Length: 312 pages

Please note the cover image leads to a universal Amazon buy link for the book

What they say: ‘In this chilling tale of paranoia, suspicion and accusation, Lesley Kara keeps you guessing until the final page.’ Paula Hawkins, No.1 bestselling author of The Girl on the Train and Into the Water

__________

When single mum Joanna hears a rumour at the school gates, she never intends to pass it on. But one casual comment leads to another and now there’s no going back . . .

Rumour has it that a notorious child killer is living under a new identity, in their sleepy little town of Flinstead-on-Sea.

Sally McGowan was just ten years old when she stabbed little Robbie Harris to death forty-eight years ago – no photos of her exist since her release as a young woman.

So who is the supposedly reformed killer who now lives among them? How dangerous can one rumour become? And how far will Joanna go to protect her loved ones from harm, when she realizes what it is she’s unleashed?

The Review: I had heard so much about this and was dying to read it and got to it in one night by the fire, very happy out. It is the story of a small seaside town where one person takes a rumour they heard and repeats it, not totally thinking of consequences.

From the start I was totally walking alongside Joanna, as she mentions something (actually again and again), not meaning to say it, but not sure how to be included. It was something you can totally see yourself doing!

The story in general is quite an easy read, definitely for someone who likes the everyday and little things that make it all so real to be expanded on (me!) And I could envision it as people began to ask ‘did you hear …?’

Of course you weren’t sure if the rumour was true, but the witch hunt had began, with a business owner being picked on and told to leave. As Joanna tried to figure out if it was true and also who the person was, we also got an insight into child killers and how what they do marks their whole life. There are a number of possibilities, most of them standoutish enough that you can follow, picture them and try and work it out yourself but I will admit we probably went a little over the quota for me and I got confused once or twice, although that may be just me. The ending also wasn’t quite my cup of tea but I did very much enjoy the rest of it and would not only recommend to put on your wish list but will most definitely read the author again!

Thanks so much to Transworld Digital and Netgalley for the book in return for an honest review.

Rating:4/5