fordec26's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Great book lovw Dorothy's style of writing
nikcc's review against another edition
4.0
I love Dorothy Koomson and will always read her books. She manages to keep you guessing until the very end with unforeseen twists and turns.
elmogi's review
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jayneyh314's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
25 years ago, Nell and her best friend, Jude, found the body of a young woman on the beach late at night. Her identity is never discovered and she becomes known as the Brighton Mermaid after a tattoo she has. In the weeks after, Nell is still struggling to process what has happened when Jude vanishes. Now, Nell has given up her job to focus all her attention on finding out the truth about who the Brighton Mermaid was and what happened to her best friend but the closer she gets to the truth, the more danger she seems to be in and there is more than one person in her life keeping a secret.
I love Dorothy Koomson’s books, particularly since she moved to the more crime/thriller type. They are absolutely right up my street.
I don’t know how I managed to miss “The Brighton Mermaid” when it first came out but I’m so glad I’ve gotten to it now because I absolutely loved it. So much so that I ended up staying up way later than I should have last night because I couldn’t stop reading.
Koomson’s writing is so well suited to this genre. She builds up the tension and drops in little hints and clues before hitting you with the big twist. I’m not going to give away any spoilers but I didn’t see the ending coming at all.
I love Koomson’s characterisation, especially the way she creates such complex characters and believable characters. It’s easy to fall into the trap of making your “baddies” a little one dimensional and just purely evil and your “goodies” as practically angelic but she manages to steer clear of that and captures all the shades of grey that real life holds.
Nell in particular was a stand out character for me. She is a very complex person but ultimately her actions are rooted in wanting to help.
Lack of communication was a big theme in this one. So many problems could have been prevented or solved more easily if the characters had communicated better but, again, I think that is very true of real life as well.
I’ve found myself thinking about this one all morning whilst trying to do my job, which I always think is a sign of a really good book. I’d love for Koomson to write a sequel so I can see if any of my thoughts on what happened next are close to the mark.
Overall a fabulous thriller full of twists and turns.
elliep63's review against another edition
5.0
Keeps you guessing all the way to the end. Brilliant, thrilling read
noveldeelights's review against another edition
4.0
Despite having had a copy of The Friend on my bookshelf for months, I’ve still not gotten around to reading it and so The Brighton Mermaid is my very first introduction to Dorothy Koomson. It only took a few pages for me to realise it won’t be the last time I pick up one of her books as I quickly fell for the author’s captivating writing style.
Twenty-five years ago, Nell and her best friend Jude, discover the body of a young girl on a Brighton beach. Despite having the most wonderful mermaid tattoo, the girl is never identified and her killer is never caught. A few weeks later, Jude disappears. Now, Nell has taken a year off work to try and figure out what happened to Jude and maybe finally solve the murder of the Brighton Mermaid, as she was called.
The story is told through the characters of Nell and her sister Macy, and seamlessly switches between the past and the present. Both sisters have been affected by past events. Nell has commitment issues and is seemingly obsessed, whereas Macy is riddled with anxiety issues. Even knowing where they were both coming from and sympathising with them, I found both the sisters incredibly hard to connect to. However, their character development is incredibly intriguing and often made me almost forget about the mysteries that needed solving. These are complex, multi-layered characters that drew me in and kept me immersed throughout.
There are some truly shocking moments that sometimes made this quite the uneasy read. Even more so as I have no doubt these things actually happen. Sadly. I don’t want to say anything more about this because I feel the impact will be even bigger when you read this for yourself. Suffice to say though, they pretty much all involve an absolutely vile and despicable character that made my skin crawl.
The Brighton Mermaid is incredibly well plotted and a truly compelling story. It’s dark, haunting, harrowing and disturbing. The first part of the story is relatively on the slow side as the scene is set but hold on to your pants when things really kick off! I couldn’t at all predict the outcome and ended up being suspicious of just about everyone. This brilliantly written book has put Dorothy Koomson firmly onto my radar and I very much look forward to reading some of her other work.
Twenty-five years ago, Nell and her best friend Jude, discover the body of a young girl on a Brighton beach. Despite having the most wonderful mermaid tattoo, the girl is never identified and her killer is never caught. A few weeks later, Jude disappears. Now, Nell has taken a year off work to try and figure out what happened to Jude and maybe finally solve the murder of the Brighton Mermaid, as she was called.
The story is told through the characters of Nell and her sister Macy, and seamlessly switches between the past and the present. Both sisters have been affected by past events. Nell has commitment issues and is seemingly obsessed, whereas Macy is riddled with anxiety issues. Even knowing where they were both coming from and sympathising with them, I found both the sisters incredibly hard to connect to. However, their character development is incredibly intriguing and often made me almost forget about the mysteries that needed solving. These are complex, multi-layered characters that drew me in and kept me immersed throughout.
There are some truly shocking moments that sometimes made this quite the uneasy read. Even more so as I have no doubt these things actually happen. Sadly. I don’t want to say anything more about this because I feel the impact will be even bigger when you read this for yourself. Suffice to say though, they pretty much all involve an absolutely vile and despicable character that made my skin crawl.
The Brighton Mermaid is incredibly well plotted and a truly compelling story. It’s dark, haunting, harrowing and disturbing. The first part of the story is relatively on the slow side as the scene is set but hold on to your pants when things really kick off! I couldn’t at all predict the outcome and ended up being suspicious of just about everyone. This brilliantly written book has put Dorothy Koomson firmly onto my radar and I very much look forward to reading some of her other work.
rachie88's review against another edition
5.0
Breathtakingly good
Highly recommend this book to anyone. The characters are amazing your hooked into following their stories. Nell and Macy are so effected by one night from their past. As adults they're effected by the searches Nell makes to solve the mystery of a girl she found in the beach on that night in her past.
Highly recommend this book to anyone. The characters are amazing your hooked into following their stories. Nell and Macy are so effected by one night from their past. As adults they're effected by the searches Nell makes to solve the mystery of a girl she found in the beach on that night in her past.
thebooktrail88's review
You always know you’re getting a good read with a Dorothy Koomson book. This one made me shiver at the thought of what I might find the next time i’m on Brighton Beach! The fact that they call the body the Mermaid gave the novel an eerie tone from the start and this, coupled with the intricate emotions and relationships in the story really packs a punch.
There is more than one twist in the (mermaid’s) tale. Nell is an interesting character and finding out about the dark side of the people in the story was a very nice touch. Dorothy knows people well and weaves tales of emotional and psychological complexity.
Brighton Beach has many grains of sand - different textures, different colours, shades of grittiness and different ways of stabbing you when you least expect it.
There is more than one twist in the (mermaid’s) tale. Nell is an interesting character and finding out about the dark side of the people in the story was a very nice touch. Dorothy knows people well and weaves tales of emotional and psychological complexity.
Brighton Beach has many grains of sand - different textures, different colours, shades of grittiness and different ways of stabbing you when you least expect it.