4 Stars from me
This is an absolutely cracking debut from Sarah Hornsley. Following the life and career of newly qualified barrister Justine Stone, who has a seemingly perfect life with her dreamy husband Noah.
As the blurb tells us, all is peachy for Justine and Noah both at home and for Justine’s career – she is flying high and headed for the big time until her first major case is against her childhood sweetheart, and she has to make the case against him.
I found myself annoyed at Justine at times as she made some questionable choices but in truth I was too drawn in by the story to care and just had to keep reading to see what the real truth was that lay buried in their shared past, and whether Justine would succeed in keeping it hidden.
This is a powerful message that we are none of us too far removed from our childhoods – scratch the surface and it is all still there. For some, this is good, and for others this is a consequence waiting to be metered out.
Overall this is a fast and exciting read and I think the author, NetGalley and Hodder & Staughton for an ARC in return for an honest review.
Blurb: A double murder. A toxic past. A family secret.
There’s no law against keeping secrets…
My name is Justine Stone.
I left home twelve years ago, never to return.
Now my ex-boyfriend, Jake, has been accused of a double murder in the town where we grew up. It’s my job as a barrister to make the case against him.
But to face the courts, I need to know the truth. The real truth about what happened when we were young – not just the story I’ll spin the jury.
To reach the heart of it, I must face up to the part my own family played.
Even if it means risking my life.
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