shakespearean in his malevolence, his manipulation of others and his hubris. These people become a heady cocktail of danger and threat.

I loved the exploration of the Big Brother concept. I don’t want to spoil the story for others, but J.S. Monroe will have you looking carefully at the world around you and wondering just who is watching you. Indeed, I think a decade ago I would have found this element almost science fiction, but now the reality and potential of this deftly plotted and exciting novel is all too possible, making it scary and believable. 

Other themes within the story are perfectly balanced. There’s the mundane nature of Adam’s life as he and Tania navigate marriage with two small and demanding children, pitched against darker themes of mental health, the media, trust and morality. Class, profession and education all play their part too so that No Place to Hide appeals broadly and relevantly. 

I thought No Place to Hide was superb. It held me captivated throughout and I cannot recommend it highly enough. It’s an excellent read.

About JS Monroe

JS Monroe, is the author of five psychological thrillers, including the international bestseller, Find Me. Under his own name, he has written five spy novels, one of which, Dead Spy Running, was optioned by Warner Bros. He is currently the Royal Literary Fund Writing Fellow at Mansfield College, Oxford.

After more than 25 years in journalism, including two stints as Weekend editor of the Telegraph, and working as a foreign correspondent in New Delhi, Jon became full-time author in 2015.

Jon lives in Wiltshire with his wife, Hilary Stock, a fine art photographer, and is on the committee of Marlborough LitFest.

For more information, visit J.S. Monroe’s website, follow him on Twitter @JSThrillers or find him on Instagram and Facebook.

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What a pleasure to be reviewing The Love Algorithm by Claudia Carroll for My Weekly online today. I’ve long been meaning to read Claudia Carroll’s writing and this gave me the perfect opportunity.

If you pick up a copy of this week’s My Weekly magazine you’ll also find a short story, The Unexpected Date, written by Claudia.

Published by Bonnier imprint Zaffre in paperback on 30th March 2023, The Love Algorithm is available for purchase here.

The Love Algorithm

True love is only just a swipe away? Right?

Iris lives by numbers. The only thing missing from her perfectly calibrated life is a partner – and not for lack of trying. After decades of disappointment, Iris practically has a PhD in online dating. But something still eludes her: that unquantifiable spark.

Kim is too busy being the life of the party to look for love. Her terrible dates make great stories for her friends and co-workers, as long as she’s not caught by her tyrannical boss, Iris.

Connie, Kim’s recently widowed mum, is single for the first time since the 1970s. The dating game has changed a lot since her day . . .

Sick of being let down, Iris takes matters into her own hands – using her analytical skills to create the first real formula for love. With Kim and Connie on board, they launch Analyzed, a dating app like no other.

As Analyzed takes the world by storm, are the three women in over their heads? Is love really just a numbers game?

My Review of The Love Algorithm

My full review of The Love Algorithm can be found on the My Weekly website here.

However, I can say that The Love Algorithm is entertaining, witty and has lashings of sassy humour in a narrative I really enjoyed.

Do visit My Weekly to read more of my review here.

About Claudia Carroll

Claudia was born in Dublin, where she still lives and writes full-time. The only job she reckons, where you can stay in your manky track suit all day, look out the window and still get paid. However, even on the bad days when she honestly feels like flinging the computer up against a wall, she still considers this by a mile The Best Job Ever.

Claudia is the proud author of bestselling novels, including Meet Me in Manhattan, Love Me or Leave Me, Me and You, Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow and Personally, I Blame My Fairy Godmother.

For further information, follow Claudia on Twitter @carrollclaudia, Facebook, and Instagram.

Cesca Major’s The Silent Hours was one of the first books I ever reviewed on Linda’s Book Bag (here) and I’ve loved her writing ever since – in all her pen names. It’s far too long since I featured Cesca on the blog so I was thrilled to be invited to participate in the blog tour for her latest book Maybe Next Time. My huge thanks to Anne Cater of Random Things Tours for inviting me to take part. I’m delighted to share my review today.

Maybe Next Time was published by Harper Collins on 30th March 2023 and is available for purchase through the links here.

Maybe Next Time

Even the greatest love stories end. But what if this one didn’t have to?

Emma is having the worst day of her life. Frustrating. Chaotic. And the only person who could make it better is gone by the
end of the day.

Yet even worse than all of that: Emma keeps waking up to the same day, over and over again.

But what if this is a sign things could be different? Can Emma change the heartbreaking end to this love story?

My Review of Maybe Next Time

It’s Monday for Emma – again!

Maybe Next Time is an astonishing novel. At the start I wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy it, as it took me a while to realise how brilliantly it had been constructed. Once I’d settled into the rhythm of the narrative and had been dealt the first huge emotional blow I understood what a special book this is. 

I absolutely loathed Emma for the early part of the story. I wanted to climb into the pages of Maybe Next Time and shake her until her teeth rattled. Why? Because Cesca Major made her completely convincing, totally relatable and far too close to home for comfort! Emma has a husband and children and yet allows work and commitments to seep so far into her psyche that she loses sight of what is important in life. Hers is a lifestyle many, many readers will understand and relate to so uncomfortably and it’s this aspect of the story that makes it almost unbearably emotional. With one skilful moment in the narrative Cesca Major turned me from loathing Emma to wanting the very best for her. Indeed, I loved the characterisation because I found my assumptions about both Emma and Dan were challenged and changed as their personalities and lives were gradually revealed. There’s a kaleidoscopic shifting sand of understanding that somehow makes the reader as much a character as any of the others in the book because they change too as they read. This really is an affecting narrative.

The plot is so cleverly structured, with certain repetitions that emulate to perfection what Emma is experiencing. With Maybe Next Time billed as a kind of Groundhog Day, I thought it was so much more. Whilst Emma relives the same day continuously, the exploration of marriage, family, grief, friendship, work life balance and the need to listen to others with true focus, all combine to make this a textured, heart-wrenching story that gets under the skin of the reader and leaves them reeling. There’s also a fascinating insight into the world of publishing and I loved the nod Cesca Major’s other pen names!

Whether or not Maybe Next Time appeals to another reader as much as it did to me (because I absolutely loved it), there is no doubting that it will change their lives. This is a book that certainly moves and entertains, but equally it illustrates the fragility of life and how important it is to engage fully with those we love and to be the best version of ourselves we possibly can. Cesca Major has created a world that is scarily possible for any one of us to experience at any time. She has also illustrated what it means to have deep and abiding love for someone else.

Maybe Next Time breaks your heart but mends it too and it’s a shining example of a story written by someone who understands humanity and displays compassion and love with absolute perfection. I adored it.

About Cesca Major

Cesca Major is a novelist and screenwriter. She runs writing retreats and coaching throughout the year, is a mentor for Black Girl Writers and has taught creative writing for Jericho Writers and Henley School of Art. She blogs and vlogs about the writing process on her social channels.
Cesca has written under pseudonyms in other genres and has been nominated for both the RNA’s Romantic Comedy Award and the
CWA Gold Dagger Award.
She lives in Berkshire with her husband, son and twin girls.

Billed by The Times as ‘… a talent to watch’ you can find out more about Cesca by visiting her website, finding her on Facebook or following her on Instagram and Twitter @CescaMajor.

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