Author: Laura Elliot
Book: After the Wedding
Publication Day: 24/03/2022
Description:
Everyone said she was the prettiest flower girl. But now her dress lies on the floor. It’s wet and torn, her shoes are lost. ‘Tell us what happened to you?’ her daddy sobs. Christine shakes her head. All she can remember are the red rose petals scattering like drops of blood spilling to the ground.
When Christine Lewis was a little girl, she witnessed something terrible at a wedding and buried it so deep in her memory, she managed to forget it ever happened.
Years later, Jessica Newman walks into the successful advertising agency Christine runs with her husband. Jessica is beautiful and excellent at her job but her presence triggers disturbing memories for Christine. Fragments of the wedding are starting to flicker in her mind and an unexplainable ball of dread begins to form in Christine’s stomach. Jessica is slowly beginning to destroy Christine’s marriage and her business. Why can’t anyone else see it?
Christine and Jessica’s lives were connected long before they set eyes on one another. But in unlocking the mystery of what happened at the wedding all those years ago, is Christine prepared for the truth she’s about to find?
An absolutely gripping and emotional page-turner packed with suspense that will have you completely hooked. Fans of Lisa Jewell, Gillian Flynn and Sally Hepworth will be gripped by After the Wedding.
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'After The Wedding' by Laura Elliot.
Read and reviewed via NetGalley for Laura Elliot, Bookouture publishers and Bookouture anonymous
Publication date 24th March 2022.
This is the first book I have read by this author.
I was originally drawn to this book by its eye catching beautiful cover and intriguing sounding synopsis and title. The synopsis stated that 'Fans of Lisa Jewell, Gillian Flynn and Sally Hepworth will be gripped by After the Wedding.' I am a huge fan of Lisa Jewell so am looking forward to seeing if this lives up to this statement. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Bookouture. I have yet to read a book published by Bookouture that I haven't enjoyed. Hopefully this won't be the first... Watch this space! (Written before I started reading the book).
This novel consists of a prologue, 55 chapters and an epilogue spread over 4 parts. The chapters are short in length so possible to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!
This book is based in Dublin, Ireland 🇮🇪. I actually visited Ireland years ago so am intrigued to see if recognise any of the settings.
This book is written in third person perspective and the protagonists are Christine, Jessica and Rachel. The benefits of third person perspective with multiple protagonists are that it let's you see the bigger picture of what's going on and you get to know more characters more, what they are thinking and what they are doing. It feels like you get to see the whole picture and not miss out in anything.
This book is extremely well written that leaves you hearing the Irish accent and feeling the wind in your hair. The descriptions are vivid and absorbs you into the storyline from beginning to end. The cover and synopsis suit the storyline perfectly.
OMG!!! I WAS NOT EXPECTING THAT ENDING!!!
This book is quite fast paced with a complex storyline. I thouroughly enjoyed reading it and was completely absorbed from the first page to the end. It is filled with love, crime, deceit, murder, heartbreak and so much more. It had me on the edge of my seat turning the suspense filled pages. It starts off with Christine and Richards company and ends with lies being unearthed and hearts being broken. I was absolutely shocked by the ending as I was not expecting that at all!! I have read so many thrillers that it is getting harder and harder to shock me so a huge congratulations Laura!!! It is a riveting drama filled with revelations, discoveries and twists. It is quite difficult to write a review for this one as I really don't want to give too much away and spoil the suspense. Needless to say I was completely invested in the storyline throughout. I have never read any of Laura's books until I picked this one up but as soon as I've finished this review I will be heading straight to amazon to add all her books to my wishlist! The storyline leaves you questioning the characters and yourself throughout while you try to work out what could be real and what is not.
Clear your schedule before starting this as once you have begun you will not be able to put it down!!
It is set over/includes multiple time lines. When books show what has happened in the past and what is happening in the present I find it really helps the reader (if it is well done) understand why things are happening and what has lead to the present activities and decisions. It also shows the bigger picture.
I became completely invested in the characters who were all strong and realistic. My heart went out to Christine throughout the book as she went through heartbreak, stress and just pure hell. I found her to be such a strong woman and the fact that she had so much compassion for certain people even after everything they put her through really made an impact on me. I don't think I would have done what she did for that person at the end. I loved watching her character grow and change throughout and I really hope she finds happiness with Ryan, it is the least she deserves. I was not a fan of Jessica at all and found her to be a spoiled brat at times. However, I did have some empathy to her as I don't think she completely understood everything that was going on although she couldn't be completely blind to it. It is quite hard to work her out when taking her history into consideration. Jessica is definitely in the list of characters that induced such a mix of emotions in me. I do not have any sympathy towards Richard though as he made his own bed and should lay in it. Whatever I feel towards the characters, individually they worked perfectly well together to make this book an unputdownable one!!!
Congratulations Laura on a fantastic success and I look forward to reading more of your books both past and future. Here's to reading more page turner's you make 🥂
Overall an unputdownable page turning thriller that will fill you with suspense with an ending that will shock you!!
Genres covered in this book include Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Mystery, Thriller and Psychological Fiction amongst others.
I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as fans of Lisa Jewell, Gillian Flynn, Sally Hepworth and anyone looking for a gritty thriller that will keep you on edge.
393 pages.
This book is just £1.99 to purchase on kindle via Amazon or free on kindle unlimited (at time of review) which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!
Rated 5 /5 (I LOVED it ) on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon UK and Amazon US and on over 30 Facebook pages plus my blog on Facebook.
Feel free to add me on Goodreads or follow me on my website or Facebook for more reviews
@LauraElliot @Bookouture @Bookworm1986 @bookworm86
Author Bio:
Laura Elliot lives in Malahide, a picturesque, coastal village in Dublin, Ireland. She enjoys writing psychological thrillers -- in the UK she is published by Bookouture, Sphere and Avon -- and by Grand Central Publishing in the US. Her novels have also been widely translated.
AKA June Considine, she has written twelve books for children and young adults. In her earlier career, she worked as a journalist and magazine editor.
For more details check http://lauraelliotauthor.com/
Social Media Links:
Website: http://lauraelliotauthor.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Elliot_Laura
(@Elliot_Laura)
Buy Link:
Amazon: https://bit.ly/3fbOWwJ
Comments