Book Description
DISCOVER THE CLINIC’S SECRETS IN THIS ABSOLUTELY GRIPPING PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER. PERFECT FOR FANS OF FREIDA MCFADDEN, COLLEEN HOOVER AND LUCY CLARKE.
Three women with something to hide.
A beauty clinic in a former asylum.
One deadly secret.
Jenny: a troubled woman who spent time at the clinic when it was an asylum.
Amy: a guest at the clinic who will do anything to transform her body.
Rebecca: the doctor who will stop at nothing to make the clinic successful.
What happens to them at the clinic will change everything . . .
Just don’t go down into the basement.
Fans of One of the Girls, Nine Perfect Strangers, Sarah Pearse, Sue Watson, Alice Feeney and Patricia MacDonald will love this taut, dark thriller.
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'The Clinic' by Sally-Anne Martyn.
Read and reviewed for ZooLoos Book Tours, Joffe Books, NetGalley and Sally-Anne Martyn.
Publication date 27th October 2022.
This is Sally-Anne Martyn's debut novel.
I was originally drawn to this book by its eye catching cover and intriguing sounding synopsis and title. The synopsis stated that this book is 'Perfect for fans of Freida McFadden, Colleen Hoover and Lucy Clarke' and that 'Fans of One of the Girls, Nine Perfect Strangers, Sarah Pearse, Sue Watson, Alice Feeney and Patricia MacDonald will love this taut, dark thriller.'I am a HUGE fan of Freida McFadden and Sue Watson so am looking of the book lives up to this statement. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Joffe Books. I have yet to read a book published by Joffe Books 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, 92 chapters and an epilogue. The chapters are short to medium 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 Crowthorpe, North Yorkshire , England 🏴, UK 🇬🇧. The bonus for me of books that are partly or fully based in the UK is that I live in the UK and have sometimes visited places mentioned in the book which makes it easier to picture. I have visited and holidayed in England on a couple of occasions so am looking forward to see if I recognise anywhere.
This book is written in third person perspective with the main protagonists being Doctor Rebecca Cavendish, Jenny and Jenny. 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 with vivid descriptions that really set the scene and kept me on the edge of my seat. The cover and synopsis suited the storyline perfectly.
An absolutely spine tingling page turner!!!
Love, LOVE, LOVED this absolute page turner!! It may be the first book I have read by Sally but I can promise you it won't be the last!!! The storyline is absolutely ram packed with mystery, tension, suspense and OMG the twists just kept on coming again and again!!! Every time I kept telling myself one more chapter the one I was in ended at a point where there was no way I could stop reading so I absolutely devoured it in one sitting!! I absolutely LOVED the creepy asylum setting which turned this psychological thriller into a fantastic creepy and gothic horror where women are just dying to lose some weight and look good. I am a huge fan of horrors and anything that is set in asylums are definitely a huge bonus for me and will guarantee I will read it!!! I loved the unique storyline which is actually extremely thought provoking as well as quite sadly realistic. We live in a world where how you look seems to be more important than who you are on the inside. When I was younger size 10 and 12 was considered slim but now it is size 6 and 8 and anything over seems to be considered too big which is a disgrace. Women are always getting body shamed on person on the TV and everywhere you go there are adverts for slimming products, photos of models and magazines filled with beauty products. It would be amazing if we could all compliment each other for who we are and where every woman picked each other up instead of putting others down. Anyway, sorry I digress this book just goes to show the lengths people will go in the name of beauty and what happens when it becomes an obsession. I WAS absolutely blown away by the twists and considering I read approximately 30 books a month that is certainly no easy feat so a HUGE congratulations on that Sally. If you are looking for something unique, filled with suspense and that will blow your mind then this is definitely the book for you!!
DO NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT READING THIS UNTIL YOU HAVE CLEARED YOUR SCHEDULES AS YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO PUT IT DOWN!!!
I wasn't just 100% invested in the storyline but also in the characters. Every single one of the characters were well defined, realistic and strong. They all had their good and bad sides and I enjoyed watching how the different women reacted to each other at the clinic. My heart absolutely went out to Jenny who had been originally locked up in the asylum for being a typical teen and her life spiralled downhill from there. Sadly you would like to think this would never happen in reality but I was absolutely shocked and disgusted when I discovered a lost of things that would have got you sectioned many years ago and if you are a woman reading this then that would have included you!! Thank goodness times have changed!! I really hope that Jenny does get the answers she is looking for and I would have loved to know the truth but sadly in real life you don't get all the answers you want. However, the ending does have me hopeful that there will be a sequel so fingers crossed 🤞. It wasn't just Jenny I felt sorry for but for each of the women who didn't feel they were good enough as they were and that they had to go to a clinic whether for themselves, to win back an ex or to continue to model. It does make me sad to realise how realistic these characters are and how many women out there are slimming for the same reason. I can't say I felt sorry for all the characters but I also won't say anymore as I don't want to spoil it for future readers. However, you can't get along with everyone and each of these characters had the perfect personalities to make this book as addictive as it was!!
A HUGE CONGRATULATIONS to Sally on what promises to be a massive best seller!!! I WAS absolutely shocked by the twist!!! I can't say anything else but when you've read it you'll know!!! Welcome to my favourite author list Sally and here's to your next explosive success 🥂!!!
Overall an absolutely addictive, mind blowing, creepy gothic page turner that will keep you up with a racing heart until you've finished!!!
Genres covered in this book include Crime Fiction, Thriller, Women's Detective Fiction, Psychological Thriller, Debut, Suspense, Women's Crime Fiction, Detective Fiction, Mystery, Psychological Fiction and Women's Sleuths amongst others.
I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as fans of Angela Marsons, Helen H Durrant, Rachel McClean, One of the Girls, Nine Perfect Strangers, Sarah Pearse, Sue Watson, Alice Feeney, Freida McFadden, Colleen Hoover, Lucy Clarke, Patricia MacDonald and just anyone who is looking for a page turning addictive read!!!
378 pages.
This book is just 99p to purchase on kindle, free on kindle unlimited and £8.53 (at time of review) via Amazon 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.
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Author Bio
Sally-Anne grew up in a small village just outside Sheffield. Her mum was a beautiful homemaker with numerous practical skills and talents, who kept the home going. Her dad on the other hand was not at all domestic, he was an avid reader of true crime books, lover of Carry On films, political scandals and wine. Sally-Anne takes after her dad.
Much to her parent's disappointment, at 16 years old Sally-Anne left a promising job in the advertising department of the Derbyshire Times to pursue a performing arts course. This led to many jobs, few of which involved acting. She has tended bars, worked as a film and television extra and provided care in one of the last Victorian asylums in England.
Coming from a working-class background, her writing is inspired by those women who are constantly left on the side-lines and ignored. She takes the underdog and gives her the freedom to do what she wants (good or bad) and see where that takes her. With a diet of Hammer House and Tales of the Unexpected as a child, along with a love for the ridiculous, it is no surprise that her books have chilling themes with a hint of dark humour.
After living all over the UK and USA, she is currently residing back in the North of England and living alongside a menagerie of animals, including five pet pigs.
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