Rating: 5/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy
Source: NetGalley
Sam Hunter has grown
up in a relatively poor household. When his family comes into some money and
moves to an affluent town, he feels out of place in his new school and his new
environment.
Sam now lives close to
the imposing Bierce Priory. Its owners, the wealthy and influential Greenhills,
are the town’s resident philanthropists and a case study in success.
Slowly, Sam uncovers
the terrifying truth about the Greenhills and the town they live in. A truth so
disturbing that Sam’s life becomes a living, freakish nightmare, in which he is
forced to doubt his own sanity…
Now before I start this review, I would just like to say one
thing: this book is fucked up. If you’re
squeamish in the slightest, this is definitely not the book for you. If your
idea of a great book is blood, gore, gruesome and a good mystery to solve (like
mine), then you will love this.
When I picked up this book, I honestly wasn’t sure what to
expect. I saw it was teen fiction, read the blurb and thought I’d give it a go.
I was not prepared as to how much I’d love this book. I’d not heard of Simon
Cheshire before so I felt pretty clueless. I loved this book so much that all
336 pages were finished in less than 3 hours.
When I first started reading this, it seemed very much
written like it was a diary or a journal of something that had happened. I adore
books written in this style so I was instantly hooked.
Sam’s family life seemed pretty normal, he was relatively
poor but his mum worked in a bank and his dad was a ‘rock star’. After coming
into money from a few of his dad’s old songs, they move to Hadlington. Priory
Mews, Maybrick Road to be exact. It’s
extremely posh and the wealthiest people reside there.
Sam starts school and makes two friends, Liam and Jo. On his
first day, he’s introduced to Emma Greenhill, who’s the most popular girl in
school, whose drop dead gorgeous and just so happens to live next door to him.
(I found this part a little clichéd, I was certain she’d end up liking him and
they’d be together and they’d live happily ever after..., boy, was I wrong).
The day after Sam moves in, Emma’s mum comes to welcome
their new neighbours. Emma’s mum is a GP and fits all the Hunters in for
check-ups. Sam is reluctant to go so misses his appointment, whilst his parents
go. Over time, Sam notices his parents changing and he’s not sure why…
After befriending Emma, he starts to see cracks in her ‘perfect’
persona and starts to investigate the Greenhills, he doesn’t trust them and he
has every reason not to. He uncovers something he wishes he hadn’t and sets
upon telling the Greenhills secret to the world…
I wish I could say
more than that, but if I do, it will ruin the twist of the book and I want you
all to be as shocked as I was. The ending was left open so I wouldn’t be
surprised if there was a sequel. (Personally, I would love one!)
Sam is a brilliant main character and easy to connect to. The
book is fast-paced, action packed and I genuinely couldn’t put it down. I may
invest in some more Simon Cheshire books, he is incredible!
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