GoodRead - Follow Me Down

As you guys know, I kinda love Tanya Byrne. She's one of my fave authors from last year. And with her debut, Heart-Shaped Bruise, it was one of those stories that got under your skin and made you question the book long after you finished it. And after meeting Tanya twice (once last year at Foyles and the other a few weeks ago linked to the Essex Book Festival), I'm surprised she hasn't put a restaining order against me.

So, of course, when the lovely Sam from Headline told me at the Essex Book Festival event that she had sent me an ARC of Tanya's second novel, Follow Me Down, you can imagine how excited I was. And after reading my secret read (review for that book coming soon-ish), I dived into this...

When Adamma Okonma move from New York into England, she's a bit unhappy. She's moved away from her friends, her boyfriend, all because her father is Nigerian diplomat. So when her family put her in Crofton College, a boarding school in the middle of nowhere, you can guess her reaction. So when she meets Scarlett, she begins to think things are looking up. But Scarlett is secretive, wants to be center of attention, runs away without warning. Their friendship becomes destructive. And then something comes between them, tearing them apart.

Told in two timelines - Before and After - we see Adamma become friends with Scarlett and their friendship grown then destroy itself and then we see Adamma after something unspeakable happens.

So, you're probably wondering: is this book as good as Heart-Shaped Bruise? Or is it, as Tanya feared when she was writing this, a one hit wonder?

Oh, Tanya. Why did you worry? This book is just as dark, twisty and as addictive as Heart-Shaped Bruise. And, at the same time, it is very different from Heart-Shaped Bruise. Adamma is so different to Emily Knoll, as is Scarlett. Follow Me Down is very different from Heart-Shaped Bruise as Follow Me Down has two mysteries slowly intertwine together while Heart-Shaped Bruise is a dark revenge plot. The two mysteries - what happened to Scarlett and who is Adamma romantically involved with - will have you turning the pages and will have you guessing to the last page.

I loved this. I loved how this thriller kept me on the edge of my seat, staying up late at night and guessing till I closed the book. I think you guys, who love dark contemporary thriller, need to get your mitts on this. And when you do, NO JUMPING AHEAD TO THE END!

Who Fanies A Signed Copy of "Heart Shaped Bruise" by Tanya Byrne?

As some of you are aware (if you follow me on Twitter [if you wanna follow me, click here!]), I went to an event where the super lovely Tanya Byrne and the lovely Frankie from Headline chat about writing and publishing. Which is nice and super helpful (must stop using the word super in this post - nah! Will be fine!) as I wanted some advice about editing (but I didn't have to ask in the end as Tanya offered advice and am going to try and use one of her tips when I get my writing gear on!).

So, apart from tips ad chatting about writing, Tanya read the first chapter of her debut, Heart-Shaped Bruise, and (for the first time ever) she read out the first chapter of her second novel, Follow Me Down. And, oh, I am excited! It sounds just as dark and twisted as Heart-Shaped Bruise.

So, before I go any further, thank you Tanya for coming, thank you Frankie and Sam from Headline for coming down and surviving us mad book people and thank you Georgia at Just Imagine (love that shop and I promise I will read The Knife of Never Letting Go soon! I PROMISE!), but why am I writing this post if I'm not going to reveal ANYTHING (expect that the first chapter of Follow Me Down is just as dark as Heart-Shaped Bruise)? Well, I managed to nab myself a signed copy of Heart-Shaped Bruise and because I want you guys to love this book and get excited for the next, I am GIVING IT AWAY!

That's right. Giving it away. And here are the pics to prove it...

Now, to win this lovely signed book, all you have to do is fill in the form below. And that's it. Nothing more. Nothing less. The contest will close at 6pm this Friday and this is a UK only contest (I am poor and can't ship aboard!) The winner will be randomly chosen by Random.org and I will email the winner that evening. So, good luck everyone. In the words of The Hunger Games, may the odd ever be in your favour.

GoodRead - Heart-Shaped Bruise

I only came across this book by sheer fluke. I was emailing Sam from Headline, thanking her for letting me have a copy of Kimberly Derting's The Last Echo to review when she mentioned Heart-Shaped Bruise. After she gave me some info about it, I thought "It sounds like the TV show Revenge meets Cat Clarke" and asked if it was ok for me to read this. She was thrilled as she thought I would adore this book.

On top of a wardrobe in the now-disused Archway Young Offenders Institution, was discovered the secret journals of Archway's most notorious inmate, Emily Koll. Emily who is unapologetic over what she did. Through her journals, we hear her side of the story. Through her words, we see how far she went to get revenge. But can we trust her versions of events? Is she showing us the truth or trying to get our sympathy?

This is a compelling read. It just demands your attention as you try and figure what Emily did that was so awful that she's in a young offenders institution awaiting trail. The quote on the front of my copy from best-selling thriller writer, Sophie Hannah, says "intriguing and compelling", don't take as a "oh, they got an author to say something good". Sophie is right!

This isn't a story of forgiveness. Let's make this clear before I go any further. Emily herself ever states in within the first two pages. But the further you read, the more complex you discover Emily to be and the more questions that pop up. Is Emily doesn't want forgiveness, then why is she writing this? Why couldn't Emily let go when it wasn't her fault? Why why why?

There's not much more I could say. Don't expect a neat ending. Because there isn't one. It's left messy and a bit of a crime scene, which (if you think about it) is very much Emily at that moment in time. Her life is a crime scene.

If you're a fan of Cat Clarke and want a dark, gripping read, this is perfect for you. I can't wait to see what Tanya writes next!