Jaffareadstoo is thrilled to host today's stop on In The Wake Blog Tour
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| Urbane Publications 28 June 2018 My thanks to the publishers and to Love Books Group for my copy of this book and the invitation to be part of the blog tour. |
What's the book about ...
When a body is found floating in
London's Royal Albert Dock, successful public relations expert Kay Christie is
sent to quiet the media, but things get complicated when it emerges that she
knew the victim.
As events spiral out of control,
Kay discovers that those close to her may be harbouring another secret - the
story of a missing girl. Can Kay discover the truth before her life unravels and
she risks losing everything?
In the Wake questions whether we
can ever truly leave our pasts behind and explores the lengths that we will go
to protect the people that we love.
Here's what I thought about it...
In The Wake begins with an intriguing prologue which starts in a busy London hospital on Christmas Day 2017 and having worked in many hospitals on Christmas Day this opener felt really authentic. The story then moves to the discovery of a body in London's Albert Dock which for public relations expert, Kay Christie, is an absolute nightmare, especially as one of her important clients has an big event about to take place at the Dock and her clients aren't happy about the police intrusion.
What then follows is a gripping psychological thriller which looks at the world of public relations from an insiders perspective and which shows the fickle nature of keeping one step ahead of the promotional game. However, as the police investigative side of the story starts to gain momentum so Kay Christie's life starts to become more and more complicated. That Kay is a bit of a maverick is obvious from the start, she's feisty, opinionated, drinks too much and generally misbehaves and yet, I found that I really liked her and such is the strength of her personality that she really helps to carry the story along. The other characters, particularly, Kay's friend, Belinda, who typical of a newspaper reporter, has contacts everywhere, gives a fascinating insight into the tricks that newspapers get up in search of a good story. And whilst, Julia Rothman, Kay's love interest is only, to some extent, a peripheral character, I really enjoyed reading of the intricacies of their complicated relationship.
The author writes well and keeps the action in the story both tense and relevant. In Her Wake feels like a very modern story and I could easily see it translate well to a television drama. The mystery at the heart of the story is quite gripping, especially in the latter third of the book when there are several twists I didn't see coming.
In Her Wake is a cleverly controlled psychological thriller and a commendable debut novel. I look forward to reading more from this talented author.
Helen Trevorrow is a graduate of the 2016 Faber Academy creative writing programme. She studied at Leeds University and has worked in marketing and public relations in London. She is a specialist food and drink PR. Helen's debut novel IN THE WAKE is a feminist crime thriller about family, unrealised trauma and alcoholism. Helen has ghost-written many articles for newspapers, magazines and websites. She lives in Brighton, Sussex.
Twitter @helentrevorrow #InTheWake
@UrbaneBooks
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