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The Lies You Told by Harriet Tyce - 5/5
Blurb:
"Sadie loves her daughter and will do anything to keep her safe.
She can't tell her why they had to leave home so quickly - or why Robin's father won't be coming with them to London.
She can't tell her why she hates being back in her dead mother's house, with its ivy-covered walls and its poisonous memories.
And she can't tell her the truth about the school Robin's set to start at - a school that doesn't welcome newcomers.
Sadie just wants to get their lives back on track.
But even lies with the best intentions can have deadly consequences..."
Review:
This is a very strong follow up to Blood Orange.
Sadie and ten-year-old daughter Robin have moved from Brooklyn to London, to Sadie's childhood home, after her mother passes. It transpires that Sadie and her mother had a strained relationship, with Sadie's mother making her choose between her (and keeping her job as a criminal barrister) or having a family. Sadie chose having a family and the move to the USA came because of husband Andrew's job.
Sadie's mother has left her home to Sadie's daughter Robin, with the stipulation that she must move back to London, live in the house and attend Sadie's old school, the prestigious Ashams. Sadie hated it there so isn't happy with the thought but after husband Andrew has seemingly turned into a completely different person, demanding that she and Robin both leave, she feels like she has no choice.
There is so much going on in this book. It basically follows two stories, Robin starting at Ashams and Sadie's relationship with the "PTA school mum clique", where competitive parenting is rife, and Sadie dipping her toe back into work, helping on a case where a teacher in his mid-twenties has been accused of having a sexual relationship with a teenage student.
It is written so brilliantly with lots of little things piecing together. There are also chapters referring to the details on an ominous Sunday which suddenly makes sense when you reach Part Two. It is like a light bulb has switched on.
I really enjoyed this book, it kept me guessing throughout and the ending was just perfect and shocking.
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A massive thank you to Rosie at Wildfire Books for having me on the blog tour. You can find out my fellow blog tour participants Twitter handles in the graphic below so keep an eye out for their reviews!
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