The Evidence by KL Slater
Genre: Psychological thriller, Domestic thriller, Suspense
Read: 25th June 2021
Published: 1st July 2021
★★★★★ 5 stars
DESCRIPTION:
I can see her through the glass door. She’s smaller in real life than I expected. She looks the exact opposite of the type of woman that might murder her husband.
Everyone’s heard of Simone Fischer. The young mother accused of killing her husband in cold blood, one sunny afternoon, while their son played in the room next door.
So when journalist Esme secures an exclusive interview with her it feels like the opportunity of a lifetime. Simone has remained silent since her husband’s death but after a decade in prison, she is willing to talk to Esme. And Esme, recently freed from her own toxic marriage, is confident she can get Simone to open up.
At their first meeting, when Esme sees Simone sitting across the table from her in jeans and a lemon tunic top, she is stuck by her ordinariness. Then Simone begins to tell her story of an abusive relationship where she was a prisoner in her own home, and Esme decides that the truth needs to come out.
But not everyone is pleased that Esme is telling Simone’s story. And when Esme’s beloved sister is left for dead in a nearby wood, Esme’s life begins to unravel. Forced to question what Simone has told her, she can’t help but wonder if murder was the only way out of Simone’s marriage. Why has it taken Simone so long to tell the world the truth? And will the consequences be devastating for Esme?
An utterly addictive and jaw-dropping read from bestselling author K.L. Slater about the darkness behind closed doors. If you like Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train you will LOVE The Evidence.
MY REVIEW:
I am excited to be taking part in the #BooksOnTour #BlogTour for K.L. Slater's latest addictive psychological thriller THE EVIDENCE.
It goes without saying that I am a HUGE fan of Kim Slater and her cunningly twisted thrillers never disappoint and never cease to delight me. As soon as I see one I must have it as I can never resist the pull of the wild ride I am sure to find myself on. And she almost always surprises me...no matter how much I figure out what's going on, she always has an extra twist to throw in. THE EVIDENCE is certainly not what I was expecting and offered something a little different from the usual domestic dramas that generally unfold amidst the twists and thrills. Sure, we get some of that...but we also get something else entirely.
"There are a thousand ways to control and be controlled."
Investigative journalist Esme Fox left her day job to start up her own podcasting business The Speaking Fox with her sister Michelle and has secured a tell-all interview with convicted murderer Simone Fischer, incarcerated ten years ago for the brutal stabbing murder of her husband Grant Fischer. Simone has never spoken up before and when she finally begins to outline her life with Grant and the abuse that lead her to breaking point, Esme recognises similar red flags in her own marriage to estranged husband Owen. The put-downs disguised as compliments, the wit that is really sarcasm, the chipping away at your self-belief. Was this her life too?
Already struggling with life as a single mum, caring for 9 year old Zach who had been partially disabled in a hit and run accident 18 months previous, Esme must also contend with her brash and pushy estranged husband who refuses to accept that their marriage is over as well running a full-time business. She is grateful that her sister Michelle moved in to help with Zach's care and the school run at the times when Esme herself is busy. But despite their separation, Owen continues to behave as if it's just temporary and helps himself around the house that he now no longer lives in. Michelle, however, is quick to point out to Esme the liberties that Owen keeps making and so she finds herself in a bit of a quandary because Zach adores his father and longs for him to move back home so they could be a family again.
Due to his injuries sustained in the accident, Zach often wakes at night in extreme pain and suffers from ongoing anxiety. As a result, Esme tends to wrap him in cotton wool believing him to be "fragile" whilst tormented by the fact that someone out there has not been brought to justice for the lifelong handicaps they have caused her young son. All the while, Esme continues to juggle her personal life with her new business, often being made to feel guilty, by Owen, for prioritising her visits to a convicted murderer over the needs of their son. But getting the podcast up and running is important because it will guarantee financial stability and security for both herself and Zach, so her long drives to HMP Bronzefield to interview Simone are a necessity.
Then one day, her sister Michelle fails to arrive to an important meeting with the prospect of serialising their podcast for screen and she is left to handle it herself. But her worry for her sister combined with her unfamiliarity with the details Michelle takes care of leaves her looking like an unprepared mess and the meeting is therefore deemed a disaster. She returns home where Owen arrives after collecting their son from school and she leaves them to go in search of the last known places Michelle might have been...to no avail.
A couple of days later two detectives knock at her door with the news that Michelle has been found brutally attacked in some nearby woods and is now in a medically induced coma in ICU. Esme is shocked. Who would want to hurt her sister? Was it a random attack? Or was it targeted? But as Esme begins her own investigation into Michelle's attack alongside her visits to the prison to continue the interviews with Simone for her podcast, she discovers that things may not be as they appear.
Then when Owen is taken in for questioning and later arrested, Esme finds herself having to contend with her monstrous mother-in-law, Brooke Painter, who then moves herself into her home uninvited and proceeds to take over their lives. The women have never gotten on and Esme is at pains to have her here even now...but as Brooke points out, she needs her to help with looking after Zach while she visits Michelle and "that convicted murderer". But knowing Brooke as she does, she cannot help but suspect that she maybe up to something...but what exactly.
And as her personal life crumbles, Esme continues with her podcast and in the process is confronted with some hard truths and secrets making her doubt who of those closest to her, if anyone, can she trust?
The story is told predominantly from Esme's narrative with the odd chapter devoted to the podcast interviews with Simone. We also hear the voice of one of Esme's colleagues, Justine, gathering intel of some kind for who knows what behind the scenes which leaves the reader with a shadow of doubt as to her loyalty. The characters are all well developed and equally flawed, including Esme who is something of a control freak which then causes resentment in others. But at the same time, the reader is left questioning who to trust and just exactly what their motives are. Brooke is my least favourite character and boy, did she make my blood boil! A fantastic love-to-hate character if ever there was one!
Domestic abuse is a common thread in books today but THE EVIDENCE reveals how it can often fall under the cracks going unnoticed and under the guise of care and concern. It shines a light on gas-lighting and coercive control and that abuse doesn't always leave bruises you can see.
An entertaining, easy read that will have you addicted from the first page, there is some predictability but Kim hoodwinks us with those and then hits us with surprises from out of nowhere that you least expect. There is plenty to keep you guessing whilst you turn the pages long into the night. THE EVIDENCE is sure have you absorbed from beginning to end.
A clever psychological thriller that blends domestic drama with the chilling undercurrent of coercive control, THE EVIDENCE is a page-turner full of surprises.
I would like to thank #KLSlater, #NetGalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #TheEvidence in exchange for an honest review.
MEET THE AUTHOR:
Kim's first adult psychological thriller for Bookouture, ‘Safe with Me’, actually started life as a dissertation on her English & Creative Writing degree in 2010. She says" he creepy voice of Anna came to me strong and insistent . . . she wanted to be written, she wouldn’t go away. I’m so glad I listened!"
Kim first became published writing Young Adult fiction for Macmillan Children’s Books under the name Kim Slater. Her award-winning YA debut, SMART, started life as a short story for her MA in Creative Writing in 2012.
Kim is now a full-time writer. She has a daughter and two stepsons and live with her husband Mac in Nottingham and Yorkshire.
Social Media links:
PUBLISHER:
Stay up to date with upcoming releases from Bookouture by following them on these social media accounts.
No comments:
Post a Comment