Author: bookafterbook

Publication: 10th June 2021 – HarperCollins

TWO PEOPLE
 
Simon Sparks is the man you know from behind the counter at the local Prince Burger (‘hold the gherkin!’), fry shovelling, shelf stacking, hiding away from the world. And Jodie Brook is the single mum you see crossing the street with her son Zak – always chasing a dream she can’t reach.
 
ONE LIFE
 
What if life could be so much more? When Simon and Jodie’s worlds collide, it upends everything they know. But in chaos comes opportunity. And for every person who’s ever doubted them, they find someone who’ll finally believe…
 
ONE ORDINARY DAY AT A TIME
 
From the award-winning author, Sarah J. Harris, comes a warm, uplifting story about ordinary people, extraordinary tomorrows, and all the ways that life can surprise us…

AMAZON

WATERSTONES

**********

One Ordinary Day At A Time is the beautiful and memorable new novel by Sarah J. Harris. I really enjoyed it and I read it in two days. At times, it is fun, at times emotional and heart-breaking, and there is also a bit of suspense that kept me on edge. What I loved most about this incredible story is the two – and a half – protagonists: Simon, Jodie, and her seven-year-old son Zak.

I loved the friendship between Simon and Jodie. They couldn’t be more different and yet, very similar. Simon is genius. At work, his colleagues call him “Prof”, his IQ is higher than Einstein and Stephen Hawkins, he went to Cambridge when he was 15 years old, his social skills often offend people, and he loves math, pub quizzes, and his goal in life is to solve the Riemann Hypothesis, but his day-job it to make fries at Prince Burger. Here he meets Jodie. A single young mother with a seven-year-old son, Jodie needs the job at Prince Burger to support her and her son Zak, but she dreams to get into Cambridge to study English Literature and assure her son a better life. Jodie asks Simon to tutor her for the entrance exam at Cambridge, while she will help him with his social skill and slowly but steady they form a beautiful friendship, but they keep from each other secrets and a troubled and difficult childhood. Simon’s childhood was spent with his nose into a book under the close and hard scrutiny of his father and the only person who showed him love was his mother. Jodie was raised in the foster system, going from home to home, neglected by everyone except Lizzie, the librarian who introduced her to literature and Charles Dickens.

One Ordinary Day At A Time is an incredible story and I am still thinking about it days later after finishing reading it. The characters are authentic and relatable. I felt for them, for their dreams, their hopes, their regrets, their guilt, and I rooted for them to have their happy ending. The story is brilliantly-written and it captured me from the very beginning. I couldn’t recommend it more!

A huge thank you to HarperCollins and NetGalley for providing me with a proof of the novel.

Publication: 24th June 2021 – HarperCollins

You thought no one saw you. You were wrong.

Leigh and her sister Callie are not bad people – but one night, more than two decades ago, they did something terrible. And the result was a childhood tarnished by secrets, broken by betrayal, devastated by violence.

Years later, Leigh has pushed that night from her mind and become a successful lawyer – but when she is forced to take on a new client against her will, her world begins to spiral out of control.

Because the client knows the truth about what happened twenty-three years ago. He knows what Leigh and Callie did. And unless they stop him, he’s going to tear their lives apart …

Just because you didn’t see the witness … doesn’t mean he wasn’t there.

AMAZON

WATERSTONES

**********

False Witness is the new novel by one of my favorite authors, Karin Slaughter, set in an Atlanta right in the middle of the COVID pandemic. It is the story of two sisters with a secret that they have been keeping for twenty-five years. Neglected by their mother, Leigh and Callie have always counted on themselves and on each other. Twenty-five years ago, barely teenagers, they did something terrible that they have kept hidden until now when Leigh, a defence lawyer, is faced with a choice: defend a guilty man or risk that their secret comes to light and destroy their lives.

Even though the suspense of the story kept me on the edge of my seat, what I loved most about this story is the relationship – not always a healthy or functional – between the two sisters. Leigh and Callie have been protecting each other their whole lives. Forced to go to work when they were only eleven years old, their lives have never been easy. They took different paths – often self-destructives – but they were always there for each other when they needed it most.

I love Karin Slaughter. Her writing is addictive, her characters are flawed, very complex, and multi-layered, and her stories are gripping and intense. False Witness is not an easy or light read. It is dark, gritty, suspenseful, hard to read from the very beginning for its themes of abuse, addiction, and neglect, but it’s a story I couldn’t put it down until I reached that thrilling and incredible ending.

A huge thank you to HarperCollins and NetGalley for providing me with a proof of the novel.

**********

Karin Slaughter is one of the world’s most popular and acclaimed storytellers. Published in 120 countries with more than 35 million copies sold across the globe, her 21 novels include the Grant County and Will Trent books, as well as the Edgar-nominated COP TOWN and the instant NYT bestselling stand-alone novels PRETTY GIRLS, THE GOOD DAUGHTER, and PIECES OF HER. Slaughter is the founder of the Save the Libraries project—a nonprofit organization established to support libraries and library programming. A native of Georgia, she lives in Atlanta. Her stand-alone novel PIECES OF HER is in development with Netflix, starring Toni Collette, and the Grant County and Will Trent series are in development for television.

www.karinslaughter.com
Facebook www.facebook.com/AuthorKarinSlaughter/
Instagram www.instagram.com/karinslaughterauthor/
Twitter @SlaughterKarin

Last year, I had the pleasure to read Magpie Lane by Lucy Atkins, a gripping thriller set in Oxford and I was completely captivated so I am delighted to repost again my review to celebrate the publication in paperback of this gripping novel.

G

Publication: 2nd April 2020 – Quercus

When the eight-year-old daughter of an Oxford College Master vanishes in the middle of the night, police turn to the Scottish nanny, Dee, for answers.

As Dee looks back over her time in the Master’s Lodging – an eerie and ancient house – a picture of a high achieving but dysfunctional family emerges: Nick, the fiercely intelligent and powerful father; his beautiful Danish wife Mariah, pregnant with their child; and the lost little girl, Felicity, almost mute, seeing ghosts, grieving her dead mother.

But is Dee telling the whole story? Is her growing friendship with the eccentric house historian, Linklater, any cause for concern? And most of all, why is Felicity silent?

Roaming Oxford’s secret passages and hidden graveyards, Magpie Lane explores the true meaning of family – and what it is to be denied one.

**********

I have been having a bit of a hard time concentrating on reading lately (and I’ve seen I am not the only one), but Magpie Lane kept me completely captivated. Such an excellent read! Multi-layered characters, a creepy atmosphere, a house seemingly haunted by ghosts, and a gripping plot. I couldn’t put it down!

It all started when Dee met new College Master Nick Law and got offered a job as a nanny for his daughter Felicity. Eight months later, Felicity is missing and Dee and Nick and his wife are turning on each other. What happened? As Dee is interviewed by the police we discover a disturbing story of loss, dysfunctional family, and secrets.

The story is very well-written and you can feel the tension as you turn page after page. The author’s choice of the setting is fantastic. Master House is claustrophobic and with an interesting and dark history, almost a character itself, that gave me goose-bumps all over my body. The author’s beautiful descriptions and the fascinating and intriguing historical facts narrated through the character of Linklater really bring Oxford to life and kept me glued to the pages.

The author put together a cast of brilliant and complex characters: there is Dee, the Scottish nanny with an obsession for mathematics and a mysterious past; Nick, an ambitious professor who cares more about his job than his own daughter; his Danish pregnant wife Mariah, who restores wallpaper; his daughter Felicity, a eight-year-old girl with selective mutism; and House Detective Linklater with a deep knowledge of Oxford.

Magpie Lane is intense, dramatic, and addictive. I couldn’t wait to see how it ended and, yet, I didn’t want it to end. I adored it and I couldn’t recommend it enough!!!

A huge thank you to Ella and Quercus for providing me with a proof of this brilliant novel.

Publication: 24th June 2021 – Orion

THE BRAND NEW THRILLER FROM THE MIND OF MILLION-COPY BESTSELLER M. J. ARLIDGE

A crimewave sweeps through the city and no-one is safe. An arson at the docks. A carjacking gone wrong. A murder in a country park. What connects all these crimes without causes, which leave no clues?

Detective Inspector Helen Grace faces the rising tide of cases which threatens to drown the city. But each crime is just a piece of a puzzle which is falling into place.

And when it becomes clear just how twisted and ingenious this web of crime is, D.I. Grace will realise that it may be impossible to stop it . . .

THE BEST BOOK YET FROM THE MASTER OF THE KILLER THRILLER.

AMAZON

WATERSTONES

**********

Happy Sunday everyone! I am delighted to take part in the blog tour for Truth Or Dare, the gripping new novel by M. J. Arlidge.

A crime wave seems to hit the city of Southampton and DI Helen Grace and her team are scrambling to figure out if the crimes are connected and to stop the killer before they hit again. The police is under a lot of pressure to stop the crimes while DI Grace has to face a split of alliances inside her own team.

I have to admit that I was introduced late to this fantastic series by M. J. Arlidge, so I haven’t read all the books yet (but I am catching up), but Truth Or Dare can easily be read as a stand-alone if you are new to the series, as well. Even though I haven’t read all the books, this is one of my favourite police procedural series and I love the character of DI Helen Grace. She is authentic, relatable, and tough and she doesn’t let anyone push her around. In Truth Or Dare she has to contend with someone from inside her team trying to sabotage her career, but that doesn’t stop her from doing her job.

The story is addictive and engaging. Set in an arc of seven days, the plot is suspenseful and twisty and, even though there were a few things that I figured out on my own, it still took me frequently by surprise. The author flawlessly switches from one character’s perspective to another, and the tension just keeps building and building. A clever thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat for a few hours.

A huge thank you to Tracy and Orion for inviting me to join the blog tour and providing me with a proof of this novel.

**********

Publication: 24th June 2021 – Simon & Schuster UK

Then

At fifteen, George is the foster brother Leah never asked for. As the angry, troubled boy struggles to come to terms with his circumstances, Leah finds herself getting drawn closer to him. Theo’s wealthy family have mysteriously pulled him out of boarding school and he’s now enrolled at the local state school with Leah and George. When their worlds collide that summer, the three teenagers form a bond they believe will be unbreakable. But life doesn’t always go to plan…

Now

Shocking news brings Leah back to Yorkshire, baby daughter in tow. But Emilie’s father Theo isn’t with them, and George has unexpectedly returned. After half a lifetime, have they healed the scars of their pasts? Will coming back home set their hearts in a different direction?

AMAZON

WATERSTONES

**********

Happy Friday everyone! Today I am delighted to welcome you on my stop for the blog tour for Someone I Used To Know, the incredible new novel by Paige Toon.

One of the things I know for sure it’s that you can’t never go wrong with a Paige Toon’s novel. I started reading this author four years ago when I got a copy of The Last Piece Of My Heart and I am a huge fan since then: romance, friendship, family, engaging and likable characters, beautiful stories, and the author’s excellent writing style are all part of the package.

Before you settle down reading Someone I Used To Know I recommend picking up lots of tissues because the tears are a certainty and once you start reading you won’t be able to put it down.

Someone I Used To Know is a beautiful, emotional, and heart-warming story set in Yorkshire, in a farm full of alpacas, rabbits, and teenagers. Leah, the protagonist, and her family have welcomed many foster teenagers since they left London for the countryside. Some of them have become part of the family and some of them went back to their families or were adopted by another family. George is one of the teenagers who finds a home at Leah’s farm, but his troubled childhood haunts him. Theo is the rich boy taken out from yet another boarding school with his own troubled family. Leah, George, and Theo form a deep bond when they are fifteen years old, but, fifteen years later, things are very different.

I won’t say anymore about the story to not spoil it, but let me tell you that I loved the characters of Leah, Theo, and George and I laughed and cried with them, I felt grief and sadness, and I can’t stop thinking about their stories. The story is told from Leah’s perspective. I really liked this character. We meet her as a teenager, feeling a bit neglected by her parents in favour of the foster children, but still always eager to help and support her big family. And we meet her as an adult, with a young daughter, back at the family home, trying to put her life back together.

While Leah’s story and her relationship with George and Theo is the main plot, I was also very interested in the theme of foster children. Paige Toon gives us a full picture of how the fostering systems work and it was heartbreaking to read about neglected children moved to different families every few months, never able to settle down, about siblings separated and adopted by different families. And it was good to read about people like Leah and her family that welcome children in their homes and make them feel part of their family, even if it is only for a few weeks or months.

As I said, grab the tissue and settle down because Someone I Used To Know is a book that will grab you from the first page and you won’t be able to stop thinking about it. A memorable and beautiful story from one of my favourite authors!

A huge thank you to Anne and Simon & Schuster for inviting me to join the blog tour and providing me with a proof of the novel.

**********

Sunday Times bestseller Paige Toon was born in 1975 and grew up between England, Australia and America. A philosophy graduate, she worked at teen, film and women’s magazines, before ending up at Heat magazine as Reviews Editor. Paige is married, has two small children and lives in Cambridge. She is the author of eighteen novels which have sold 1.5million copies worldwide. In 2016, The One We Fell in Love With, was selected for the WH Smith Zoella Book Club. Follow Paige at @PaigeToonAuthor and sign up to the Hidden Paige at www.paigetoon.com.

Publication: 1st July 2021 – DelRey Books

What if our future lies 40,000 years in our past? Subject Twenty-One is an astonishing debut novel in which a young woman’s refusal to accept the status quo opens her eyes to the lies her society is built on.

Elise’s world is forever changed when she is given the opportunity of a lifetime – to work at the Museum of Evolution and be a Companion to the Neanderthal, Subject Twenty-One.

As a Sapien, a member of the lowest order of humans, she and others like her are held responsible for the damages inflicted on the world by previous generations. This job may be Elise’s only chance to escape a stagnating life in an ostracised and impoverished community.

But it doesn’t take long for Elise to realise that, away from the familiarity and safety of her home, her own secrets are much harder to conceal.

And the longer she stays the more she comes to realise that little separates her from the exhibits… and a cage of her own.

AMAZON

WATERSTONES

**********

It is publication day for Subject Twenty-One and I am delighted to take part in the blog tour of this fantastic debut novel by A. E. Warren.

I don’t read many sci-fi and dystopian novels, but you just need to mention Veronica Roth or Divergent and you have my attention and that’s how I found myself reading Subject Twenty-One… and I don’t have any regrets. At times I found similarities that reminded me of the Divergent series (and also of the movie Gattaca), but Subject Twenty-One is unique and completely captivating.

The story is set in a post-Pandemic world divided in three classes of people: at the lowest level there are the Sapiens, the descendants of those who lived and caused the Pandemic that wiped out 95% of the population. The Sapiens are considered the inferior race, without any particular skill or strength, they have to follow the rules set by the Potiors and they are never allowed to advance in their lives. The Potiors are the elite advanced class, born from genetic engineering. They are the smartest, the strongest, practically immortal, and, from what I gathered, they have no empathy or any kind of emotions. The Medius are placed between the Sapiens and the Potiors. Their DNA has been tweaked as well and they look down at the Sapiens and look up at the Potiors.

The protagonist, Elise, is a Sapiens. All her life she’s been told to keep her head down and do as she was told. Her life changes when she gets a job at the Museum of Evolution as a companion to Twenty-One, one of the Netherlands brought back to life by the Potiors to be studied. She leaves her family and the Sapiens community where she grew up and moves into the Museum where she meets Luca, another Sapiens, and Samuel and Georgina, two Medius who don’t seem to care about the differences in their DNAs. And then, there is Twenty-One, the Netherland whose cage may be beautiful, but it’s still a cage.

Elise is a fantastic heroine. Engaging, strong and determined, she is excited about her new job at the museum until she quickly realizes that she is not much different from Twenty-One. Even though she is allowed to leave at night, she is herself in a cage. The story is addictive, thought-provoking, and fascinating, about a world divided in classes and bases, where scientific progress is used for the benefit of few, where a heroine tries to stand up against that few.

Subject Twenty-One is the first book in the Tomorrow’s Ancestors series and I can’t wait to get my hands on the sequel, The Hidden Base (which is out now, by the way), to see what is next for Elise and her friends.

A huge thank you to Rachel and DelRey for inviting me to join the blog tour and providing me with a copy of this incredible book.

**********

Follow the rest of the blog tour:

After spending eight years working as a lawyer, A.E. Warren began to write in the evenings and early mornings as a form of escapism from life in a very small cubicle with lots of files. She self-published her first novels in her spare time, which were picked up by Del Rey UK who are the science fiction/fantasy imprint of Penguin Random House.

She is an avid reader, occasional gamer and fair-weather runner. Subject Twenty-One is her debut novel and there will be four books in the Tomorrow’s Ancestors series. She lives in the UK with her husband, daughter and hopefully, one day, a wise border terrier named Austen.

Last year, I had the pleasure to read An Inconvenient Woman by Stéphanie Buelens and I really enjoyed it so I am delighted to repost again my review to celebrate the publication in paperback of this gripping novel.

Publication: 24th June 2021 – Quercus

When Claire Fontaine learns that her ex-husband Simon is marrying again, to a woman with a teenage daughter, her blood runs cold. She is sure that years ago Simon molested her own daughter and was responsible for her mysterious death. She can’t let him get away with it a second time. Vandalism, harassment; whatever it takes, Claire will expose him.

Simon doesn’t know where Claire got this delusion from; her daughter’s death was ruled a suicide, but she has always blamed herself – is she just lashing out? Wanting to protect his new fiancee, he hires Sloane Wilson, an ex-cop turned ‘sin-eater’, whose job it is to handle delicate cases without getting the police involved, to get Claire off his back.

Sloane must navigate the wreckage of Claire and Simon’s marriage to discover the truth. Two people with conflicting stories and a whole lot of reasons to want to hurt each other. Is she crazy or is he manipulative? And can Sloane stay clear-headed enough to figure it out?

AMAZON

WATERSTONES

**********

The story is told from two perspectives. The first point of view is from Claire Fontaine a woman in her forties who lives in Los Angeles. She lives alone, she works as a French teacher, and, in her spare time, she mentor a young woman who used to live on the street and now is trying to get her life back on track. Claire Fontaine is obsessed and her obsession is her ex-husband Simon, a superstar lawyer, who is about to marry again. Claire can’t let that happen because the future wife has a ten-year-old daughter who looks like Melody, her own daughter, and Claire is sure that Melody’s death was caused by Simon, even though it was ruled as an accident.

The second point of view is from Sloan Wilson. Sloan is an ex LAPD detective who left the force when the job became too much and she turned into a sin eater, the person high-profile people hire to clean up their mess. And now Simon needs Sloan to free him of Claire once and for all.

What can I tell you about An Inconvenient Woman? It is gripping, intense, and engrossing. I read it in one day and not because the story is just a little more than 300 pages, but because I needed to see how the story evolved and how it would end. Is Claire telling the truth? Did Simon really molest Melody? Or is he as innocent as he claims to be? Claire is clearly paranoid, but is she also delusional? I was on the edge of my seat the entire time I was reading.

I loved how the multi-layered characters evolved in the story. Claire and Sloan are similar characters. They are strong and clever and they both have past family drama and a complicated father-daughter relationship that has its own plot in the novel.

An Inconvenient Woman is very well-written and cleverly plotted. The ending is fantastic and explosive and it wraps up the story perfectly. This is a terrific thriller that I highly recommend.

**********

Stéphanie Buelens was born in Belgium and educated in France. She has traveled to more than thirty countries. For the last twenty years, she has lived between Paris and Los Angeles. She has worked as an actress, interpreter, translator, business consultant, French media coach, and language instructor. She currently lives in Belgium. AN INCONVENIENT WOMAN is her first novel.

Publication: 17th June 2021 – Hodder & Stoughton

The Murder
In the Gare do Oriente, a body sits, slumped, in a stationary train. A high-profile man appears to have died by throwing himself repeatedly against the glass. But according to witnesses, he may not have done this of his own accord.

The City
Lisbon 2021. A small percentage of the population are diagnosed as Gifted. Along with the power comes stigma and suspicion.

The Detective
In a prejudiced city, Gifted Inspector Isabel Reis is hiding her own secrets while putting her life on the line to stop an ingenious killer.

A violent and mysterious crime. Suspected Gifted involvement. A city baying for blood. And a killer who has only just begun…

AMAZON

WATERSTONES

**********

I am delighted to welcome you on my stop for the blog tour of The Colours of Death, the incredible debut novel by Patricia Marques.

Set in an alternate world divided between Regulars and Gifted, The Colours of Death is a fantastic mix of thriller and fantasy that kept me completely captivated from the first to the last page. Gifted have the power of either telekinesis or telepathy, but they are not very trusted by the Regulars and are registered and constantly monitored.

The protagonist of the novel is Inspector Isabel Reis of the Polìcia Judiària of Lisbon. Isabel is a Gifted and she can read other people’s thoughts and see their memories. Following a tragic accident caused by a Gifted who lost control of their power, there are now more restrictions against the Gifted, so Isabel is partnered up with Inspector Aleks Voronov, a Regular. Their first case together is the death of a man who apparently threw himself against the glass of a train window. Did he really kill himself or did someone throw him against the window?

I really liked the character of Isabel. She struggles with her power, wishing to silence the voices in her head, although it is often useful in her job, and she has a complex relationship with her family which becomes a secondary plot of the story, but what I enjoyed most is her relationship with Voronov. They have an easy relationship from the beginning and they work well together, and, despite Isabel’s initial reluctance, they learn to trust each other.

The story is twisty and addictive and I loved everything of this novel, from the beautiful and evocative descriptions of Lisbon to the large amount of food that Isabel gulps down, from the suspenseful mystery to the well-developed characters. I really hope that The Colours of Death is the first book in a series as I’d love to read more about these characters… and by this author.

A huge thank you to Jenny and Hodder & Stoughton for inviting me to join the blog tour and providing me with a beautiful copy of this novel.

**********

Half-Angolan and half-Portuguese, Patricia was born in Portugal but moved to England when she was eight. As well as an MA in Creative Writing from City University, she holds a BA in Creative Writing from Roehampton. She lives in London and The Colours of Death is her first novel.

Publication: 10th June 2021 – Weidenfeld & Nicolson

WE ALL KEEP SECRETS. EVEN FROM OURSELVES.

St. Christopher’s College, Cambridge, is a closed world to most.

For Mariana Andros – a group therapist struggling through her private grief – it’s where she met her late husband. For her niece, Zoe, it’s the tragic scene of her best friend’s murder.

As memory and mystery entangle Mariana, she finds a society full of secrets, which has been shocked to its core by the murder of one of its own.

Because behind its idyllic beauty is a web of jealousy and rage which emanates from an exclusive set of students known only as The Maidens. A group under the sinister influence of the enigmatic professor Edward Fosca.

A man who seems to know more than anyone about the murders – and the victims. And the man who will become the prime suspect in Mariana’s investigation – an obsession which will unravel everything…

AMAZON

WATERSTONES

**********

I am thrilled to welcome you on my stop for the blog tour of The Maidens, the new compelling novel by Alex Michaelides.

The author’s debut novel, The Silent Patient, was one of my favourite in 2019 and I was really excited when his new book was announced and I couldn’t wait to read The Maidens. I loved the university setting of Cambridge, the complex characters, the murder mystery, the Greek mythology, and the surprising and unexpected resolution.

Once again, the protagonist of the novel is a psychiatrist, a group therapist, to be precise. Mariana has a lots on her plate when she receives a call for help by her niece in Cambridge: she is struggling with the grief of losing her husband a year earlier and one of her patient is becoming obsessed with her, but a body has been found in Cambridge and her niece Zoe thinks it may be the body of a friend, so Mariana packs her things and travels to her former university to support her. However, she would never have imagined to find herself entangled in the investigation as she suspect the murderer is Edward Fosca, a Greek tragedy professor with his own group of Maidens who follow him around and worship him. And, even if no one believes her, Mariana won’t stop until she finds out the truth…

Slow-paced and suspenseful, The Maidens is a great read. The plot is intricate, and I loved how the author combines murder and Greek tragedy together. But, my favourite thing about The Maidens is the character of Mariana. Flawed, intricate, and driven, her story, her secrets, her family are slowly unraveled. She is haunted by the many losses she has suffered through her life, the latest one her husband who died suddenly a year earlier during a holiday and that she is so deeply grieving that she still hasn’t packed away his things. Also, she has to face daddy issue, regrets, and secrets that once uncovered, will change her life.

Once again, Alex Michaelides took me completely by surprise with shocking revelations and twists that I didn’t see coming and kept me engaged for hours with this compulsive new novel that it is out now.

A huge thank you to Anne and Weidenfeld & Nicolson for inviting me to join the blog tour and providing me with a proof of the novel.

**********

ALEX MICHAELIDES was born in Cyprus in 1977 to a Cypriot father and an English mother. At 18, he moved to the UK to study English at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he received an MA. Alex then went to film school in Los Angeles and got his MA in writing at the American Film Institute. He wrote the film Devil You Know, starring Rosamund Pike, and co-wrote The Con Is On, starring Uma Thruman and Tim Roth. Disillusioned with screenwriting, he moved back to the UK and took a job at a therapeutic community for teenagers in North London while studying psychotherapy.

But before he quit writing for good, he decided to have one last throw of dice and sat down to write the detective story which became the international bestselling novel, The Silent Patient. The book went on to be a world record-breaker, debuting at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list, the first adult UK debut ever to do so. Brad Pitt’s production company, Plan B, have secured film rights and a screenwriter and director are now attached. The Maidens is his second novel.

Publication: 27th May 2021 – Zaffre

Millie is a perfectionist. She’s happy, she’s successful and, with a great support network of friends and family (and a very grumpy cat), she’s never lonely. She loves working at a big tech firm and is on track be promoted to her dream role. The last thing she needs is romance messing up her perfectly organised world.

Besides, normal people just don’t have romantic relationships. Everyone knows that being in a couple is a bit . . . well, odd. You know, like having a pet snake or referring to yourself in the third person. Why rely on another person for your own happiness? Why risk the humiliation of unrequited love or the agony of a break-up? No, Millie is more than happy with her conventional single life.

So, when Millie lands a new project at work, launching a pill that prevents you falling in love, it seems like the opportunity of a lifetime. That is, until she starts working with Ben. He’s charming and funny, and Millie feels an instant connection to him.

Will Millie sacrifice everything she believes in for love?

AMAZON

WATERSTONES

**********

Happy Sunday everyone!!! I am really thrilled to welcome you on my stop for the blog tour of The Couple, the fantastic new novel by Helly Acton.

This novel wasn’t at all what I expected, it was much better. In The Couple, the author depicts a cynic world where being single is conventional and ordinary, where couples are not well-welcomed nor accepted, where love is rejected and leads only to heartache and unhappiness.

The protagonist of the story is Millie. She doesn’t believe in love and being in a relationship. All her life is based on a strict schedule that she follows diligently, and she has one goal: to become chief creative officer of the company she works for, Slide.

Ben is Millie’s opposite. He is impulsive, he is the “King of Chaos”, he is also funny, sweet, and Millie can’t stay away from him, especially when they start to work together to promote a pill that prevents from falling in love and that erases heartbreak.

The Couple is such a fun read! Ben and Millie’s chemistry, the witty and flirty dialogues, the stories of love and friendship, and the likable and relatable characters kept me completely engrossed in The Couple. I enjoyed Ben and Millie’s relationship, their easy friendship that developed in something more, the amusing text messages they exchanged, their banter, and their differences made for an entertaining and addictive read.

The Couple is a superb rom-com with dystopian elements that exceeded my expectations and that I keep thinking about it. I enjoyed the author’s writing style and I look forward to reading more of her novels.

A huge thank you to Tracy and Zaffre Books for inviting me to join the blog tour and providing me with a proof of this incredible novel.

**********

Helly Acton is a copywriter from London with past lives in Zimbabwe, the Middle East and Australia. She studied Law at King’s College London before following a more creative path into advertising. At 26, Helly took a career break to travel in Africa and Asia, before landing in Sydney. Six years and one life-affirming break up later, she returned home and threw herself into online dating in the city. Helly uses this experience as a single woman in her early thirties – torn between settling down and savouring her independence – as a source of inspiration.

Helly currently lives in Berkshire with her husband, Chris, their little boy, Arlo, and their little dog, Milo. Sometimes, she gets their names mixed up.