REVIEW: Behind Closed Doors by Carol Wyer

Behind Closed Doors by Carol Wyer

Genre: Psychological thriller

Read: 3rd December 2022

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Published: 6th December 2022

★★★★ 4 stars

DESCRIPTION:

Two kidnappings, thirty years apart. Can Stacey face her own dark past in order to save her stepdaughter?

When Stacey’s ex-husband turns up on her doorstep begging her to help save his kidnapped thirteen-year-old daughter, Lyra, the terror is all too familiar. Stacey’s own violent kidnapping thirty years ago was never solved, and while a severe case of amnesia spares her from recalling the specific horrors, she remembers enough…

Stacey knows her father never paid the ransom—she has the missing pinkie finger to prove it. She knows she was only saved because of an anonymous tip-off to the police. And she knows her captor was never apprehended.

Lyra’s kidnappers have made it clear the police must not get involved. But Stacey can’t shake the eerie similarities between the two cases, and she’ll use whatever she can, from her journalistic powers to her shady contacts, to save Lyra from the same nightmare. Desperate to find any link between Lyra’s abduction and her own, Stacey forces herself to revisit her forgotten, traumatic past for clues.

But can she make sense of the terrible secrets she unearths in time to save Lyra? And if she does, is she ready to face her own tormentor?

MY THOUGHTS:

I'm such an avid fan of Carol's crime thriller series that I couldn't wait to dive into her new psychological thriller BEHIND CLOSED DOORS. From the very first page we are thrown headfirst into the chilling fragmented memories of the past before landing in the present, faced with something of a similar dilemma.

Thirsty years ago, Stacey endured five long torturous days tied up, beaten, battered and bruised in a horrifying kidnapping before being rescued by a police officer answering a routine call. The people responsible for her kidnapping have never been identified or apprehended. The experience was so harrowing for the then 16 year old Stacey that she is left with dissociative amnesia and a few fragmented pieces that flicker in her memory. The lasting reminders being her amputated finger and her ear having also been cut off. The only thing she knows without a doubt is that her father never paid the ransom...and Stacey has never understood why. Even stranger was that as soon as she was discharged from hospital, her father packed up their belongings and moved them from Staffordshire to Lancashire...where she knew no one. He said it was for a new start...but was that really the truth?

Now Stacey is four years shy of the big five-oh and is an investigative journalist for a Lancaster paper where she is the senior reporter. She lives in a quaint little cottage in the seaside town of Hornby, living the quiet life she now appreciates. But when her ex-husband Jack comes knocking on her door one evening, it seems history is repeating itself. His daughter Lyra, who Stacey adores, has been kidnapped and the ransom demand is for £500,000 - the same amount as the ransom for Stacey 30 years before. Coincidence? Jack appeals to her for help but states in no uncertain terms that there is to be no police, as per the kidnapper's instructions. But can Stacey go down that rabbit hole and come face to face with her traumatic past? If it means saving Lyra, then yes.

Unfortunately, Jack doesn't the money - nothing even close to that amount - so Stacey uses all her skills as an investigative journalist to delve for clues as how to find Lyra...and who has her. But she cannot escape the similarities to her own kidnapping, right down to the last detail. But after thirty years? It doesn't seem feasible. But Stacey is sure her kidnapping holds the clues to finding Lyra before it's too late. But can she trust her memories or are they false narratives her mind is conjuring up?

This is an intriguing thriller from the very first page and I was eager to find out who was behind it all, and just how it related back to Stacey's own kidnapping. But I must admit to being bogged down by the lengthy chapters of which I am not a fan and for me that does slow down the pace a little. But boy, were there twists!! Just when you think you know who it could be, something shifts and it changes direction. But I did have one or two niggles at the back of my mind, both of which proved to be the case, although I wasn't sure of the exact details or anything else. Just a couple of niggles is all they were that didn't sit right. Trust your gut, follow your instinct. But it seemed Stacey wasn't listening...lol But then if she did, there wouldn't be much of a story...lol

Although Stacey was a strong lead I wasn't really a fan of her too much. Too stubborn and didn't listen to those who actually knew best. But she was the best of a bad bunch, believe me. Her father Henry and her ex Jack were two of the most despicable narcissistic and manipulative characters. I couldn't believe Henry wouldn't pay the ransom for his daughter and his reasoning was just ludicrous. And Jack? Well, we know why Stacey left him...had he really changed?

I loved the setting around Morecombe and could really picture it after seeing Carol's numerous posts of the area leading up to publication. Of course, I also remember it from the TV crime series "The Bay". And I just have to say, that cover ROCKS!!!

BEHIND CLOSED DOORS is a taut and tense thriller with plenty of twists and red herrings to keep you guessing throughout. My only complaint is that the chapters were just a bit too long which slowed down the pace.

Overall, an intense and intriguing read sure to delight thriller fans.

I would like to thank #CarolWyer, #Netgalley, #AmazonPub and #ZoolooTours for an ARC of #BehindClosedDoors in exchange for an honest review.

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Carol Wyer writes feel-good comedies and gripping crime fiction.

A move from humour to the 'dark side' in 2017, saw the introduction of popular DI Robyn Carter in Little Girl Lost and demonstrated that stand-up comedian Carol, had found her true niche.

To date, her crime novels have sold over 800,000 copies and been translated for various overseas markets.

The much-anticipated new series, featuring DI Kate Young, was published on 1st February 2021 with the first novel, An Eye For An Eye,  a second, A Cut for a Cut, published on 24th June 2021 and a third A Life for a Life to be published 15th March 2022. An Eye for an Eye was chosen as a Kindle First Reads and became the #1 bestselling book on Amazon UK and Amazon Australia.

Carol has been interviewed on numerous radio shows discussing ''Irritable Male Syndrome' and 'Ageing Disgracefully' and on BBC Breakfast television. She has had articles published in national magazines 'Woman's Weekly', featured in 'Take A Break', 'Choice', 'Yours' and 'Woman's Own' magazines and the Huffington Post.

She currently lives on a windy hill in rural Staffordshire with her husband Mr Grumpy... who is very, very grumpy.

When she is not plotting devious murders, she can be found performing her comedy routine, Smile While You Still Have Teeth.

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