Amanda Brookfirld's psychological thriller The Other Woman was published by Boldwood Books on 13th October. 'No one gets to the heart of human relationships quite so
perceptively as Brookfield.' The Mirror
On a normal day, in a normal house, on a normal street, wife
and mother Fran has had enough. She packs a case, leaves a note for her
bullying husband Pete, and one for her beloved twenty-year-old son Harry, and
heads to the airport - and freedom.
In another house, on another street, Helena is desperately
baiting her husband Jack into a fight. These days it feels like the only way to
get Jack to take notice of her. Passionate, volatile, increasingly fragile,
Helena is fast running out of hope.
What Helena and Fran don’t know, is that soon their lives
are going to come crashing together in ways neither expect nor understand. And
if Fran and Helena are going to change their own futures, then first they will
have to change each other’s.
Amanda Brookfield is back with a triumphant, crackling story
about love, marriage, lies and fate, and how our destinies can be changed by
the smallest decisions. Perfect for fans of Sheila O'Flanagan, Jane Fallon and
Jane Green.
My Thoughts
I particularly like the structure of this thriller, with different sections which give you the perspective of different women. You realise that they are partly giving you different sides of the same tale and that each woman makes assumptions which may not be right. In the first section, you follow Fran's story and feel the claustrophobic nature of her life, caught under the power of her husband. You silently urge her to leave him but as you discover, life is not always that straight forward. When the focus changes to Helena, you meet a complicated character who initially is quite difficult to like. She seems self-centred but you slowly see the other pressures which are in the background of her life.
You are given several marriages to examine in this story. Two of them have abusive strands but in Fran's brother, Rob's, you see a much more equal partnership which is suffering from different pressures. Children seem like witnesses to their parents' marriages, even when grown-up and you are always aware that what appears on the surface, may be very different behind the scenes. There is plenty of suspense and some stand-out scenes which will stay in your memory.
In short: Anatomy of marriages
About the Author
Amanda Brookfield is the bestselling author of many novels
including Good Girls, Relative Love and Before I Knew You, and a memoir, For
the Love of a Dog starring her Golden Doodle Mabel. She lives in London.
You can follow Amanda here: Website
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Book link: Amazon UK
Thanks to Amanda Brookfield, Boldwood Books and Rachel of Rachel's Random Resources for a copy of the book and a place on the tour.
Check out the rest of the tour!
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