Wednesday 22 June 2016

PROMOTION & REVIEW - THE GIRL FROM THE SEA BY SHALINI BOLAND

Title: The Girl From The Sea
Author: Shalini Boland
Genre: Suspense
Release Date: 9th June

BLURB from Goodreads
A chilling suspense story of wounded hearts and dark secrets. 

Washed up on the beach, she can’t remember who she is. She can’t even remember her name. Turns out, she has a perfect life – friends and family eager to fill in the blanks. 

But why are they lying to her? What don’t they want her to remember? 

When you don't even know who you are, how do you know who to trust?


ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Hello :) I write suspense thrillers for adults, and dark adventures for young adults. I live in Dorset, England with my husband and two noisy boys. Before children, I was signed to Universal Music as a singer songwriter. As well as writing novels, I also run eBookSoda - a place for readers to get FREE and bargain ebooks - yay!


AUTHOR LINKS


REVIEW
Title: The Girl From The Sea
Author: Shalini Boland
Genre: Suspense
Release Date: 9th June

BLURB from Goodreads
A chilling suspense story of wounded hearts and dark secrets. 

Washed up on the beach, she can’t remember who she is. She can’t even remember her name. Turns out, she has a perfect life – friends and family eager to fill in the blanks. 

But why are they lying to her? What don’t they want her to remember? 

When you don't even know who you are, how do you know who to trust?

Amazon UK

INITIAL THOUGHTS
I loved Shalini's Outside series and really enjoyed her writing style, but that was my favourite genre. This one is described as a chilling suspense, not the type of genre I would usually choose. Still looking forward to reading as I consider myself a Shalini Boland fan"

THOUGHTS WHILST READING

8.0%
"How will the missing young woman know who she really is? How can she go "back to her life" when she doesn't remember who she is."
8.0%
"So her boyfriend has come forward to "claim her" like a lost umbrella?"
38.0%
"As more about her and her life is revealed Mia seems to dislike herself and her life even more"
75.0%
"So maybe Mia's "accident" wasn't actually an accident at all?"
83.0%
"Wow I didn't see that one coming!"

REVIEW
I received a free e-arc copy of this book directly from the author in exchange for my honest review.
The cover is a view underwater, there is a female deep under the surface. I love the mushy blue colour used on the cover and the fact the title and the authors name are in varying shades of the same colour. There's a great byline on the cover too, which says "The more she remembers, The less she wants to know". It really fits the book well. 
Would the cover make me pick this one up from a bookstore shelf? Yes, I think the cover catches your attention and encourages you to think about the girl, why she is under the water etc.
So the main character is. . . well to begin with we don't really know who she is and neither does she either! hence the title "The Girl From The Sea". The main character is female and has quite literally been washed up on the beach and she is almost chanting "keep moving forward, stay alive" to herself. The girl is finally discovered by a woman walking her dog. The girl is taken to the hospital and it is soon revealed that her name is Mia. Her boyfriend, the rather upper class sounding Pier Bevan-Price is very eager to be at his well off girlfriend's side to fill in any blanks she may have in her memory. When Mia is released from hospital, she return's to her home in Christchurch. Pier hangs around her presumably continuing their relationship as it was prior to her "accident". The more time Mia spends with Pier, the more he irritates her, so do his posh friends. Mia eagerly reaches out to her mother and sister, but their relationship cannot be relied upon, as they seem to have had a large argument and there is a lot of bitterness still remaining between them. The only person Mia feels she can talk to is Jack, a rowing coach. She relies more and more on him, causing Pier to become increasingly irritated by this "new Mia" rather than the Mia she was prior to the accident. Mia learns to accept that she may never regain her lost memories at all, when another body is found, along with an abandoned rowing boat. . . so maybe the "accident" was not an accident at all! Then Mia racks her brain to think of who would have attempted to hurt her, but still her memories evade her.
I totally adored this book, it had mystery, suspense, betrayal and intrigue in bucket loads! I admit I am not a big fan of the mystery genre but I loved this book. I both loved the character Mia and yet at the same time thoroughly enjoyed hating/disliking her. I also became fond of the more minor character of DS Wright, she was professional, yet genuinely seemed concerned about Mia's welfare.
I won't go into more details about the book other than to say be prepared for a really inventive twist that will leave you gaping in shock! I certainly did not see "that" coming at all! (You'll know what I mean when you read it.) The pace of the book is fairly steady but quick enough to keep you reading and being irritated by any interruptions whilst you're reading the book!
Did I enjoy the book? I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Would I recommend the book? Yes, I completely agree with the description of "chilling thriller". I think this will appeal to a wide audience and age range of readers.
Would I read more books by Shalini Boland? I already have read more titles by Shalini and intend to continue to do so.

FINAL THOUGHTS
Wow, I did not expect that brilliant twist at all! I highly recommend you read this one! I could actually imagine it being made into a film, it's really that good. Move over Murder She Wrote, Miss Marples and Poirot!




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