Friday 20 November 2015

Book Review - Where the Memories Lie by Sibel Hodge

Amazon UK
Title: Where The Memories Lie
Author: Sibel Hodge
Format reviewed: Ebook
Source: Netgalley
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Publication Date: 22nd September 2015
Rating: 5 Stars


Twenty-five years ago Katie ran away from home and never came back. But now she’s suddenly reappeared in her best friend Olivia’s life—in the form of a chilling confession. Olivia’s father-in-law, wracked with guilt, says he murdered her all those years ago. Tom suffers from Alzheimer’s and his story is riddled with error and confusion. Except for one terrifying certainty: he knows where the body is buried.

As Olivia and the police piece together the evidence, they are left with one critical question. They have a crime, they have a confession, and now they have a body—but can any of it be trusted?

Where the Memories Lie is a very gripping story, that had me hooked right from the start. It also deals with a variety of tricky issues and moral dilemmas, that if I put myself into Olivia's shoes, I honestly don't know for sure how I would have reacted. 

The main question is, if your father in law, who has Alzheimers, confesses to a murder, and also reveals the location of a body, and its of someone you used to be good friends with, what would you do. Do you risk making life tougher for your father in law and tell the police, or do you sweep it under the rug for the sake of your family. Is it even a real memory, or was he getting confused perhaps with a news story, or something on TV?

Well that is what Olivia, and her entire family are dealing with, in Where the Memories lie, and it leads to all sorts of consequences. 

And with regards the police,  once they inevitably do get involved, and find a body, there are then even more incredibly hard to answer questions about just what happened 25 years ago. Will dredging up ancient history have pleasant consequences for anyone, or will it just tear the family apart?

These are just some of the thoughts that are likely to go through your mind as you read the start of the book, and then of course you will have to wonder just "who did it, and why?" I was so enthralled by how the story was playing out in front of me, that I honestly didn't have a clue as to the answer to that, and hadn't come up with many theories myself. 

This is set in Dorset, and there were a whole bunch of settings named, that seemed incredibly familiar to me. I have a feeling I saw some of these places on an A-Level Geography field trip, or we learnt about them in school, but it was great for me to have some sort of familiarity with a setting, that isn't where I live!

Where The Memories Lie is the sort of psychological thriller that will get under your skin as you are reading it, picking at you until you get all the answers you desire. It is very well written, with just the right amount of details, and with enough details about the extended family life of  Olivia, to really care what happens to these characters. 

Thank you to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for this review copy. This was my honest opinion. 

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