I spent the whole of last month reading love stories, I thought it was about time I read something gritty and different and as Tall Bones was published here in the UK last week, I thought what great timing!

SYNOPSIS: When 17 year-old Abi goes missing, her disappearance cracks open the façade of the small town of Whistling Ridge, its intimate history of long-held grudges and resentment. Anything could happen in Whistling Ridge, this tinder box of small-town rage, and all it will take is just one spark - the truth of what really happened that night out at the Tall Bones…

REVIEW: First of all, I did not expect to enjoy this book as much as I did. It’s been a while since I’ve read a thriller/murder mystery and this book reminded me of why I love the genre so much. I devoured this book in a matter of days and every time I put the book down, I was left thinking about the characters for much longer afterwards which is always a huge tell-tale sign that a book was good. 

Also I really loved how each character has their own secrets and their own story to tell. I could imagine every character and their houses/locations so vividly in my mind, it was honestly like I was watching a film in my head every time I read the book. The pace of the book was absolutely spot-on too, and we as the reader, are taken on this journey to not only piece together what happened to Abi and who was involved, but to also work out each character’s back story and I thought the pace in which we find out about each and every character (and there’s a lot: Abi, Abi' best friend and her mother, Abi's father, mother and two brothers, Abi's friend Hunter and his dad, the Police officer, the Gypsy new-comer and the Priest) was second to none. 

I also really enjoyed other aspects of the book where author, Anna Bailey, would use different characters and their story/experience to highlight long-standing issues surrounding religion, cults, sexuality, racism, classism and also the effect of war on men and its survivors - especially in small town America where everyone knows each other’s business. 

I thoroughly enjoyed the reading experience of this book, especially because the book flicked between the past (before Abi’s disappearance) and the present. I really enjoyed every single character arc and you could just tell that the author had put so much thought into how and when we would find out different character’s secrets.

I thought it was such an incredible read and one you can get lost in almost immediately. Just don’t blame me if you don’t get any sleep once you start this book.

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