This book is classed a thriller, and we discussed in the book club meeting whether we were ‘thrilled’ by this book. I guess I was? To be honest, I spent the majority of the book wanting to find out what was going on, hence why I managed to finish this in just over a day.

There are two stories at play and I found it hard to understand which was the main story. Is it the murder trail that our narrator Alison has been trusted to work on? Or is it Alison’s story and her relationships? If it is the latter, I don’t know if the murder trial had any relevance to the story. I didn’t feel like it added anything to Alison’s character perhaps until the very end.

I’m sounding really critical about this book but I promise you I did enjoy it. It’s one that keeps you reading on, as the chapters are short and something is revealed at the end of nearly every one. Of course, this just leaves you wanting more and more, so as far as thrillers are concerned, Blood Orange has all the right ingredients.

Once I finished this book, I was straight on my phone to text my best friend and tell her what I thought. She had already read this book and was impatiently waiting for my verdict. She told me that this book was unique in the fact that she disliked all the main characters and yet loved the story. And I felt exactly the same. I disliked Alison, our narrator, all the way through, perhaps only warming to her towards the end. She seemed to surround herself with controlling and manipulative men and that just didn’t wash with me.

Harriet Tyce really explores some really intense discussions surrounding domestic and emotional abuse, love, family and adultery. I think I did feel sorry for some of the characters as different events took place, but then I was back to disliking them when they, by their own accord, made matters worse for themselves. It was a mental battle!

All in all, I did enjoy this book and the twist at the end is incredible. Yet I’m wary of the fact that perhaps the only reason I enjoyed this book is because the ending had such a shocking impact; that all I can remember when I look back on this is the ending. Am I being too critical here, maybe, I’ll leave that one for you to decide on your own.

Oh, and when you do finish this book…don’t forget to re-read the prologue. It will all make sense then