A fun day out for me and the kids with my parents to Butser Ancient Farm. Zach missed out on a school trip there earlier in the year. I think the kids’ favourite bit was feeding the goats (and wanting to take one home…)
Happy anniversary to me and Chris! Last weekend was our 6th wedding anniversary and this weekend was 10 years since our first date. We returned to the restaurant where we met 🙂
In the 1970s a group of women start a female only community. Each woman gives up the external world but must bring a useful skill. In the present day, the women’s community is suspected to have been involved with a murder when one of their former members is killed…
33 Women is a murder mystery, psychological and crime thriller centred around a community in Arundel, UK.
Robyn left the 33 women to rekindle her relationship with her husband. But instead, she is found murdered. The displaying of the body is reminiscent of the death of another woman who left the commune. Celine and Pip were never satisfied with the police’s handling of their sister’s murder and now think that her killer has struck again. The sisters are supported by Una, a family friend who is a retired detective.
It took me a while to get into this book as it starts by showing different characters and different timelines. By a quarter of the way through it had settled down and focussed on the present day from the perspectives of Celine and Bramble. Bramble’s narrative is more personal and emotional as it is written in the first person. I think Celine’s narrative is in the third person to detach from and soften the emotion she feels about her mother and sisters.
The secretive community is an interesting angle and provides powerful messages about making assumptions, the strength of female sisterhood and fear of the unknown. The juxtaposition of Celine and Pip as actual sisters contrasted with the sisterhood at the commune, and also the theme of motherhood was important: Celine and Pip were rejected by their mother, Una acts as a substitute mother to them, Robyn was searching for her mother, the commune sisters give up their children when they join.
I enjoyed the mystery about Robyn’s murder and how this links to Vanessa’s death. There are some big twists and I guessed the massive one a couple of pages before the big reveal.
33 Women is an intriguing mystery with strong emotions.
Book blurb:
When sisters Celine and Pip get a call telling them their reclusive mother has died, the women are reunited at her riverside home in Arundel to pick up the pieces. But someone is missing – their middle sister, Vanessa, brutally murdered years ago and the victim of an unsolved case. As the sisters confront ghosts from the past, the discovery of another body in similar circumstances throws new light on Vanessa’s death. Could there be more to her case than the police first thought? And what do the mysterious residents of Two Cross Farm, the neighbouring women’s commune, have to do with it? What secrets are lurking behind their locked gates? And what is the significance of the number 33?
Jules feels old and past it. Her husband shows no interest in her and her children are ready to fly the nest. She is particularly worried about her daughter Leah who is emotionally vulnerable after a bad break up. Leah is on the look out for a new boyfriend…
My Daughter’s Revenge is a family drama and psychological thriller set in the UK.
Jules joins an app to get some positive interactions as she feels low and unloved. A few flirty comments to bolster her ego is all she wants but she feels guilty that she can’t reach her husband emotionally. Leah is also looking for validation from a man but her latest brief relationship with Dylan is destroyed when he discovers she has lied about her age.
The book is written from the first person perspectives of both Jules and Leah. Both characters are vivdly depicted and their voices are unique and distinct from each other. Jules is sad as she feels her love is not reciprocated by her husband. Leah’s voice is very immature and selfish. She is slightly reckless and her behaviour becomes obsessive when Dylan rejects her.
As a woman in my 40s, I could identify with Jules’ preoccupation with negative comparisons and the feeling of lost youth. Meanwhile as a mother of a daughter, it felt very powerful to be reminded of the teenage years and the danger of hormones going haywire (although I also think Leah has significant mental health needs) although I could understand Leah’s desire for independence.
Both women’s characters inspire pity because they are so unhappy. Initially I also felt really sorry for Dylan. Leah lied to him and then becomes obsessed, putting his job in danger. My sympathy waned at the way he behaves later in the book. There is a lot of build up in the book which slows the pace but allows us to fully understand Jules and Leah. There were twists until the very last page.
My Daughter’s Revenge is an emotionally charged psychological thriller with strong narration.
Book blurb: My Daughter’s Revenge by Natali Simmonds
My first mistake was raising my daughter to be just like me…
His death is reported on the morning news. The man my daughter’s been dating. Dead. Gone…
I blink slowly – once, twice, three times. The hair on the back of my neck rises as I grip my coffee harder. My breath comes in short bursts.
I didn’t even know he existed until recently. Leah doesn’t tell me anything anymore. But I found the letters she hid. I know she fell head over heels for him. That he broke her heart.
And that he’s dead now.
I wish more than anything that the news is only shocking because of who it is, and what’s happened to him.
But I know my daughter too well for that.
My first mistake was raising my daughter to be just like me.
My second mistake might be what I do to protect her…
An absolutely gripping suspense thriller that will have your heart pounding. Perfect for fans of addictive page-turners like The Housemaid, The Family Across the Street and The Family Upstairs.
Natali Simmonds began her career in glossy magazines, then went on to manage marketing campaigns for big brands. She’s now a creative brand consultant, freelance writer, and fiction author, writing gritty and unflinching stories full of complex women and page-turning suspense (and sometimes a little magic).
Simmonds’ dark, feminist thriller debut, Good Girls Die Last, has been optioned for a television series by STV. As N J Simmonds, Natali penned the fantasy trilogy The Path Keeper and Son of Secrets, and in 2022 was shortlisted for the RNA Fantasy Award for the last book in the series, Children of Shadows. She’s one half of paranormal romance author duo, Caedis Knight, and has also written for manga.
When she’s not writing or consulting, she’s a columnist for Kings College London’s ‘Inspire The Mind’ magazine, and lectures for Raindance Film School. Originally from London, Natali now divides her time between Spain, the UK, and the Netherlands where she can be found drawing, reading in her hammock, or complaining about cycling in the rain.
Our fourth day of our Norfolk holiday began with a brief visit to English Heritage site Weeting Castle.
Our main destination was Oxburgh Hall which was an unexpected delight. We had a newspaper voucher for free family entry to a National Trust property.
Inide the house I discovered that Oxburgh used to be the home of Henry Bedingfeld who was Elizabeth I’s jailor at the Tower of London when she was imprisoned there during the reign of her sister. He was an ardent Catholic but Elizabeth respected him for showing her compassion in her darkest hours.
Other historical elements that I found fascinating were the painting of the mysterious Countess whose identity is unknown but she was found dead in the moat in the late 1500s. There were also artefacts belonging to Mary Queen of Scots and many beautiful portraits.
Oxburgh recently featured on the BBC after a picture was discovered to be an incredibly rare mezzotint.
There were some activities dotted around the property. Our favourite was badminton and this brought back lovely memories of my childhood (in fact, I have now bought some racquets so we can play at home, yay!)
It was rather hot so after a wander in the woods we headed back to the cool shade of our holiday home for the rest of the day.
Ana has transferred to a new police team. Their first case is a vigilante taking on a group of racist teenagers. Then a troubled young woman dies and the vigilante is suspected of murder but Ana doesn’t think it fits his other behaviour…
The Girl in the Woods is described as a psychological thriller but also has strong police procedural/crime thriller elements.
A group of teenage boys is spoiling the tranquility of the quiet Oxfordshire village. One man is prepared to stand up to them but hides behind a masked persona known as The Vigilante. Then a troubled teenaged girl (related to one of the racist boys) is attacked and killed in the woods and The Vigilante is accused so the police hunt ramps up.
Ana is keen to prove herself in the new team but the police have a variety of personal and professional issues. Beth has a new superior officer and the pair have a ‘past’. The mentions of their backstory refer to events in The Lies She Told but there are no spoilers about the case. Elements of their personal lives which featured in the first book are developed in this one but it would still work perfectly well as a stand alone book.
Most of the book is written in the present day to show current events. There are also chapters set 7 years in the past, allowing us to guess at the link between the two timelines. Both timelines involve girls and young women being abused and raped which is very powerful and emotive but I felt it was handled sensitively. There is also racist language and violence featured prominently in the book and I thought this was also dealt with to show the unpleasantness and unacceptability of this behaviour.
The plot and writing style were wonderfully engaging. At first, I did find myself a little overwhelmed with the different timelines and wealth of characters. However, by the end I was utterly hooked and making connections between the plot threads.
The Girl in the Woods is an engaging and emotionally charged novel.
Book blurb:
Ana, who lives in a small Oxfordshire village, came from Liverpool carrying a secret. Her life is now on the straight and narrow, though, and she has a blossoming career as a policewoman.
But when a vigilante starts to practice their own kind of justice on her watch, and then a body is discovered in the woods, Ana’s contentment is shattered as the past comes flooding back to haunt her.
Soon Ana must make a choice—turn her back on the girl she used to be . . . or embrace the bitterness and rage she has buried for so long.
