Review - Tideline by Penny Hancock

My Review 4****

Sonia lives in a beautiful house on the banks of the river Thames, yet is dissatisfied with her life and haunted by memories of her dysfunctional childhood spent on the river. When fifteen year old Jez visits the River House to borrow some music, Sonia invites him into her home, and then refuses to let him leave. At first Sonia’s intentions appear altruistic, but her behaviour becomes increasingly erratic, and she becomes deeper and deeper immersed in fantasy. What then follows is a chilling psychological suspense story as Sonia becomes submerged in her feelings for the boy. There is no doubt that Sonia has difficulty in separating fantasy from reality, she’s not a likeable character, but the skilful nature of the narrative weaves a magical thread and pulls you into a story that takes you to the very edge of human despair.

Penny Hancock’s undeniable skill at characterisation and her subtle attention to detail captures the very essence of danger. Beautifully descriptive, and often unpleasantly menacing, Tideline is a story about the disintegration of decent values, and the abandonment of moral belief.



Tideline is one of Richard and Judy's Summer reads 2012