Author: Helen Matthews
Publishing Date: 4th October 2022
Publisher: Dark stroke Books
Many thanks to the publishing team and Zooloos BT for my digital copy and a spot on the tour
Blurb
How well do you know your neighbours?
Odeta’s life has shrunk to a daily round of drudgery, running her father’s grocery store in a remote Albanian village. One day, an enigmatic stranger from Tirana turns up, promising her an exciting career in London. Odeta’s life is about to change, but not in the way she expected.
Kate, a journalist, lives on a quiet London street, but her seemingly perfect life is filled with anxiety for her son, Ben. The boy is obsessed with online gaming but struggles to make friends. Kate sets out to create a simpler life for her family, disconnects them from the internet, and tries to build a community on her street.
On a visit to her home village in Wales, Kate is forced to confront a secret from her past. But even greater danger lies where she lives. Perhaps her neighbours are not the friendly community they seem at first glance…
My thoughts
Such an engaging book with a tough subject matter. It is so well written given the topic but I found myself immersed into the story line and wanted to know what was next and who is the perpetrator.
I personally found it to be a slow burner book but this is a good thing because you go on the journey as the trafficking story unfolds and the grooming that takes place. There is understanding that and realising that we aren't always focused on our surroundings or people near us. Sinister events start to unfold and has this thick cloud of uneasiness around and the story starts to link together with great suspense.
I really like the character development of Odeta and Kate. We get to learn more about them and feel more connected to understanding them. But also fear for them as they go deeper in to a scary world as events unfold. By the telling of chapters from Odeta we gain more insight to her and her perspective of what started to happen which was interesting. I really liked Kates character also and we learn more about her family too and the challenges she also has with them.
The depth of description in this book is one I appreciated especially with tougher subject matter. It is really a thought provoking story.
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