Jul 21, 2017

The Child by Fiona Barton: Review

The Child by Fiona Barton, June 27, 2017, Berkley
Genre: psychological thriller, suspense
The Child by Fiona Barton
Book description: 
"As an old house is demolished in a gentrifying section of London, a workman discovers a tiny skeleton, buried for years. For journalist Kate Waters, it s a story that deserves attention. She cobbles together a piece for her newspaper, but at a loss for answers, she can only pose a question: Who is the Building Site Baby?  As Kate investigates, she unearths connections to a crime that rocked the city decades earlier." (publisher)

Book beginning:
Emma
March 20, 2012

My computer is winking at me knowingly when I sit down at my desk. I touch the keyboard, and a photo of Paul appears on my screen. It's the one I took of him on our honeymoon, eyes full of love across a table in the Campo Dei Fiori. I try to smile back at him but as I lean in, I catch a glimpse of my reflection in the screen and stop. I hate seeing myself without warning. Don't recognize myself sometimes. You think you know what you look like and there is this stranger looking at you. It can frighten me.

My comments: 
I read and enjoyed the author's previous novel, The Widow, which was almost a purely psychological study in the setting of a mystery. The Child is more plot centered, with an intriguing twist at the end. The action however was a bit slow for a suspense novel and it did not have the fiercely character-driven aspect of The Widow.

I enjoyed it however, and can recommend both books, both as stand-alone novels.

Page 56:
She had already looked at the messages on her phone, but she hoped that in the ten minutes since she'd last glanced at them, there'd have been some reaction to the baby story.

Memes: The Friday 56. Grab a book, turn to page 56 or 56% of your eReader. Find any sentence that grabs you. Post it, and add your URL post in Linky at Freda's Voice. Also visit Book Beginning at Rose City Reader.

Thanks to the publisher for a review copy of this book. 

12 comments:

  1. The blurb makes me curious and so do the excerpts. I am reading The Hunting Grounds by Katee Robert this week. Happy reading!

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  2. This one looks interesting. Enjoy your current read!

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  3. Thanks for sharing your thoughts Harvee. I just purchased this novel this am and hope to listen to it over the weekend.

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    1. Let us know how you like the audio version!

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  4. I find stories about old mysteries intriguing. It is also interesting that from time to time, in real life, an old skeleton is found that triggers such a mystery. I also like the passage that you quoted.

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  5. I've heard great things about this book!! Happy weekend!

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    1. Happy weekend too, Fredamans. Yes, a lot of bloggers love this book.

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  6. This and her earlier book sound of interest.

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I appreciate your comments and thoughts...

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