leahralph's review against another edition
5.0
A dramatic and unputdownable novel which centres around a single mother of two teenage boys. When out one night one of the teenage brothers passes away and Alice is determined to unravel what really happened that fateful night.
Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for the arc.
Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for the arc.
the_coycaterpillar_reads's review against another edition
3.0
Keep Him Close follows the story of two mothers. Two mothers who have lost something incredibly close to them. Grief can take many forms and both essentially aching from the pit of despair. A longing that sits like rocks at the pit of the stomach. A pain that they both need to learn to deal with. We are taken on a journey of two women’s interweaving connection and a path crossed takes them both on trip of self-discovery and forgiveness. One mother has lost her son and one has admitted to killing him, a friendship found in the strangest of places.
You really don’t have the chance to breathe in the opening chapter. Things are gearing towards a climax. A rocky relationship between mother and son, Alice and Lou. Alice is very cold and awkward, and Lou seems harsh and a bit of a bully towards his mother but really it seems like he was just aching for that connection that his brother Benny had with her. I had a severe case of whiplash between Alice’s emotions and Lou’s “I couldn’t care attitude.” It’s an interlude into a night out gone wrong – a celebration that won’t quickly be forgotten.
Keep Him Close was predominately a domestic thriller but if you are reading it mainly for the thrills and twists you might be sorely disappointed. I enjoyed the reading experience and the writing was sharp and insightful, but it didn’t set me alight. I wanted it to blow me away and knock my socks off, but I was left just feeling that it was okay. A fairly passable read but it wouldn’t be memorable for me in the long term. It’s a slow burn thriller but it takes a bit on the long side to get more details about that fateful night that Lou fell.
One thing that I did particularly enjoy was the building relationship between the two mothers. It’s a relationship that shouldn’t be able to take off. Guilt and blame and social themes shouldn’t be a fertile ground for it to take off but slowly it does. They both felt the aching loss of losing sons even though only one was dead. The scenes between both Alice and Indigo are very emotional and extremely well written. The battle between pride and stubbornness are prevalent in both women but Indigo chipped away at Alice’s fragile emotional state and was finally able to crack the enigma.
I really struggled to get on a level playing field with Alice’s persona however. Her non-emotional state to learning about her son’s death perplexed me and her ability to keep ploughing on was baffling. Talk about stiff upper lip! She wasn’t keen on taking any time off work and pretty much instantly wanted to sort through Lou’s things. At different points I questioned whether Alice was on the ASD spectrum due to her social awkwardness and in her own words – can’t really deal with other people. Keep Him Close was a mixed bag for me but it had enough of the things I liked to keep me reading.
You really don’t have the chance to breathe in the opening chapter. Things are gearing towards a climax. A rocky relationship between mother and son, Alice and Lou. Alice is very cold and awkward, and Lou seems harsh and a bit of a bully towards his mother but really it seems like he was just aching for that connection that his brother Benny had with her. I had a severe case of whiplash between Alice’s emotions and Lou’s “I couldn’t care attitude.” It’s an interlude into a night out gone wrong – a celebration that won’t quickly be forgotten.
Keep Him Close was predominately a domestic thriller but if you are reading it mainly for the thrills and twists you might be sorely disappointed. I enjoyed the reading experience and the writing was sharp and insightful, but it didn’t set me alight. I wanted it to blow me away and knock my socks off, but I was left just feeling that it was okay. A fairly passable read but it wouldn’t be memorable for me in the long term. It’s a slow burn thriller but it takes a bit on the long side to get more details about that fateful night that Lou fell.
One thing that I did particularly enjoy was the building relationship between the two mothers. It’s a relationship that shouldn’t be able to take off. Guilt and blame and social themes shouldn’t be a fertile ground for it to take off but slowly it does. They both felt the aching loss of losing sons even though only one was dead. The scenes between both Alice and Indigo are very emotional and extremely well written. The battle between pride and stubbornness are prevalent in both women but Indigo chipped away at Alice’s fragile emotional state and was finally able to crack the enigma.
I really struggled to get on a level playing field with Alice’s persona however. Her non-emotional state to learning about her son’s death perplexed me and her ability to keep ploughing on was baffling. Talk about stiff upper lip! She wasn’t keen on taking any time off work and pretty much instantly wanted to sort through Lou’s things. At different points I questioned whether Alice was on the ASD spectrum due to her social awkwardness and in her own words – can’t really deal with other people. Keep Him Close was a mixed bag for me but it had enough of the things I liked to keep me reading.
mazza57's review against another edition
3.0
Two mothers the son of one dead and the son of the other accused of his murder. Each mother sense there is more to it than meets the eye. Told through the perspectives of Alice and Indigo the narrative follows their search for the truth - only one mother knowing who the other is.
For me the story rumbles under the surface but fails to fully capture the rising tension, it just never really erupts onto the surface for me. I enjoyed the characterisation of both mothers but the idea of the one helping the other always felt just a bit off kilter.
I think this author has much to offer but for me this just fails to reach the mark
For me the story rumbles under the surface but fails to fully capture the rising tension, it just never really erupts onto the surface for me. I enjoyed the characterisation of both mothers but the idea of the one helping the other always felt just a bit off kilter.
I think this author has much to offer but for me this just fails to reach the mark
annarella's review against another edition
3.0
Even if the premises are interesting and it's well written I found it very slow and it failed to keep my attention.
Not my cup of tea.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
Not my cup of tea.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
maz403's review against another edition
4.0
A powerfully written book about the complexities of human relationships. How well do children really know our parents ... and vice versa. Two women thrown together by a tragic death. But did Louis fall or was he pushed ?
natalier3's review against another edition
3.0
Really liked the idea of the book but thought it was too much of a slow burn for me. I enjoyed her previous book a lot but this one didn't hold my interest enough. Will still read more from this author but wasn't one of my favourite books by her.
kba76's review against another edition
4.0
Keep Him Close is one of those books that will get under your skin, and make you re-evaluate yourself and your interactions with others.
After a dramatic opening that establishes something deeply upsetting has taken place, but offers little further, we focus on an almost mundane everyday experience - a mother preparing for one of her sons to leave for university, and a growing fractiousness with her younger son who seems to be growing apart from her. The conversation in the loft hints at problems and secrets, but we go no further. Then we learn that one of the boys doesn’t come home that night.
Alongside this family horror we have another mother, one who has to come to terms with the fact that her only son has been charged with murder.
The question of what actually happened the night Lou died does eat away at us. Was he pushed? Did he fall? Why was he fighting with his brother’s friend? Why were they on the third floor of the car park anyway?
There’s no quick answers. Some of them are hinted at early on, but we’re never entirely sure how the snippets of information link.
What intrigued me about this was the shifting perspectives. We see the viewpoints of both mothers, and a rather odd set of circumstances that lead to them working together to get the answers they so desperately crave.
While our main story is resolved fairly neatly, there are so many things left unsaid. This, no doubt, is deliberate but it left a rather unsettled feel to things.
Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read this prior to publication in exchange for my honest thoughts.
After a dramatic opening that establishes something deeply upsetting has taken place, but offers little further, we focus on an almost mundane everyday experience - a mother preparing for one of her sons to leave for university, and a growing fractiousness with her younger son who seems to be growing apart from her. The conversation in the loft hints at problems and secrets, but we go no further. Then we learn that one of the boys doesn’t come home that night.
Alongside this family horror we have another mother, one who has to come to terms with the fact that her only son has been charged with murder.
The question of what actually happened the night Lou died does eat away at us. Was he pushed? Did he fall? Why was he fighting with his brother’s friend? Why were they on the third floor of the car park anyway?
There’s no quick answers. Some of them are hinted at early on, but we’re never entirely sure how the snippets of information link.
What intrigued me about this was the shifting perspectives. We see the viewpoints of both mothers, and a rather odd set of circumstances that lead to them working together to get the answers they so desperately crave.
While our main story is resolved fairly neatly, there are so many things left unsaid. This, no doubt, is deliberate but it left a rather unsettled feel to things.
Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read this prior to publication in exchange for my honest thoughts.
vinjii's review against another edition
2.0
Keep Him Close is a psychological thriller about two mothers dealing with the aftermath of a devastating night out.
Both mothers suffer through an incredible trauma: One son is dead. One son is accused of murder.
Unfortunately, the whole story unfolds too slowly, and the ending felt almost incoherent to me.
The psychological aspect, however, is spot-on and well developed. It almost feels like a family drama/tragedy more so than a psychological suspense novel, and that's perhaps why I felt disappointed.
It's an emotional story and the tale of a mother's worst nightmare. (Both, actually. Losing an 18-year-old and finding out your 18-year-old might be capable of murder...both horrific scenarios.)
If I’d had the right expectations going in, I might have liked it. If you like the premise, give it a go.
Both mothers suffer through an incredible trauma: One son is dead. One son is accused of murder.
Unfortunately, the whole story unfolds too slowly, and the ending felt almost incoherent to me.
The psychological aspect, however, is spot-on and well developed. It almost feels like a family drama/tragedy more so than a psychological suspense novel, and that's perhaps why I felt disappointed.
It's an emotional story and the tale of a mother's worst nightmare. (Both, actually. Losing an 18-year-old and finding out your 18-year-old might be capable of murder...both horrific scenarios.)
If I’d had the right expectations going in, I might have liked it. If you like the premise, give it a go.
steph1rothwell's review against another edition
4.0
The first thing that struck me whilst reading this fascinating novel is that you shouldn’t be too quick to judge people. For example, my first opinion of Alice was that she was cold and unapproachable. My first opinion of Lou was that he was a thug who had no respect. I was wrong about both, but it took a while, especially with Lou to see, what they were really like. My thoughts regarding Alice changed gradually as I saw her way of coping in secret and started to understand why she came across as so unfriendly.
Most of the narrative switches between Alice and Indigo, you see how they both cope, or otherwise, with the way their lives have been destroyed by Lou’s death. But there are occasional chapters that concern the other characters and you start to see what happened on the night out.
This is a crime novel but for me it was more a character study. How different people react to an impossible situation and how they try and improve it. It shows the strengths and the flaws in all of the characters and how important family and friends are.
Most of the narrative switches between Alice and Indigo, you see how they both cope, or otherwise, with the way their lives have been destroyed by Lou’s death. But there are occasional chapters that concern the other characters and you start to see what happened on the night out.
This is a crime novel but for me it was more a character study. How different people react to an impossible situation and how they try and improve it. It shows the strengths and the flaws in all of the characters and how important family and friends are.
aceray's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0