A Song of Isolation by Michael Malone #Review #Giveaway

 

We have another great Orenda tour today to celebrate Michael J Malone's A Song of Isolation. There is also the chance to win a digital copy (Worldwide). Details on how to enter are at the foot of this post.

Film star Amelie Hart is the darling of the silver screen, appearing on the front pages of every newspaper. But at the peak of her fame she throws it all away for a regular guy with an ordinary job. The gossip columns are aghast: what happened to the woman who turned heads wherever she went?

Any hope the furore will die down are crushed when Amelie’s boyfriend Dave is arrested on charges of child sexual abuse. Dave strongly asserts his innocence, and when Amelie refuses to denounce him, the press furore quickly turns into physical violence, and she has to flee the country.

While Dave is locked up with the most depraved men in the country and Amelie is hiding on the continent, Damaris, the victim at the centre of the story, is also isolated – a child trying to make sense of an adult world...

Breathtakingly brutal, dark and immensely moving, A Song of Isolation looks beneath the magpie glimmer of celebrity to uncover a sinister world dominated by greed and lies, and the unfathomable destruction of innocent lives... in an instant.

My Thoughts

The opening scene unsettles the reader and leaves you wondering what exactly has happened to Amelie in the past. Now living with Dave in a remote cottage, you know that something has made her change her life. You follow the story through three characters: Amelie, Dave and Damaris, the child at the centre of the story. You get to follow their stories as they all live out their lives, all in a form of isolation. 

   From the beginning, I was sympathetic to all three characters but I wasn't sure how the story would pan out. I particularly enjoyed the pace of the story which seemed just right to me with a certain amount of jeopardy and suspense. There is a dark side to life which is uncovered below the surface of everyday life. Some may protest that it is an accidental series of circumstances they could not stop, but actually there is a huge degree of calculated greed and callousness. Trampled underfoot is an innocent child and hopes for the future. Bubbling up to the surface however, is love and hope. 

In short: Innocence is cast aside.

    

About the Author

Michael  Malone  is  a  prize-winning  poet  and  author  who  was  born  and  brought  up  in  the  heart  of  Burns’  country.  He  has  published  over  200  poems  in  literary  magazines  throughout  the  UK,  including  New  Writing  Scotland, Poetry Scotland and Markings. Blood Tears, his bestselling debut novel won the Pitlochry Prize from the Scottish Association of Writers. His psychological thriller, A Suitable Lie, was a number-one bestseller, and the critically  acclaimed  House  of  Spines, After  He  Died  and  In  the  Absence  of  Miracles  soon  followed  suit.  A  former  Regional  Sales  Manager  (Faber  &  Faber) he has also worked as an IFA and a bookseller. Michael lives in Ayr.

You can read my review of House of Spines here and After He Died here and In the Absence of Miracles  here.

You can follow Michael here: Twitter  |  Website  |  Facebook 

Book link: Amazon UK 

Thanks to Michael Malone, and Karen Sullivan and Anne Cater of Orenda Books for a copy of the book and a place on the tour.  

                                                              Follow the rest of the tour!

 

 

Giveaway (Worldwide)

 

To win a digital copy of A Song of Isolation just Follow and Retweet the pinned tweet at @bookslifethings . Closing Date is 17th September 2020 and there is one winner.  Good luck!