The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont

I was really looking forward to this book and I’m happy to say that it didn’t disappoint. This is a fictionalised account of what happened during the days when Agatha Christie disappeared. It follows Agatha, but mainly Nan – the woman having an affair with Agatha’s husband Archie. There is also another mystery element in the novel and I loved seeing how it all played out. I was expecting the novel to be more about Agatha but it was actually really interesting following Nan for the main part and seeing how she came to be in the situation she finds herself in. I found this such an engrossing novel and one that I was thinking about during the times when I wasn’t reading it. I definitely recommend it.

Take Your Breath Away by Linwood Barclay

This book has such an intriguing premise – a woman has been missing for six years and then one day she is spotted outside the home she used to live in but she quickly disappears again! We then follow her husband and members of her family as they try to figure out what is going on, and discover that nothing is quite as it seems! This book definitely requires suspension of disbelief but that doesn’t stop it being incredibly readable and hard to put down. I kept thinking I had it all figured out and then the rug would be pulled from under me again, which I loved. I enjoyed this one.

Insomnia by Sarah Pinborough

I love Sarah Pinborough’s novels so was highly anticipating this one and am so pleased to say that I loved it! It follows Emma whose mother ‘went mad’ soon after turning 40 and now Emma is around that age and she can’t sleep. Insomnia is plaguing her and no matter what she tries sleep just won’t come. I found this book so unnerving because I suffered with insomnia for years and I know how it makes you feel like you don’t even know which way is up anymore. Emma’s case is extreme but even so it’s creepy. On the surface she was a perfect life but she’s hiding things from her husband and that means she doesn’t have the support that she so badly needs. There are twists and turns in this novel, which I loved and it kept me hooked all the way to the very end. I highly recommend it!

Reputation by Sarah Vaughan

This novel was so good! It follows Emma who is an MP and a mother but she’s also a liar who is accused of killing a tabloid journalist. On the surface all is good in Emma’s life – she’s making a name for herself as an MP with her campaign against revenge porn but then her home life starts to unravel when her daughter is accused of the unthinkable. This leads Emma to want to protect her family no matter the cost and things begin to spiral. I found this novel to be so gripping, I didn’t want to put it down once I started it and I resented real life when it got in the way of my reading time! It’s a very ‘now’ novel with the revenge porn storyline but also the online abuse that Emma suffers purely because she’s a female MP. I wasn’t sure how things were going to turn out in this novel and loved that it kept me guessing until the end. I definitely recommend this one!