They Thought I Was Dead: Sandy's Story by Peter James
Genre: Crime thrillers, Mystery
Read: 28th September 2024
Published: 14th May 2024
★★★★ 4 stars
DESCRIPTION:
Some will know how it begins . . .
Her name is Sandy. You might know her as the loving wife of Detective Superintendent Roy Grace.
But there's more to her than meets the eye. A woman with a dubious past, a complicated present and
an uncertain future. Then she was gone.
Some will think they know how it ends . . .
Her disappearance caused a nationwide search. Even the best detective on the force couldn't find her.
They thought she was dead.
But nobody knows this . . .
Where did she go? Why did she run? What would cause a woman to leave her whole life behind and
simply vanish?
For the first time, the number one, multi-million copy bestselling author Peter James reveals the
truth behind Sandy Grace's dramatic disappearance. They thought I Was Dead will thrill fans
and new readers alike with its gripping story of a woman on the run. This is Sandy's story.
MY THOUGHTS:
Her name is Sandy...you will know her as the wife of DSP Roy Grace...but there is more to her than meets the eye...
I've known of the Roy Grace series for some time but as I already had loads of books TBR and other series on the go, I never added them to my ever growing list. And then I watched the TV series. And I fell in love with the totally lovely Roy Grace. Apart from the powers that be, the series didn't have the same angst amongst the ranks that others do. And so I went out and got my hands on the entire series which I intend to read (sometime) but I began with Sandy's story. I was interested to see how close it was to the TV adaption and while it correllated with the screen, there were some differences. But I won't spoil it by saying what they were for those who haven't read the book or are up to date with the TV series.
This book is soley Sandy's story and we see very little of Roy so the first question I asked my friend (who has read the series) was "Is Roy as lovely in the books as he is on TV?" and she said that he was. Because the Roy Sandy was describing was just how I knew him from TV.
As I watched the series, I had so many questions as to what happened to Sandy. Because like the books, viewers got snippets of her, and it made us wanting to know more about her and what happened to her. Did she die? Did she leave him? And if so, why? Roy is so lovely why would she? And thus THEY THOUGHT I WAS DEAD was born.
Given that this was Sandy's story thought it would be more of a novella, inserted in between books in the rest of the series, but no. It is a full length book of around 400 pages and 113 short(ish) snappy chapters. My favourite kind. The pace was steady in places, fast in others. And as with the rest of the series where we got snippets of Sandy from Roy's perspective, we get Roy from Sandy's.
Having never read a Peter James novel before I wasn't sure what to expect. But I really enjoyed it. I could have slapped Sandy so many times. I think she would have been better off to have stayed as Roy would have remained loyal and stood by her. But on the other side, I think Roy is better off WITHOUT her as she was such a flibbety-jibbet, unsatisfied with her lot in life and thinking the grass was greener elsewhere...only to discover it had always been green where she was. She was fickle and her decision-making left a lot to be desired. Simply put, I wanted to slap her at every opportunity for being so stupid.
I never liked Sandy...after all, she left Roy! How could she? Because she couldn't hack it as a policeman's wife? Well, she knew what he was when she met and married him. It was hardly going to change. And Roy was devoted to her and balanced his work and home life as best he could. But she wanted more. And although this book throws a little more light on what made her tick, I liked her even less. I actually liked her more in the TV series. This book just made me dislike her even more. Still...the hole she dug herself, which only got bigger as time went on, her fear, her sadness and the questions she kept asking herself kept me turning the pages and hooked throughout.
I'm glad Sandy has had her ending and Roy has finally had closure. My only complaint is that I would have liked to see her actually stand up and stop that wedding. I have never seen someone do that and actually stop a wedding. But as she was legally declared dead already, where did she and Roy stand in that case? Would it have been bigamy as she's still alive? I would have liked to see the questions it would have raised. But...at any rate, we got our ending. As did Sandy. And Roy got closure to that chapter of his life.
Overall, an ominous and entertaining tale that finally gives us insight and answers to what became of Sandy Grace. I can't compare it to other Grace books as I have yet to read them but others have said it is different but still a must read if you are a Grace fan. I can't wait to delve into Roy's story and follow his cases (despite having watched them on TV already).
MEET THE AUTHOR:
Peter James (born 22 August 1948) is a British writer of crime. He was born in Brighton, the son of Cornelia James, the former glovemaker to Queen Elizabeth II.
Peter James is an international best-selling crime thriller novelist who has had his books published in 36 languages. His series featuring Brighton-based Detective Superintendent Roy Grace has sold 17 million copies worldwide and has given him eight consecutive UK Sunday Times number ones.
Much loved by crime and thriller fans for his fast-paced page-turners full of unexpected plot twists, sinister characters, and accurate portrayal of modern day policing, he has won over 40 awards for his work including the WHSmith Best Crime Author of All Time Award and Crime Writers' Association Diamond Dagger.
During his childhood Peter attended Charterhouse School and then, in later years went on to study at Ravensbourne Film School. As a result of his training there, he travelled to North America, and spent several years as a screenwriter and film producer. It was in 1994 however, that Peter’s name became known worldwide due to the controversial publication by Penguin of his novel, Host, officially “the world’s first electronic novel” on two floppy discs (a far cry from a Kindle!). Peter has since become a media spokesperson for electronic publishing. When he’s not writing his international bestselling stories of Brighton-based Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, Peter has many hobbies, one of which means that Peter holds an international racing licence and often competes in the Britcar Racing Series!
Peter currently divides his time between his Sussex home, a Victorian Rectory, and his apartment in Notting Hill.
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