Amazon UK
Title: The Widow
Author: Fiona Barton
Format reviewed: Ebook
Source: Purchased
Publisher: Transworld Digital
Publication Date: 14th January 2016
Rating: 4 Stars
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| Amazon UK |
We've all seen him: the man - the monster - staring from the front page of every newspaper, accused of a terrible crime.
But what about her: the woman who grips his arm on the courtroom stairs – the wife who stands by him?
Jean Taylor’s life was blissfully ordinary. Nice house, nice husband. Glen was all she’d ever wanted: her Prince Charming.
Until he became that man accused, that monster on the front page. Jean was married to a man everyone thought capable of unimaginable evil.
But now Glen is dead and she’s alone for the first time, free to tell her story on her own terms.
Jean Taylor is going to tell us what she knows.
But what about her: the woman who grips his arm on the courtroom stairs – the wife who stands by him?
Jean Taylor’s life was blissfully ordinary. Nice house, nice husband. Glen was all she’d ever wanted: her Prince Charming.
Until he became that man accused, that monster on the front page. Jean was married to a man everyone thought capable of unimaginable evil.
But now Glen is dead and she’s alone for the first time, free to tell her story on her own terms.
Jean Taylor is going to tell us what she knows.
Hard to know what to make of this book, it certainly captured my interest and hooked me as early as the first 10%, but equally I'm a bit worried to say that nothing particularly shocked me either.
I ended up not really feeling anything for any of the characters, I didn't hate them, I just didn't love them. The story is told predominately from three perspectives....
The Widow, who has stood by her husband the whole time he was accused of horrific crimes, and now is able to tell her side of the story.
The Detective who had pursued the widow's husband the whole time, and we see how became obsessed over his work, over a 4 year team span of the book.
Then there is the reporter who is desperate to be the one the Widow talks to, but also has a part in the other news story surrounding the now dead husband's previous wrong doings.
There are some horrible crimes that have been committed, but it was the widow, Jean who I understood the least. Standing by your man because you love him...ok fair enough it happens, but the level of naivety she seemed to have about the big wide world out there was worrying for the 21st Century. She seemed to lack the basic understanding for a lot of things, and yet even in the small bits where we hear about Glen, pre-investigations I wasn't really believing their relationship.
The writing captured my attention and if I look on this book as a human interest story, then I certainly enjoyed reading it. But yet I know it has been described as a psychological thriller, but at no point did it feel like a thriller, nor did the psychology particularly grab me. No doubt it is a very good book, and I am curious to read more from Fiona Barton, but I just think the ending left me I think disappointed may be a good way to describe it, flat being another.
Thank you to everyone that voted for The Widow this week, you were right there were no cupcakes anywhere in the book, nor as I had randomly thought as I put together the vote any widow spiders thankfully. Really glad I had a chance to read this, as I was given a copy of The Child while I was on holiday, and I hadn't got as far as adding it to my spreadsheets yet. So what will this week bring me? Well you know the drill, take a look at the other post and make your decision!
I ended up not really feeling anything for any of the characters, I didn't hate them, I just didn't love them. The story is told predominately from three perspectives....
The Widow, who has stood by her husband the whole time he was accused of horrific crimes, and now is able to tell her side of the story.
The Detective who had pursued the widow's husband the whole time, and we see how became obsessed over his work, over a 4 year team span of the book.
Then there is the reporter who is desperate to be the one the Widow talks to, but also has a part in the other news story surrounding the now dead husband's previous wrong doings.
There are some horrible crimes that have been committed, but it was the widow, Jean who I understood the least. Standing by your man because you love him...ok fair enough it happens, but the level of naivety she seemed to have about the big wide world out there was worrying for the 21st Century. She seemed to lack the basic understanding for a lot of things, and yet even in the small bits where we hear about Glen, pre-investigations I wasn't really believing their relationship.
The writing captured my attention and if I look on this book as a human interest story, then I certainly enjoyed reading it. But yet I know it has been described as a psychological thriller, but at no point did it feel like a thriller, nor did the psychology particularly grab me. No doubt it is a very good book, and I am curious to read more from Fiona Barton, but I just think the ending left me I think disappointed may be a good way to describe it, flat being another.
Thank you to everyone that voted for The Widow this week, you were right there were no cupcakes anywhere in the book, nor as I had randomly thought as I put together the vote any widow spiders thankfully. Really glad I had a chance to read this, as I was given a copy of The Child while I was on holiday, and I hadn't got as far as adding it to my spreadsheets yet. So what will this week bring me? Well you know the drill, take a look at the other post and make your decision!
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